The certain road to success demands Action, perhaps more than anything else.
Consistent, habitual, massive, passionate, urgent, Action! If you’ve got that, sooner or later, you’re bound to succeed. The law of cause and effect guarantees it.
Yet, so often we get caught up in just thinking about it. Endlessly pondering our situation, our probable courses of action, or just thinking about random stuff or trivia that doesn’t even apply to our success, but lulls us along the path of mediocrity as we’re shuffled hither and yon by the whims of fate.
So how can I be certain to start every day with purposeful action? How do I maintain focus, dedication, and a sense of urgency to ensure each day – and throughout each day – that I’m consistently taking action toward success and not just thinking about it?
10 minutes ago, I was lying in bed contemplating the day ahead when the answer came to me…
I’m just lying there — calmly wondering what I should do for sure today, in which order and so forth, when suddenly everything changes…
In an instant, I throw off the covers and bound into action! The passion that’s driving me now is of singular purpose. It no longer matters what time it is. The lingering warmth and softness I enjoyed while cuddling my wife is erased from consciousness.
The ambient temperature is now of zero concern. What time is it? Am I hungry? Is it cold outside? Should I lay in bed a few more minutes? What should I do first – second – third? For how long? Why? None of this matters anymore. The only thing that matters now is ACTION! Fast, and sure…
…So what happened? How did I go from ruminating on the various possible uses of the day –teetering on the edge of uncertainty– to bursting with energy? Driven forth by passion, purpose, and clarity!
The secret? As I lay there in quiet contemplation –exactly one piece of information came floating by that changed the course of my entire day –setting in motion a chain reaction of hormones, accelerated heart rate, and primal fight or flight activity that ultimately has me sitting here, banging away at my keyboard and accomplishing one of my top priorities of the day (blogging), without regard for anything else.
The critical piece of information? It suddenly dawned on me that today is garbage day! Yep – that’s the magic bullet that ignited my passion and sent me into a flurry of activity with one purpose only. I absolutely had to get the trash gathered up, in the can, and out to the curb within a matter of seconds, or I was going to miss the opportunity for another whole week!
See, I usually take the trash out on Wed nights in order to predictably meet the 7am deadline for pick up week after week. But last night I forgot to do it –so I could either get the trash out to the curb right now, like pronto quicko, or I was going to be stuck in an unpleasant situation until next Thursday –and I flat out didn’t want that to happen.
Boom! All the important and careful considerations of life purpose swallowed up in an instant realization that the garbage truck is heading up the street and my trash isn’t out yet!
So what’s the point? Is garbage day really more important than all of my life goals and everything else I might accomplish during my short stay here on the planet? Does taking the trash out even compare to any one thing I might accomplish in a single day?
But of all the important things I could have been doing at that moment -taking out the trash was the thing I valued enough at that moment – with enough urgency – to propel me out of bed and into action without so much as another thought.
And somewhere in there, my friend, lies the key to success. Somehow, I’ve got to find or create a system to virtually guarantee my consistent, pointed, urgent, focused, action – every single day – all day long. Put that into play, stay with it, and my success is all but certain!
Tags: Action, Cause & Effect, Habits, Law, Success, Success Laws
