Making things happen and bridging the gap between an awesome idea and implementing it isn’t intuitive for everybody and it is what separates highly successful people from the not-so-successful ones. The question is, why are some people more productive and get things done and why are others procrastinating?
On a subconscious level, fear of failure is one of the biggest causes of procrastination, on the other hand, hard work, understanding of our strengths and high levels of motivation are the key ingredients to get what we want. Motivation is the drive that pushes us forward to go after what we want and putting our strengths to work will get us there.
Another key factor to making things happen is consistency. Just like we won’t get stronger if we only do infrequent trips to the gym, developing our ability to make things happen requires the same amount of dedication and cultivation like anything else we want to improve upon.
While everybody has their own habits and behaviors that work best for them, here are our TOP 10 tips to make things happen and get things done.
#1 Take Initial Steps Immediately
The only thing that ensures action is action itself. If you want to bring your awesome ideas to light, then you have to start to implement them immediately. Of course, you want to plan and make sure that you have all the information and resources together, but nothing makes things happen like action. Take the first step, even if it is very small and make sure that you get the momentum going and do it right now.
#2 Play to Your Strengths
In order to make things happen you have to play to your strengths, because if you force yourself to do something that you are not good at, your motivation will dwindle very quickly. Sit down and figure out your strengths and then create an action plan on how to put them to work right now. Nothing gets the ball rolling more quickly than when you play to your strengths and put your best foot forward.
#3 Find What Motivates You
It is so much easier to make things happen when you are passionate about what you want to achieve and with that boost your motivation to actually put in the hard work that is necessary to get things done. What is your motivator? Are you motivated by success, a sense of achievement or treating yourself every now and then. Know what gets you going and make sure that you do something to keep your motivation high every single day.
#4 Visualize Your Goals
When you decided on your goal, write it down on a piece of paper to help you stay focused on it and then take some time to visualize what your life will look like when you actually achieve this goal. Paint your future in vivid colors, visualize how you will feel, think and act when your goal comes to light and focus on this picture of your future every single day to keep you going to actually achieve it. The mind is a powerful tool to make things happen and when you visualize your goals, your mind will subconsciously do everything it can to help you make them become a reality.
#5 Block Out Distractions
We live in a world of constant distractions, but if we want to make things happen, we have to block out as many distractions as we possibly can, especially the ones that put us in a negative state of mind. Turn off the news, put your phone on airplane mode and close your email server and any tabs on your computer that may distract you from the task at hand. Close the door and put your entire focus on what you want to achieve and you’ll be surprised how much more productive you will be.
#6 Set a Realistic Deadline
Nothing gets us going than seeing a deadline looming over our head. We’ve all been there, we procrastinate because we know that we have plenty of time to complete a certain project, but once the deadline inches closer, we work day and night to make it happen. So set deadlines to get yourself going. But make sure that they are realistic because if a project should take about 3 months and you set a 2-week deadline you will only set yourself up for failure.
#7 Make Self-Deposits
When we make a promise to someone else, chances are pretty high that we actually uphold the promise because our relationship as well as our personal reputation is on the line. But when we make a promise to ourselves, it is much easier to break the promise. However, keeping the promises we make to ourselves builds up self-confidence and self-efficacy, the foundation of getting things done. So if you want to be unstoppable in getting things done, start to keep the promises you make to yourself even if nobody’s watching.
#8 Consume Less, Produce More
The problem for most people with a full-time job is that they come home after work every day and consume. They watch TV, spend hours on social media or go out for drinks. All of this means that they are consuming, which is detrimental to productivity. If you want to make things happen and want to get off the hamster wheel, you have to change something. Realize that it is what you do in your free time that makes all the difference between achieving greatness and living in mediocrity. So stop consuming and dedicate more time to producing.
#9 Choose Your Priorities
Every night before you go to bed, decide what your priorities are going to be for the next day. Research shows that if you make your ’to-achieve’ list before you go to bed at night, you help your brain to mentally prepare for it during sleep and you will actually make things happen the next day. Choose your priorities and you will make things happen.
#10 Don’t Be Afraid to Create Your Own Path
A lot of creative people have hang-ups in making things happen because they want to ‘rally the troops’ and get everybody around them to be on board with their vision before they start to make things happen. But this is the wrong mindset. You have to lead first and then everybody else will follow. Realize that it’s okay to disband from the beaten path, in fact, it is mandatory. Don’t be afraid to do things differently and go in the direction you were meant to go without looking back.
Nobody is going to make things happen for you. That’s your job. The only way that your brilliant idea will see the light of day is that you sit down, ignore any and all distractions and get to work. Of course, there is nothing wrong with enjoying yourself, but keep your end goal in the forefront of your mind and go after what you want with full force.
START AND FINISH ANY PROJECT
Joschi & Monika
#BoldNaked
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