Nothing happens without action.
This is a parable that I will run with for now, even if its not entirely true, it is certainly a great illustration of taking action, and correcting as you go:
When Kennedy said in 1961 that America was going to the moon within the next decade, no-one knew exactly how. However, there was obviously a requirement for massive action. There was a limiting belief, and then with one speech an expectation for it to be shattered. Once that belief-hurdle was cleared, the particulars started being hammered out - the how. Now here is the interesting bit .. When NASA eventually launched their moon voyager expeditions they didn't know the exact trajectory they had to take, but they could compute the general direction. Along the way there were minor corrections for their course, especially as they got closer to their target. And that is the fantastic take-away from this - you don't have to know exactly how you are going to do something - make a start, take action, start learning, and then correct your course with the knowledge and experience you are building.
Aims of the hack
Anatomy of the Hack
The Details
Mindset
Action pushes aside fear and doubt. You may never completely remove fear and doubt (they can actually be useful) but action stops them being a limiting factor. It alows you to push on and start to get towards your goal despite fear, despite doubt. You can always deal with the fear and doubt at some stage, but always after you start.
Action creates positive energy. When you take action you allow yourself - give yourself permission - to feel good about taking positive steps towards something that you want or need to do. Even if the results are not immediate, just getting started and taking those first steps creates a positive momentum.
When we push aside fear and doubt and start feeling good about taking action it reinforces this habit, and changes the way you think about achieving goals.
Start small
When first learning the habit of action, you need to gain as much practice as possible. Start by making lots of small (even ridiculous) goals, challenges, missions, and take action immediately. Allow yourself to feel great by taking the first step towards those small goals. The more you do them, the less resistance you will feel, the more natural you will feel taking action straight away.
If you are working on a large project, a large goal, then the action you take will come in stages - in phases. You will need to chunk up your actions into smaller parts. Everyone knows this, but doing it and recognizing it and being able to take action is the skill that will allow you to achieve those large life-shifting impactful goals.
Ready, Fire, Aim!
Some finer details
Ok - so you have set a goal, and taken the first step, now what?
Model an expert
A great starting point even when you have no idea HOW you are going to achieve something is to do what others have done. But not just anyone - try and find a leader in the field, someone that is at the top of the game, a recognised expert on the topic. Take a little time and study what they did, what they would do. Then start doing that.
20/80
You don't need to know everything in order to take meaningful action. If you brush up on the 20% of the most important aspects of something then you are most likely to know 80% of what you need to help you achieve your goal. This is a generalization that may seem counter-intuitive but is a powerful principle. Tim Ferris does this exceptionally well - he breaks down a given topic (Shooting, surfing, business building, martial arts, fitness etc etc) to the fundamental skills and knowledge which allows him to achieve not exactly mastery but certainly excellent performance with a great likelyhood of success. He typically concentrates (really really hard) on these fundamentals that allows him to take massive action, very quickly. This could very well be the first action you take on something.
Summary
When learning to take action
- Start small - lots of small practice goals, and take action right away
- Start small - break up large goals into smaller steps and take action on the first one straight away
- Fear and doubt are no longer limiting beliefs when you take action
- Action promotes positive energy
- Concentrate on learning and mastering the fundamentals of something as a starting point
- Mimic, copy, learn from, do what the Experts in the field do.
Next Steps
This is a parable that I will run with for now, even if its not entirely true, it is certainly a great illustration of taking action, and correcting as you go:
When Kennedy said in 1961 that America was going to the moon within the next decade, no-one knew exactly how. However, there was obviously a requirement for massive action. There was a limiting belief, and then with one speech an expectation for it to be shattered. Once that belief-hurdle was cleared, the particulars started being hammered out - the how. Now here is the interesting bit .. When NASA eventually launched their moon voyager expeditions they didn't know the exact trajectory they had to take, but they could compute the general direction. Along the way there were minor corrections for their course, especially as they got closer to their target. And that is the fantastic take-away from this - you don't have to know exactly how you are going to do something - make a start, take action, start learning, and then correct your course with the knowledge and experience you are building.
Aims of the hack
- Action mindset - get up, do it, do it now!
- Overcoming limiting Beliefs
Anatomy of the Hack
- Form the habit of prompt action
- Start small - lots of small actions
- Ready, Fire, Aim!
- 20/80
- Modelling success
The Details
Mindset
Action pushes aside fear and doubt. You may never completely remove fear and doubt (they can actually be useful) but action stops them being a limiting factor. It alows you to push on and start to get towards your goal despite fear, despite doubt. You can always deal with the fear and doubt at some stage, but always after you start.
Action creates positive energy. When you take action you allow yourself - give yourself permission - to feel good about taking positive steps towards something that you want or need to do. Even if the results are not immediate, just getting started and taking those first steps creates a positive momentum.
When we push aside fear and doubt and start feeling good about taking action it reinforces this habit, and changes the way you think about achieving goals.
Start small
When first learning the habit of action, you need to gain as much practice as possible. Start by making lots of small (even ridiculous) goals, challenges, missions, and take action immediately. Allow yourself to feel great by taking the first step towards those small goals. The more you do them, the less resistance you will feel, the more natural you will feel taking action straight away.
If you are working on a large project, a large goal, then the action you take will come in stages - in phases. You will need to chunk up your actions into smaller parts. Everyone knows this, but doing it and recognizing it and being able to take action is the skill that will allow you to achieve those large life-shifting impactful goals.
Ready, Fire, Aim!
Some finer details
Ok - so you have set a goal, and taken the first step, now what?
Model an expert
A great starting point even when you have no idea HOW you are going to achieve something is to do what others have done. But not just anyone - try and find a leader in the field, someone that is at the top of the game, a recognised expert on the topic. Take a little time and study what they did, what they would do. Then start doing that.
20/80
You don't need to know everything in order to take meaningful action. If you brush up on the 20% of the most important aspects of something then you are most likely to know 80% of what you need to help you achieve your goal. This is a generalization that may seem counter-intuitive but is a powerful principle. Tim Ferris does this exceptionally well - he breaks down a given topic (Shooting, surfing, business building, martial arts, fitness etc etc) to the fundamental skills and knowledge which allows him to achieve not exactly mastery but certainly excellent performance with a great likelyhood of success. He typically concentrates (really really hard) on these fundamentals that allows him to take massive action, very quickly. This could very well be the first action you take on something.
Summary
When learning to take action
- Start small - lots of small practice goals, and take action right away
- Start small - break up large goals into smaller steps and take action on the first one straight away
- Fear and doubt are no longer limiting beliefs when you take action
- Action promotes positive energy
- Concentrate on learning and mastering the fundamentals of something as a starting point
- Mimic, copy, learn from, do what the Experts in the field do.
Next Steps
- Practice small goals with your children.
- Make them take action immediately, and allow them to revel in the success of taking action and completing small tasks.
- Help your children break down larger tasks into small manageable chunks, and then help them take action straight away