There are two ways to take action…
One way looks and feels like anxious action. It’s the stuff we do when we force ourselves to stop procrastinating.
The other way looks and feels like inspired action. It’s the stuff we do when we can’t stop ourselves from doing whatever it takes to reach our goal. I call it VELOCITY.
Anxious action is what we do when we feel overwhelmed, frustrated, desperate to get things done.
Inspired action is what we do when we feel confident, in control, excited to get things done.
Ironically, you first have to slow down before you can speed up in a way that actually moves you forward, as opposed to spinning in those crazy-making circles.
Here’s how you do that:
1. Ask yourself what it is you really want. Then, “No reeeeaaaaallllly, what do I want more than anything?”
2. Then ask yourself why you don’t have that thing you want. Don’t lie to yourself here. Why don’t you have what you want? This is so important I’m going to ask it again in italicized LARGE caps:
“WHY DON’T YOU HAVE THE THING YOU SAY YOU WANT SO BADLY?
3. Notice the feeling you have in that exact moment. Is it frustration? Is it fear? Is it panic? Is it green and slimy?
Anxious action and its flip side, procrastination, comes when we are demotivated to do something. We put it off. We stall. Or we push through, cursing under our breath. If it gets done it’s only because you had to white-knuckle your way through it.
Inspired action is fueled by motivation: the true desire to go after what we say we want.
The reason we don’t have what we say we want is because there’s an underlying belief that going after it won’t feel good. For example, wanting to lose weight but not losing weight is caused by the fear of deprivation or starvation or “doing without.”
Likewise, when we say we want to go into business but we don’t grow a business, it’s because there’s an underlying demotivating fear of failing.
We get stuck in viscosity, velocity’s opposite.
What’s your viscosity level–what keeps you from taking inspired action? What’s the feeling behind it?
And then… are you willing to slow down enough to really look at and understand the muck that keeps you stuck?
[optinform]
