It’s easy to get bogged down trying to find the fastest way
to lose weight or the best program to build muscle or just the perfect idea to start
a side hustle. We are focused on figuring out the best approach that we never
get around to taking action. As Voltaire once wrote, “the best is the enemy of
the good”.
I refer to this as
the difference between being in motion
and taking action. The two ideas
sound familiar, but they are not the same. When you’re in motion you’re
planning and strategizing. Those are all good things, but they don’t produce a
result. Action, on the other hand,
is the type of behavior that will deliver an
outcome. If I search for a better diet plan and read a few books on the topic, that’s
motion. If I actually eat a healthy meal that is action.
Sometimes motion is useful but it will never produce an
outcome by itself. It doesn’t matter how many times you go talk to a personal trainer,
that motion will never get you in shape. Only the action of working out will
get the result you are looking to achieve.
Motion makes you feel like you’re getting things done. But really
you’re preparing to get things done. When preparation becomes a form of procrastination,
you need to change something. You don’t want to be merely planning. You want to
be practicing. JUST GET STARTED!
