In about 10 minutes, I finished watching a thought-provoking motivational piece that advised me to get to the grind and work harder than my peers. I jumped off the bed, took a bath, brushed my hair, and wrote new goals on a piece of paper. Then I tucked the paper in an old book and went to bed.
The following morning, I ordered two self-help books on Amazon with the mindset of becoming an overnight success. Even Mark Zuckerberg can’t beat this vibe, I said to myself. As days went by, I found myself drowning in those little dopamine-induced actions – avoiding the task and pretending to be working.
If you can relate to this, it’s fair to assume that you need help with getting out of the illusion of progress and start taking actionable steps toward achieving your goals.
What is Action Faking? 🔗
The concept, of “action faking” or “faking action” is relative and it’s what we do when we are either working to impress other people or avoiding the real work at hand. Look around you, there are action fakers everywhere – From online marketing gurus to startup founders and NGOs, you already have a long list.
The act of just doing is overrated 🔗
As humans, we always find logical explanations for our actions and inactions. Because we don’t want to procrastinate, we build unnecessary hype around our goals. Yes, great things start somewhere, but it is a waste of time if you aren’t making practical decisions toward that sentimental goal.
“Practical” isn’t: 🔗
- Buying as many online “systems” as possible to achieve financial freedom
- Printing t-shirts and business cards when you should be building the business
- Attending every seminar and workshop when you should just start and let your failures be the building blocks
- Advertising an idea and taking credit for painting the imagination
- Organizing irrelevant events to feel like you are driving social change
I can go on and on with the list. If your goal is to eat fried chicken but you keep sharpening the knife, you might just end up having the world’s sharpest knife.
Goals are half-baked without strategies 🔗
Whether you are about to run a small business, found a startup, or sell your services online, simply working on your idea don’t just cut it. Is it result-oriented? For every decision, is it result-driven? Action Faking is deadlier than procrastination and inconsistency combined. If, for the tiniest reason you’re doing what you are doing to look good and ignoring the reason why you started, you are wasting time.
Eat the frog 🔗
I understand there’s no measure or standard for when to stop learning before taking action. But when it feels like you’re hearing the same thing over and over again but with different strategies, then it’s high time you ate that frog!
Know who you listen to 🔗
When you have a $1000 goal, you don’t want to listen to a millionaire. Why? Because he/she doesn’t know what it feels like to aim for $1000 based on the current economic situation. If such a millionaire organizes a paid event, you’re just going to be a number and your money will only make him/her richer.
Find someone close to what you want to be and listen to them. Take actionable steps to achieve that goal and go from there.
Quit the fluff 🔗
If you’re all about impacting other people or selling your services, you need to take the bull by the horns. Get aggressive with your approach and let your prospects know that you mean business. Stop teasing your customers with what you can offer and do nothing to help them. It kills any opportunity for your business to thrive and ultimately affects your goals.
What should you do? 🔗
Take some minutes to organize your thoughts and examine where your efforts are going. Is it talking to convince people and not doing anything? Or consuming content and not taking action on them?