A few years ago I watched Tony Robbins expose the deception of trying. It forever changed the way I look at my efforts.
If Tony Robbins isn’t your cup of tea, how about Yoda from Star Wars fame. He said to Luke after Luke said he would try, “Do. Or do not. There is no try.”
After thinking about these issues, I ran across a great post on The Difference Between Trying and Doing by Michael Hyatt, which pretty much says what I want to say here. So instead of reinventing the wheel, I would like to encourage you to…
- Watch the Tony Robbins’ video for a few minutes starting at 9:30 (note that there is some bleeped profanity) or read the post by Michael Hyatt.
- Consider if you have used the excuse, “Well, I tried,” when your plans don’t turn out quite like you want.
I should qualify this post by saying that sometimes a goal needs to be put in a timeout chair because to move forward would not be healthy or wise. But be very clear that this activity is off the front burner—actually, off the stove completely and on the shelf until the right time so you don’t trick yourself into believing you’re trying when really you’re taking no action at all.
Also, if you are a recovering perfectionist or are performance oriented, you may be trying too hard or in the wrong way. Sometimes you’ve done all that you can do, and since you can’t (or shouldn’t) control others, you have to rest in the fact that you’ve given yourself the best opportunity to succeed. The rest is in God’s hands.
Having said that, usually there is a specific action that will take us from where we are to one step closer to where we want to be. What’s the step for you?
Today I’d like to encourage you not to make an excuse that you’ve tried, therefore justifying in part your lack of progress or success. Instead, do something today—whatever it takes—to get it done. The path may be different than you want or expect, but hey, a challenging path makes for a great movie plot. Make the most of the storyline of your life.
How about taking that next step with the book you want to write or are writing. Here are some simple steps you can try take today. Pick one and try to get it done.
- Determine a working title and subtitle. Check out my blog post on how to write a winning title and subtitle. Come up with something, even it it’s not the final name you’ll use. Give yourself something to react to. Something (even if it’s bad) gets you going somewhere better than where you are right now.
- Write and print out your title and subtitle on a piece of paper. Put it up in a prominent place where you can see it daily.
- If you’ve not started to put together an outline of some kind, sit down for just 10 minutes (no more) and write down the main ideas you want to share in your book. Just use short words and phrases. (These will later become the sections or chapters of your book.)
- Sit down and write an email to yourself or someone you trust and explain why you want to write a book—the motivation, the topic, the impact you hope it will have. (This will become a part of your book too in some way.)
- If you’re in the process of writing and just haven’t written for a while, set aside an hour to write this week…and write.
If you want some regular reminders to do what you want to get done, check out a site like this that will send reminders to you.
Or just share what step you’re taking below.