Life plan? A plan without action is just a dream…

by

Life plan? A plan without action is just a dream…

Have you been stuck in a rut? A never-ending cycle of planning, researching, and starting-but-not-quite, only to end up back at the drawing board?

Take action

I have heard this time and again as I have followed several influential side-hustlers/entrepeneurs… “take ACTION”… *don’t wait until you are ready* … take action now, and adjust the plan as it unfolds…

There are so many aspects of life that this is true, but probably most importantly when you are trying to affect change in your life. Action forces the envelope, pushes you outside of your little comfort box, and is how we learn! So go ahead, make mistakes! Then learn from them, and continue taking action!

Taking action, with all of the imperfection that comes along with it, is better than finding yourself in the same place only years older…

I recently stumbled upon aAction blog post of mine from years ago. Written back when my blog was more of a journal. Upon reading, I realized a few things. My life plan was nothing more than a bunch of partially realized or unrealized dreams. AND most of those dreams remain true today, more than seven years later.

There is one significant difference. I am now desperate to take action.

 

I’ve been listening to a lot of podcasts, reading a lot of books, and doing a lot of researching, learning, thinking… and I know that I must take more significant steps than I have in the past. I need to stretch beyond my newer comfort zone, and THEN keep stretching.

There are a lot of great leaders out there. Each has their own way of doing things. Many have a philosophy that they have come to follow. The most common thread among those I have been drawn to: ACTION is much more effective than planning, goal-setting, dreaming. While it is important to have the eye on the prize, it should be evolving, and it cannot evolve without taking steps in a direction beyond the current state.

 

Resources that I have found useful:

Chris Guillebeau – Sidehustleschool.com; $100 Start-up; Born for This

Marie Forleo – B-School; MarieTV

Cathy Heller – Don’t Keep Your Day Job (podcast)

——————————–

Drop me a note in the comments below, or connect with me on Twitter @ceilidhontherun or email me at trish at trishblogs dot com!

I invite you to subscribe to my blog using one of the options available on my page (email, rss, Google Connect, like my page on Facebook, etc.)

If you enjoyed this post, please do like/share it. You can do so using the easy share button below

Filed Under: Coaching, General, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,

2*4’s & Dreams

by

Does it take a 2*4 to the head, in the form of a major disappointment, to get me to take the risk?

It would seem to be so. I’ve talked about, dreamed about, planned about making a big dream a reality, only to back down and not follow-through many, many a time.

Now it’s taken a door of opportunity on another dream to open only to quickly slam in my face for me to realize there are very few things that I am interested in pursuing while forgoing my big dream and one of the biggest ones is not an option. I can’t make that one happen now. I’ve done all that I can, so it’s time to let it go (at least for the time being) and move onto the bigger dream, which coincidentally is also the one I have complete control over seeing through.

There have been a lot of barriers, but I’ve set my life up such that it can happen with minimal risk (relatively speaking), and now that the big life stressors are mostly out of the way (August 19th is fast approaching!) I think this major disappointment of late must be taken as a sign. I need to let it motivate me to stop chewing things over and just jump in with both feet! If only I could clearly visualize in my mind what that will look like!

For those who have been following, I suspect you’re thinking: Shut up and Do It already! Or stop talking about it at the very least.

Filed Under: General Tagged With: , ,

Dreaming again

by

Alright, so I’m dreaming again.

I know, dreams are the stuff life’s made of 😉 , but I think you have to actually DO something. ANYTHING. To pursue them.

Don’t you?

I’m working on working on that.

I know that sounds like anything but pursuing my dreams, but I think it’s a step. Perhaps not a big step. But it’s step. I’m seeking quotes, and checking out my options. I’ve written out a vision, and I’m exploring possibilities. I’ve been here before. So, why am I here again? I haven’t had the gumption. Haven’t had the gumption to DO it.

I know what the next step is. It’s moving forward. Moving towards the dream(s). Taking risks.

So here it is.

I have a much better understanding of my priorities. I KNOW I want/need a challenge while still having a great deal of flexibility. I have visions of great things, but they do not well afford me the flexibility that will bring my happiness. I am adjusting the vision, to something that is a sort of bridge. If I can achieve successfully this bridge, then the dream doesn’t HAVE to mean sacrificing flexibility. It’s true that money doesn’t buy happiness, but it makes it much more reachable.

Two dreams that I am determined to make happen while I am young enough to enjoy them: I am going to fuel my entrepreneurial spirit and become independent; I am going make a home where a lake is our family’s backyard; and heck, let’s throw one more dream in for fun – I am going to travel when I want, where I want.

I know these are not remarkable dreams. Many, MANY people have the very same dreams. So, why is it that so many of us do not make them happen?

I’ve been exploring just this, and what I need to do to change it for me. I’ll keep you posted.

Postscript: I do have one more dream, but it’s not one that I feel as much in control of. It’s to be pain-free. I have an appt in March for an interview with the Pain Self-Management program. Until then, I feel as if I have tried everything. Never give up. Right?

Filed Under: General Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Dream home(s) ???

by

Dreams are something that seem to come in and out of focus for many of us, and often just when we start to feel focused again, the dreams seemed to have changed shape, shifted direction, or altered in some way. There are just a select few (relatively speaking) who have that drive and constant focus to follow one dream for lengthy periods of life. You know, the Olympic champions, the world-reknowned artists, the award winning novelists, or the scientific discoverers…

My dreams tend to come into focus in multiples, not that they are all the same, just that they all look exciting and important, all at once. I have struggled with what to do with this for a long time, and still don’t know the answer.

It’s not just dreams about the big “what am I going to do with/make of my life?” questions, but also the accomplishments and overall picture of what my life looks like that do this. When it comes to homes and cars and travel, I have pretty simple basic tastes. Come to think of it, the dreams themselves can be pretty complex, but what I want out of them pretty simple. I don’t dream of a mansion of a home with 40 rooms and a indoor pool. But I do dream of lake frontage, space for a garden, and accessibility to transit. I love the thought of having the space to be nearly self-sustaining, (i.e. growing our own food, powering our own home) yet I want to reduce the amount of travel we have to do to get to things that we do need. Properties like those tend to come along with those mansion-like homes on them these days… Developers always out to make the most of the property value…

Lately, I’ve been really considering what sort of compromise we might be able to make for this to happen. Perhaps a smaller “city-center”, where we might be able to locate close to amenities and still have the space we desire? Or maybe we forget the proximity part of the equation and invest in more efficient modes of transport, like hybrid cars – or try to establish work from home (at least part of the time) and accept the long bus ride for the children to get to school?

Then there’s the conflicting nature of needs and wants. How do I fulfill my desire to always be close to the ocean, yet address the apparent health requirement my body has for a drier climate?

And what about the desire for a summer cottage on the ocean, where everyday we can walk out the door, hear the waves crashing on the beach and take a run in the sand?

That’s the great thing about dreams. You can be as farfetched as you like, THEY DON’T HAVE TO BE WITHIN YOR GRASP TODAY. We could have properties all over the world, but then how do we reduce our carbon footprint when traveling to them?

What becomes difficult is when we want to realistically pursue a dream. When it’s time to reign them in and look at what it would take to make them happen, and whether they are actually viable. In most cases we have to sacrifice one aspect of a dream in order to see another realistically within reach. This is where I get stuck.

How do I choose? What’s important today, isn’t always so. All I can do is try, and hope that upon reaching one dream, I’ll have it in me to pursue the next one. 🙂

How do you reconcile your dreams and when/how to pursue them? Or are you one of the few truly focused people?

Filed Under: General, Health & Fitness Tagged With: , , , , , , ,