Take One Small Action Now

Knowing something and not doing it is the same as not knowing.

It’s easy to develop unhealthy habits. Without ever meaning to, you can get very comfortable with the way things are, even when they aren’t what you need them to be. Change is difficult even when you know you need to change.

The difference between the results you’re producing now and the results that you want to create are the actions that you need to take to close that gap.

You don’t need to read a post like this to know what you need to do. You already know what you need to know; you need to take action.

• You know, for example, that you don’t have enough opportunities in your pipeline, least of all the kind of opportunities that will move the needle. You know that the right action is to prospect. But prospecting is difficult, and it’s easier to rely on inbound marketing then it is to make cold calls.
• You know you need to develop the content to nurture your dream clients. Writing and producing that content is difficult and time-consuming. Thinking is difficult, as is creating. You know you need to do the thinking and the creating, but it’s easier to live in reactive mode allowing other people to dictate what you do next.

The most recent thing to grab your attention is not likely what deserves your attention.

• You know you need to have a difficult conversation with someone. You are aware that the conversation is not likely to go well, but you also know it is necessary, and that problems don’t age well. You resist having this conversation because it is challenging and you’re not sure how you can achieve the outcome you need. Without taking action, there is no breakthrough.

This idea is true in every area of your life. You know what to do; the willingness to act is the only thing that’s missing, whether the area you need to improve is your physical health, your financial health, or your relationships.

One Little Action

The way you break the cycle of “knowing and not doing” is to take one seemingly small, simple action. Taking one small action can allow you to break through your resistance.

• If you know you need to do more prospecting, make one single phone call as soon as you start work tomorrow. You’ll probably get somebody’s voicemail. If you do connect with someone, it’s unlikely that you will get an appointment on your first attempt. But it won’t matter; you will have broken through the resistance. The next action is exponentially easier.
• If you know that you need to create more content, sit down and write a list of 10 things you believe your dream client needs to know now. That’s it. Taking 30 minutes to make your list of 10 big ideas will have broken your resistance. It will have also helped you break through the logjam of not knowing what content you need to create.

I’ve made it a habit of always having the most challenging conversation I need to have first thing in the morning. By doing so, I’ve eliminated the resistance. A lot of times these conversations go better than you expect, but sometimes the train comes off the tracks. It doesn’t matter; the rest of the day is like coasting downhill.

What is it that you know you need to do that you are avoiding?

What’s the single action you need to take now in each of these areas?

Successful people do what unsuccessful people are unwilling to do. It’s not that the successful know something that others don’t know. It’s that they take action.