You miss 100 percent of the shots you never take. – Wayne Gretzky
What does that mean?
If you don’t do it, it won’t happen. If you don’t take a shot, you’ll never make the goal. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? But how many times have you waited too long before starting something? That usually doesn’t end well, does it?
Getting busy, take some shots, even if they are long shots, that’s what this saying means to me. How about you? Have you taken a shot at something recently, or are you still waiting?
Why is action important?
This quote is all about action. Hockey is a fast game, split second timing and fistfights. We’ll focus on the non-fistfight portion of the action in this post. What the Great One is saying is that if you don’t take action, nothing is going to happen.
Action is what gets things started. Effort keeps it moving. Persistence and perseverance gets it finished. But without action, you have procrastination. As my grandfather said to me (far too often) “You can’t finish what you haven’t started!”
Action is a positive word. People want to be “where the action is,” they want “in on the action,” they want to “see a little action,” or be known as a “man (or woman) of action.” What are you waiting for?
Where can I apply this in my life?
I’m a bit of a perfectionist. I have a tendency to wait until everything (or nearly everything) is perfect before moving forward. As you might imagine, that rarely happens (and even then, takes a long time to set up). This leads to lots of problems, a lack of results being prime among them.
Using the hockey analogy, that’s like waiting until every defender and the goalie are lined up so that no one could possibly block the shot. It makes for an awesome shot, but the “perfect alignment” probably only happens once a season. You have to keep taking shots on goal if you ever expect to score a goal.
Action is part of our lives, day in and day out. The question you should ask yourself relates to your involvement in the action. Are you acting, or are you simply observing the action?
While I was writing the prior paragraph, the thought came to me that I hope will clearly illustrate the difference. Are you more like the gardener pausing between weeds, looking at the ants, or are you just standing there, watching the ants in action? The ants are busy, the gardener is busy, but the observer is just standing there. We all are the gardener some days, and the observer on others, but which are you most of the time?
Action is a habit. If it isn’t currently one of your habits, then all you need to do is make it a habit! It’s really not that difficult, all you have to do is do something over and over and over, and pretty soon it becomes a habit.
Most people aren’t born drinking coffee or smoking. But some people, through habituation (the act of making something a habit) become coffee drinkers or smokers. Just do something on a regular basis for a long enough time and whatever you are doing becomes a habit.
So, how does one make action into a habit? By doing things. On a regular basis. Many people have ideas. Some (myself included) will sit and think about things for a while before doing anything. Others will immediately set out and try to do it. I believe there is a middle ground.
If you watch the TV show Mythbusters, you will see them take an idea and often try it out, but in a smaller scale or try just a part of the idea. This allows action to take place very quickly (which I believe is a good thing) and deeper thinking, planing and preparing to occur before going “full scale” as the Mythbuster crew often says.
If you have been around for a while, you’ve seen some of my posts involving how to make a plan. Start with something you want to accomplish. Make a plan, with some details. Break it down into chunks that are small enough that you can take action and accomplish some of them every day. Then, and this is the most important step, DO IT! Select one of the shorter tasks and do it immediately. Don’t hesitate, don’t wait, get it done right now.
Taking this action helps you build momentum, it builds your belief that you can get it done, and it shows your commitment to the project. If you are trying to get in shape or lose weight, make sure every day starts with a little exercise. Even if it’s just a few push-ups, a few crunches and some jumping jacks, you have started your day day by honoring your commitment with action. If you do it for a month or two, it will become a habit.
A habit of action. How does that sound to you?
From: Twitter, @MotivateDaily
confirmed at : http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/w/waynegretz378694.html
Photo by Loimere
