Stop Talking About What You Are Going To Do

Sitting in a bar booth in the not-too-distant past, I listened to someone speak of his grandiose plans to break into the restaurant industry. I have heard this plan so many times previously that  I could speak the specifics of it before the words came out of his mouth. I figured I must have heard this plan 10 times before. This time though I decided to break the “Groundhog Day” cycle by asking this gentleman what he has done to further his plan. Instead of receiving examples of actions to further his plan, I got the “deer in the headlights look”. I concluded that this restaurant planning was nothing more than a delusion similar to those hoping to win the lottery. I do not think this restaurant plan will ever be brought up to my presence again.

It is good to have hopes and dreams; the lack of action on any projects is the greatest obstacle to success. One good plan acted upon is better than 10 great plans fantasized about. This applies to grand strategies on your career as well as what you going to do today. Failing to act on any good plan instead of actually acting on it leads to lack a success and wasted time. Repeating this over time leads to failure by default against any possible competitors.

“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step” – Lao Zi

Even the simplest goals require an actionable plan. Sometimes what appears as simple goals actually require complex planning behind them. Getting girls requires a method to get them and place to bang them. Getting in shape requires the discipline to exercise and the facilities to conduct workouts in, no matter how simple they are. You cannot get a corporate job without owning a good suit. No matter how complex a goal is, it can always be broken down into simple tasks. Going back to the restaurant example, an oversimplification of the tasks involved would be acquiring seed capital, formulating monetary policy, handling local laws and ordinances, and making a business plan. These relatively simple tasks can be done from one’s computer in his free time. Other goals can also be broken down and acted on from home if one was willing and able to do such thing.

It seems motivation is the key obstacle to people who fantasize about success. How does one get into the mindset of acting on goals? Simple, you start small with little tasks to do. Do you have trouble accomplishing tasks? Write down everything you wish to do today. Check off each item as you do it. I have noticed that when I make such a list I get all the tasks done before 10 AM. When all of your tasks are done, make another list to accomplish before the end of the day. They can include simple things such as cleaning the car, taking out the trash, sending noncommittal and vague texts to various women in your harem, and other things you can be proactive about.

Another way to stay productive is to use your time is 2-for-1. Bring a book relevant to your goals while you wait for the doctor or getting new tires put on your ride. Use your phone to keep up on your industry of choice after moving furniture with your woman while she starts telling you her life story. In both instances staring at the ceiling was replaced with productive activity.

It is important to be proactive because a great many things in society exploit those who are reactive for profit. Those last minute airline tickets, that candy bar at the gas station at 3 AM, paying to rebuild an engine due to the worn out timing belt are all examples of things that get very expensive when they could have be very cheap. Planning and acting proactively is much cheaper than being reactive

Next time you are kicking back at the house with nothing to do and decide to fill in the void by firing up the Xbox, try writing down some things you could get done in that time instead. You will be surprised how much productive time is wasted when you watch the latest episode Game of Thrones. A man that stays on track towards goals and acts on them will be a lot closer to accomplishing all of them than anyone merely talks about them. In addition, working on accomplishing goals will give you new things to talk about.

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Douglas Heppner

Douglas is Returnofkings.com's Chief Investigative Journalist, booze expert and part time soldier. Send tips or hate to [email protected] or if you are on twitter @douglasfromrok