Talking About It = Not Getting Things Done

 

Have you ever had a nice long conversation with someone and left feeling so energized and inspired that you wanted to squeal out loud?

You came up with so many ideas and actions you could take to reach your dream?

You felt like wow, I can do this! I’m ready to rock my life! Yes! Yes! Here I go!

But then you hung up the phone and what did you do…nothing?  Sound familiar?

Why does this happen?

Well…you’ve fallen into the trap that many of us do (and probably everyone does from time to time)…talking feels like action.

Talking makes you feel like you are doing something. It gets you so jazzed up that you can barely contain yourself.  You almost forget to do something about the ideas you came up with simply because your excitement and the brewing possibility feels AMAZING.

How do you turn those idea-inspiring mastermind meetings into action & results?  That’s the million dollar question right?

Well here’s the secret.  Give yourself a specific action to take after the call.  Encourage the other person or people on the call to give you “homework”.  Instead of walking away with a head full of ideas, you’ll have a clear to-do list and know that you better get it done before your next check in!

Here’s how it works with my accountability partner.  We have a set time to chat every week on the phone.  We always start each call by asking each other, “What did you get done for yourself this past week?”

Even though it’s a bit depressing to have to say when we didn’t get what we wanted done, it’s great because we are immediately given ideas on how to turn it around and get back on track.  Sometimes we get our to-do list done and sometimes we don’t. That’s life.  Like for instance, I missed a meeting with a very key part of a product I’m developing.  I missed it because I’ve been in the middle of another huge product launch right now.  I was so bummed because this meeting is a huge part in me knowing what my next step is.

As soon as I talked with my partner, I was able to see clearly that I just needed to reschedule it after the crunch of the launch is almost complete. And that’s what I did as soon as I finished the call.

During the call we give each other feedback and encouragement on anything we ask for, talk about other things going on… It’s never totally business. But here’s the key…we always bring each other back to the question: “What action will you take this week?”

Since we’ve started meeting at a regular time, sharing our ideas, giving each other homework, I can see some major advances in the places we wanted to improve.  Some of it is top secret right now, but I’ll share soon!

So, let me give YOU homework today:

1. Find an accountability partner – someone who consistently fires you up.
2. Schedule regular, scheduled – weekly check-ins.
3. Before you end each phone call, give yourself and the other person their “homework”.

Remember it’s all great to talk talk talk…but you know the saying, “talk is cheap.”  Make your accountability partnership a valuable one that puts you into action toward real, tangible outcomes.

Extra Credit: Right now – before you close this page – leave a comment below when you’ve finished the home work.  Let’s make sure you didn’t merely read this and think you were taking action.

Ok, one final thought here…because I can’t stress enough how important this one concept is to any area of your life you want to improve.

You will feel the difference when you take action.

I know you think you feel great after a big ideas session with a friend…that same amazing feeling gets doubled as soon as you take action.

Don't believe me? Try it.