Tell me if this sounds familiar
You create this amazing plan to get you the results you want – the goal is so clear….
And then shied away from implementing the plan?
or fallen into the trap of analysis paralysis?
or talked yourself out of the plan?
Of course – we all have –
It’s that feeling of being overwhelmed at the decisions to be made and the result is we decide to do nothing.
When we’re paralyzed by too many decisions…
Our motivation evaporates.
Our confidence crumbles.
To make the decision and get into action feels impossible. Fear steps in – what if it’s the wrong decision, or it fails, or or or….
I’m well acquainted with this concept – so much so I created a name for it that I think sounds much kinder than procrastination or paralysis – I call it the perpetual planning loop.
Let me be clear – there’s enormous merit in having a plan because it gives us clarity and focus which is essential to attracting more clients, and having a business that supports our dream lifestyle.
If we don’t know what we’re striving to achieve, then we’re resigning ourselves to flailing around without clarity and relying on luck or serendipity to deliver positive outcomes.
However, when we’re spending more time and energy on the act of planning rather than acting on our plan, we’re stuck in the perpetual planning loop – never pass go, never launch, never take the action to get the results or having the impact we desperately want, need, desire and deserve.
The perpetual planning loop is sneaky and deceiving because it can create the illusion of productivity, the illusion of being in action instead of genuine productivity.
The perpetual planning loop looks like this:
We create a plan –
then doubt creeps in and so we re-design the plan –
and then fear comes up, so we revise our plan –
and then perfectionism takes over so we rethink the plan, and so on
Sound familiar?
The result – we never implement or act on our plan – perpetual planning wins and our situation remains unchanged. Success goes unclaimed, we remain stuck in the same place we were last week, last month, last year.
All we’ve gained is another story to tell about what could have been — another ‘what if’ or an ‘if only’ to add to our personal narrative. We use it to lament our lack of progress, using it to beat ourselves up.
Have you been there? Can you relate?
Not a happy place, is it?
Pushing on through this fear and doubt, battling through the procrastination with confidence – even if it’s contrived confidence — that’s where you find the rewards, the success, when you’re visible to your ideal clients and shine in your uniqueness.
That’s where you have a profitable business.
Of course, acting on our plan carries a risk of failure. It demands that we confront our vulnerability, accept discomfort and push outside of our perpetual planning loop. It requires that we leave the relative safety of planning, and act on our plan.
You’re familiar with the phrase – ready set go –
The perpetual planning loop is ready set set set set
Are you ready to leave that here today, right now?
To shift into ready set go?
To learn a new approach to break free from the perpetual planning loop and get you into action?
Great –
Do we agree that creating a plan has its place?
Absolutely – you want to make sure you plan effectively and lay the appropriate groundwork.
What you want to avoid is perpetual planning. Planning is a comfortable place to be–you get to think about big ideas without risk of actually following through on them and risking failure.
Unfortunately, while perpetual planning seems to keep us from failing, in reality, it keeps us from succeeding. This is the harsh truth – the reality – when you remain in the perpetual planning loop – you fail by default.
To avoid the trap of the perpetual planning loop, make sure your planning phase isn’t taking longer than it would to simply complete the task. If you’re using your planning time to procrastinate on taking action, it’s time to reverse course and start acting on your plan.
Do we agree that taking action is essential?
Strategic, aligned action is essential to the success of every business.
If you fail to take action, your business will simply wither and die.
Equally dangerous is simply being busy for the sake of being busy. That’s when your actions aren’t aligned with your stated goal or objective. Aimless action and busy-work are unlikely to deliver the impact you desire. Instead, they’re coping mechanisms — a way of prolonging and delaying – of allowing procrastination to be in the drivers seat and delaying your success.
So what’s the solution? How do you escape the perpetual planning loop and get into aligned action?
I call it Your Action Plan
It’s defined as setting up a sequence of action steps that must be taken for your plan to succeed.
I’ll repeat that – its setting up a sequence of action steps that must be taken for your plan to succeed.
Action is important, and planning is important–Your action plan is the integration of both. For each element or step in your plan, you assign specific aligned actions and a timeline – that will take you to your desired outcome.
Think of these as your action steps to success or success steps.
When you plan specific actions for each element or phase of your plan, you’re creating sustainable momentum.
Here’s the thing – taking action when doubt, fear, uncertainty tells us not to, is a skill that must be practiced repeatedly and diligently. Just like every skill we’ve developed, it takes time, repetition, and commitment to master.
Taking action demands that we accept the uncertainty, that we embrace the possibility that this might work or that it might not work, and that we give it a go just the same — wholeheartedly and with our full and focused attention and intention.
Each time you follow through on your Action plan, you’re strengthening your DOING muscle.
Strengthening your doing muscle – with each incremental action you take – also boosts your self-confidence, self-belief, self-worth…. and yes, your net worth! With each action you gain more experience and that brings you one step closer to achieving the success you dreamed of when you started your business.
My goal, my intention, my desire for you is to kick procrastination to the curb, hop into the driver’s seat and get into action.