Thinking Too Hard and Doing Too Little
Goals. Dreams. Hopes. Wishes. So many wishes.
Do these sound familiar?
- I wish I was (fill in the blank) pounds skinnier.
- I wish I made more money.
- I wish they understood me.
- I wish I wasn't so busy.
- I wish I had something to do.
- I wish I had that new book.
- I wish I would write a new book.
- I wish I would have (fill in the blank).
Wishes become hopes. Hopes become dreams. Dreams become goals. And reaching them takes action.
I hope I will, I hope they can, I hope I can...
You can. You just have to do. At least that is what all of the self-help motivational videos and books are saying.
Its exhausting.
There's too many tricks. Too many lists. Too many ways. Too much advice. The trick? Finding the list that works in a way that makes the advice work for you!
Did I mention its exhausting?
When you get to the nitty gritty dirty truth of it all, it takes really hard work. And time.
Now time is something I can speak to. I waste a heck of a lot of it. Most of it is spent thinking too hard. That's right, its possible to think too hard and do too little. When there is so much to think about, its easier for me to shut down and quit. I can't get out of my brain! So I resort to something I started in high school. Listing. Charting. Coloring. Okay, okay, so coloring started much earlier, but you know, it never quits being fun. Growing up too much to enjoy seeing color is just a horrible thing! I digress....
I love lists and charts and calendars and programs that make me organized. My bill paying system consists of a hand written list and a calendar. My planner is color coded so that I can quickly find what's next and engage my creativity while keeping track of everything. Family and friends are orange because orange is a fun color and they are fun. Green means it has something to do with photography, blue means it has something to do with writing and yellow means I'm working out. Pink are the hours I put in at the office at my "real job."
It seems that all of the listing and coloring and extra charting wouldn't be worth it because of the time it takes to get it all organized. I just take some time on Sundays to pull it all together and adjust as the week wears on.
It's also very necessary while turning wishes and hopes into dreams, and dreams into goals, and goals into reality. Its getting stuff done.
I'm an intense thinker. I deliberate and analyze and pull apart and put together a million thoughts and ideas. And there the wishes grow. I write them down as they come. I have a notebook full of post-its. Write it down, stick it in my wallet. Some of them are "what was I thinking" and others are yes, do that thing! Sometimes I catch myself thinking "I hope I can get that done."
What about the really important things? Facts need action, not just "I wish" or "I hope so." Facts: I need to be at a healthy weight so that my heart doesn't give up. I need to earn a living to support myself. I need to have a dream to look forward to or I will live a boring, stuck existence that will not benefit myself or anyone else.
Yes, BIG dreams. Thinking about them is NOT ENOUGH. It takes DOING. And you know what? All of these podcasts and motivational speakers and writers are giving me tips on HOW to shift from dreaming about it to setting it as an actual goal. Goals require ACTION. Its what the getting-it-done is made of.
I want to be an encouragement. More than that. I want to be inspiration. I want to let God use these divinely infused gifts of words and pictures and music and love and pour them all together somehow to make your day better! That's the dream. The goal is to make money while I'm doing that. I am going write a best-selling book. I am going to shoot a prize-winning photograph. I am going to open an art gallery that celebrates artists. And I am going to have a blog that is read by thousands. Yes, THOUSANDS!
Stop thinking so hard and start doing. Lists and charts will fail if they don't include doing.
What do you want to do? What gives your life value? For 25 years, I was valuable because I was a mom. I was devoted to raising six incredible little people into just as incredible adults. As I adjust to empty nesting (okay, it's been six years but it was the HARDEST adjustment I've ever had to make), I am setting big goals for myself.
If I can raise up these amazing humans, then surely I can raise up myself!
If you don't have humans, then you might have people or pets. You are still purposed. Think (not too hard now!) about what you want to do! And start doing.
I want to hear what YOU want to do. Please leave me comments so that I can learn more about YOU. :)
What tools am I using to get 'er done? My current tools are these:
- Girl, Stop Apologizing by Rachel Hollis (and I joined the #gsaclub! https://thechicsite.com/)
- Donald Miller's daily email that gives me business tips (https://storybrand.com/)
- Marie Forleo's videos (at https://www.marieforleo.com/) that are examples of being strong-willed and fun
- My Bible
Let's not think so stinkin' hard and start doing! If we have a community of doers, then we have a community of accountability and inspiration.
Let's DO IT! The exhaustion is worth it.
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