Simple Steps To Effective Action

In trying to improve anything in life, we’re doing it in order to achieve one thing: better results.

We workout to get a positive result in our daily energy levels and body type. We put our phone down at dinner to get the result of having more connected and informed relationships. We read books, invest in courses, and seek perspective not just to fill our time, but to use what we learn to positively change the realities we experience.

And there’s only one thing in the world that influences the results we get, which are 'actions'. Our actions, and the actions taken around us, are the only things that have the power to shift how reality exists.

Knowing that action is the key to changing anything about your life, let’s oversimplify what goes into taking positive, empowering action.

First is knowing what to do. This is a process of getting clarity. Clarity on what you want to change and what you can do to create that change. Often times people stay stuck in inaction because they don’t know what action is most likely to produce the desired result, so they overthink it. Ultimately this means they lack the clarity they need to believe that doing the thing is going to be worth the time and effort. 

Second is knowing how to do it. This is a process of becoming more skilled or knowledgeable about the action. There are better, higher quality ways to do things, and the more you know how to take a certain action, the more leverage you create in the result you get out from it. The results produced from an action aren’t fixed… They exist on a spectrum. Becoming more effective and efficient in your action-taking helps you to get more from less.

And last is actually following through on doing it. This is a matter of discipline, doing what you most serves you, consistently, despite the circumstances around it. Even when you don’t feel like it or you’re afraid to do it. To overcome the internal resistance we feel to taking action, it’s helpful to put a system of execution behind it so that there’s a plan, commitment, accountability, and streamlined process that makes taking action easier. 

It’s no more complicated than that. To take action you need to know what to do, know how to do it, and to follow through on doing it. And there’s an unbelievable amount of opportunity for improvement within each of those areas.

But if all this serves to improve your life, which means to quantifiably improve the quality of your personal and professional results, then you need to be obsessed with taking the right actions.

I call this living intentionally, and being thoughtful about every choice you make and action you take. Every day I reflect on my choices, actions, and results to fine-tune my approach to creating my best life in my Self Improvement Scorecard. It’s my personal intentionality system, and if you want to see what it takes to get consistent in doing the things that achieve your goals, watch this video where I show you my Self Improvement Scorecard in action!