“Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.”
~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
Yesterday we talked about having a plan or goal and breaking it down into small stepping stones that will carry you from where you are to where you want to be. But what do you do when you don't know all the steps to take? What do you do when you can't see the path from beginning to end, when you can only see the first few steps? Most people don't do anything. This is known as "paralysis by analysis".
It really does not matter if you don't know how to do something. You only need to know the first step to take. If you know that much, you take a "leap of faith". Boyd K. Packer describes this as "the moment when you have gone to the edge of the light and stepped into the darkness to discover that the way is lighted ahead for just a footstep or two."
Jack Canfield also talks about this faith in the movie, The Secret, when he talks about driving from California to New York at night. You don't have to see from one coast to the other to get there. All you need is for your headlights to show you the next 200 feet before you. And once you have traveled those 200 feet, your headlights will reveal the next 200 feet, and so on, and so on until you reach your destination.
But some of you may worry about starting off in the wrong direction because you can't see the full path. I struggle with perfectionist tendencies from time to time, so I can totally understand that concern. Let me share with you an example of where I learned to overcome that struggle. I have aspired for many years to be a popular fiction writer. I was working on one particular story and decided to outline the story from beginning to end to prevent me from getting bogged down in the writing of it. I managed to complete 90% of the outline, but was unable to finish it because I couldn't quite see how to wrap up the story without dragging the ending out and boring the reader with explanations and dialogues that lacked the action to hold their interest. I agonized over this for weeks (yes, weeks) and made absolutely no progress, whatsoever.
I finally came to the realization that, while I didn't have a neat and tidy ending laid out, I had the bulk of the novel planned and ready to write. Why worry so much about an ending that hasn't even had a beginning yet? So I started writing, trusting that the ending would present itself at some point in the process. The funny thing is that within two days of writing, of getting the creative process flowing and putting it into action, the pieces started to fall into place. I still don't have it completely nailed down, but I am very close and have full faith that it will not even be an issue when I get to that point in the story. But even if I end up with a poor ending to my story, it is only a first draft. Any story can be written, but only great stories are rewritten!
So don't worry so much about the how, focus on the now and take the first step in faith!
Action Steps:
1. Write down something that you have been procrastinating because you don't know fully how to accomplish the task or goal.
2. Identify and write down the first step that you can take.
3. Take the first step in faith!
3 comments:
When you describe people who have trouble creating success, you describe me. And taking the first step is DEFFINATELY the hardest part for me as well.
Keep posting. Your entries help me to want to be better than I am. Realizing my goals and dreams is something I deffinately need help with. I'm tired of feeling inadequate, and like a failure. Like I'm not going anywhere, and never will!
I know I have a lot of potential! I generally have a lot of confidence in myself as a person. I like myself. I just have a hard time thinking that others will like me as well. Because of that (I think) my confidence in creating success for myself is low. (I'm really just guessing here).
Y'know, I've been complaining about not being able to find any books that capture my attention lately. Maybe that's my spirit's way of telling me I'm reading the wrong stuff.
I know you've read a lot of inspirational books. Suggestions?
Adam.
Adam,
I totally understand the "I'm not going anywhere and never will!" mindset. Once you slip into that way of thinking, it is hard to break out of. It is possible, though, to break free of it and gain confidence in both yourself and your ability to succeed.
Do you remember the plan for The Millionaire Marathon? One major goal broken down into 28 simple steps. Creating a million dollars is a huge undertaking, but it isn't so daunting when you take it one step at a time.
Do the same thing with whatever goals you have, Adam. Reduce your focus from the huge, far-off, seemingly unobtainable goal and bring it in closer by focusing on the first step in front of you.
One of the best ways to build confidence is to create DAILY victories for yourself. Do something every single day that will bring you closer to that goal. Start by only taking 15 minutes a day to do something ... ANYTHING!!!
Now I didn't necessarily say complete something; I only said do something. 15 minutes isn't much time, but if you make that 15 minutes more important than sleeping, eating, reading and watching T.V., you will be experiencing daily victories that are moving you forward. And eventually you will want to expand that 15 minutes to 30, then an hour, then 2 hours (which, incidentally, is the minimum most coaches recommend you set aside for working on your goals every day).
As you are going through the process, though, refuse to be discouraged. Remember that every great tree is felled one chop at a time, every great book is written one sentence at a time, every great fortune is built one dollar at a time. And just like a baby, you will crawl first, then furniture walk, then toddle, then walk confidently, then break into a jog, then a run and finally a sprint that will carry you well past your finish line and beyond!
Two books that would be really good to start with are:
The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
&
The Success Principles by Jack Canfield
I would highly recommend purchasing both of these books and reading them from cover to cover with a highlighter for marking sections that catch your attention and a pen for writing insights and inspiration you receive in the margins. And if you still have your copy of The Millionaire Marathon, there are a list of books at the end that I recommend as well.
Just remember, though, reading and being inspired are not enough. You must take the first step!
See you at the finish line!
Thanks for that! And no, I haven't finished the secret yet, but I am close!
Post a Comment