It happened again last night.
I was in a group of entrepreneurs and there was one who has studied more success stories than most libraries hold. You know, reading and studying all the greats like Napoleon Hill to the point of being able to quote directly from the book.
What good is that?
It’s only good if those words are followed by action. You see, because of no action, my friend’s business is still not off the ground. It’s still very much in the “dream phase.”
Funny thing about dreaming. Everybody does it. We’re all walking around with dreams in our back pockets waiting to be unleashed. But the sad truth is unless we take it out of our pocket and formulate the necessary steps to make it happen, it is really useless.
Useless.
The dream won’t save the world. Won’t help anyone. Just plain won’t happen!
I see this all the time with would-be authors. they are always talking about writing a book. Something like, “Well, when I write my book, this or that will happen.” It might. In fact, they’ve been talking about it for years.
Newsflash: Talking about it doesn’t make it happen!
You have to actually take pen to paper or hands to keyboard and write for a book to eventually show up! Are you connecting the dots?
If you have a dream (and I know you do), try putting “Steps to Achieving My Dream” down on paper. Then, start working through each step. It’s a simple formula really. It’s called doing something!
Take action every day, no matter how small, and before you know it that dream is a concrete accomplishment.
It’s not easy.
No, it requires some work on your part and you have to decide what you are truly willing to do to make it happen. For example, do you long for a profitable online business, but can’t quit your day job just yet? Hey, that’s fine. How about adding a little hustle and getting up 1 hour earlier every day to work on your dream?
Making the dream work is work!
Or maybe you can try giving yourself 8 full hours of focus time on your day off? Yes, making that dream work IS work itself but if you really, really want it, you’ll do whatever it takes.
Some call it paying your dues.
That’s exactly what it is. Read any biography of a successful person and you’ll see some dues paying in their stories. What are you willing to do? How bad do you want it?
Those are questions only you can answer but I can tell you from experience, it’s all worth it!
Good luck!
Peace,
-Martha
Martha
Martha Giffen is a speaker, consultant, and best-selling author of "Be Social Be Rich." She coaches biz owners on how to reach more customers in less time, and dishes it all out with a warm southern flare!
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{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
Martha, what a wonderful post. Just a heads up to those dream seekers… the road is going to need paving, it may get lonely on the journey, and there probably won’t be many detours along the way, but if it’s wanted bad enough; it’s certainly attainable. I am not speaking much from experience as far as making my dreams come true, I am currently on the journey to having them come true. The most important part of the journey is sticking to it. There’s going to be times when you are sitting there looking at the evidence and it’s not going to add up, there might even be doubt that it’s never going to happen… keep going, keep the faith, and remain hopeful.
However, none of this that you’ve stated or that has been stated in the comments will even matter, if there’s never a starting point.
You’ve got to start somewhere!
Great post!!
Deeone recently posted..Speaking Life Into Your Situation
Oh so true!
I’ve been woefully guilty of the ‘all hat, no cattle’ syndrome and like so many other commentors here, it took a kick in the pants from a mentor to get me into action.
Because at the end of the day, the only talk that’ll have anything to show for itself is the stuff you took action on.
Bliss-ings, and thanks for the nudge!
The goddess known as Jacqui
Jacqueline Gates recently posted..Blog Posts, Like Knickers, Should Be Elasticated!
Jacqui, amazing what those mentors can do for (to) us!! I hate to say it but we all seem to need to kick in the pants! Thanks for the Bliss-ings!
Martha,
Wonderful post!
I’m one for taking action instead of sitting around waiting for stuff to happen. I’ve been observing a lot of people who are more comfortable just saying the words.
They haven’t pieced together that we can’t just about it, we have to “do” it.
Like Nike.
Thanks for the reminders….and for your inspiration!
~Keri
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We can all fall into the “talk about it and doing nothing” trap. I was lazily taking my sweet time writing my book, but when I mentioned it to my mentor, Pat O’Bryan, he promptly made me give him a deadline for the finish date! Yikes! I was happy sitting around writing a book, not actually finishing it! It took that quick deadline to give me the accountability I needed.
