“Ideation without execution is delusion” – Robin Sharma
How long does it take you to go from seeing or hearing a fantastic idea, and implementing it into your life?
Immediately? Later that day? Next week? Next Year? Never…?
This post is all about getting you to think about your speed of implementation – the time between hearing a great idea and putting it into action.
What do most people do when they see a great idea?
“Oh, that’s cool! I should do that!….” and then with the attention span of a hamster, they’re off searching for something else entirely, idea discarded.
What if you took ONE great idea a week and took action on it? Do you think you could change your life dramatically by executing a single new action a week based on that idea?
What Are You Waiting For?
About three years ago, I read a fantastic write-up on the benefits of low-intensity morning cardio and thought that it would be a great addition to my morning routine. In this case, my speed of implementation was terrible.
Fast forward three years, and I’ve JUST dropped the guillotine on that idea last week after coming back from Vegas. I’ve officially executed this idea into my life and am now doing 20 minutes of low-intensity cardio as soon as I roll out of bed 7 days a week while drinking 1 litre of water during that time.
And you know what?
I’m kind of pissed I didn’t do it earlier. I feel great! Mental clarity is up, morning energy is up, breathing is smooth and crisp. My low speed of implementation held me back from improving my life.
Don’t Trust Yourself – Change The System
So next time you stumble across an idea that absolutely inspires you and will improve your life in a big way, stop!
Simply by the act of stopping, you will now be aware.
Ask yourself, “Is this idea worth implementing into my life? If yes, what’s the best way to implement this idea into my life consistently?”
The answer to this is going to be based on the idea and your own life, but I want to give you one guiding tip as a framework to work from.
You CAN’T depend on merely willpower or enthusiasm to get this idea into an autopilot zone for you. It may work for awhile, but when you hit that day when you get overwhelmed with work or you’re super tired, you’ll slip.
So use this enthusiasm to change the SYSTEM.
What do I mean by that?
Make it so that it’s ridiculously hard NOT to take action on this idea every day.
For example, recently I’ve been wanting to get off my computer by 6 p.m. at night at the latest, and was having trouble sticking to that as I would get caught up answering questions or reading some interesting material.
My system changing solution?
First, I downloaded a program that automatically shuts my computer off at 6 p.m. after giving me a warning at 5:50 p.m. Second, I set up an Admin account on my computer and changed my account to a Standard User (on Vista still), and set up Parental Controls on my main account to lock me out of my account from 6 p.m. – 5 a.m.
Like I said earlier, the best way to change the system is going to suit the idea that you’re trying to implement, but get a little creative and you shouldn’t have an issue.
So I ask again, what’s your speed of implementation? What other ways have you found to get yourself to take action on something consistently?