So glad you stopped by!
I’m so guilty of this! Big ideas & few actions. Thanks for the kick in the pants
gina recently posted..Just put the cat on the top shelf behind the yogurt…
Gina, how about focuses on ONE idea, then take ONE action every day until you see that one to fruition? THEN, the next idea will be easier to implement! Glad you’re here
Hi Martha,
Totally agree, talking about it doesn’t make it happen. We need to study and implement as much as we can. I guide women in success and spirituality and I am seeing more and more that people think they can ‘dream’ or ‘visualise’ ideas into existence.
If that was the case we’d all be sitting up on clouds somewhere doing nada,
Have a great day Martha,
Eleanor
Eleanor, so glad you stopped by! I always love conversations with people who guide others. I think you would agree that visualizations are so important, they actually help your dream come into focus more rapidly but at the same time, you have to be moving forward with your actions.
You’re right about the misconceptions around visualization. They are ruining people’s perspective!
Hi Martha,
Dream, do. Powerful message here.
Personal development is a moment by moment endeavor that includes moving into consistent action. Yes, study the greats….but do what they do. Act! Now! What you know is useless, until you use.
The small, silent guide might take you through all sorts of discomfort, disappointment, heartache, on the way to your goal. You can never experience these character-forming emotions while sitting on a cushion of comfort, sharing wise platitudes, telling people how big your self-help library is.
Act on it!
I learn new ideas and put them into action immediately. This is the only way I succeed, and the best way to succeed. Keep acquiring book smarts, and immediately turn them into street smarts.
Thanks!
Ryan
Ryan Biddulph recently posted..3 Simple Steps to Put Your MLM Marketing Campaign into Overdrive
I like that you admit that the road is full of bumps. So many times, those are our own fears surfacing. We have to take our mind to a higher place (some will think this is too woo woo) but if we keep our mind focused on our dream, the bumps will be insignificant!
I know more than a few people who need to read this blog Martha. I constantly hear them expressing the same wants and desires but year after year they do nothing about it. It’s so frustrating to witness!
Liax
Lia recently posted..What Would You Really Like to Do?
Yes, Lia, I think one of the most frustrating parts is they don’t even recognize that they’ve been talking about it for years! We see it so clearly and they don’t!
Great info, Martha. My mentor, Dr. Stan Breakthrough Harris, teaches to pay for your success with preparation. Anyone who thinks they can glide through life without effort–well, I wonder how they got to that space and what they d there.Hmm. Probably nothing.
Ali Bierman recently posted..Do You Live Your Story?
Oh Ali, I love that sentiment. “Pay for your success with preparation.” If we would all get ready for it and TAKE ACTION, success would be on everybody’s plate.
This is what I keep telling people as well. Obstacles exist because they help you to keep a constant check on whether you really want the goal you are aiming for or not. And if you won’t do everything you can to get past the obstacle to your supposed goal then it’s really telling you “Don’t do this if you don’t want it, pick another path before you put in too much effort for no reason here” which is a positive thing too. Sometimes we head towards a goal and never reach it because we get part of the way and realise we now have another direction to go in but what we learnt from the first path was what we needed to know anyway.
I tend to always watch whether other people follow up on what they say they want to do and I always ask for details of how they plan to do so because I know that I might be often looking for signs of how I would achieve the same result and that may not be the way that they work. But working as a writer, I get people coming up and asking me for advice and telling me what they have always wanted to do and so I make an effort to see if they are doing it or not. Or if they have come up against an obstacle that’s made them rethink and go off in a new direction.
So this is a great post! I look forward to reading more!
Cheers, Marisa
Marisa Wikramanayake recently posted..The Ultimate Blogging Challenge Day 2
Thanks a million for that insightful reply! Words of wisdom never rang more true. I think you can copy and paste this and have an awesome blog post for your blog! (If you don’t, I just might! LOL) So glad you dropped in!