Have you ever had an idea that truly excited you, but you waited to act on it, only to find that when you did eventually take action it wasn’t all it seemed cracked up to be?
Or worse, you never acted on it at all because you never got around to it?
Throughout your life, how many inspired and worthy ideas ended up in the trash heap of discarded possibility?
How many of those ideas would you really liked to have acted upon?
What stopped you from taking action the moment you felt the excitement of possibility and that tingling sensation through your body?
For most of us, we fail to act on an idea for one of three following reasons:
- The timing is “not so convenient,” so we postpone by telling ourselves we will do it later.
- We believe we don’t have enough resources.
- We want to test waters. We want to be sure of the feasibility, before we do anything about acting on the idea.
Often, people want certainty that the idea will work, and they seem to bind themselves with rules and ideas about what and how anything needs to happen in order for anything to be successful.
We believe we may suffer a loss or think ‘what if’ we end up in failure often leading to a paralysis and failing to execute the idea at all. But at what cost?
When it comes to executing an idea, it’s sometimes worth doing it than not doing it at all. Even if it’s done poorly.
Now if you are high on conscientiousness and are a perfectionist by nature, you may rubbish this idea. You may even cringe. “If anything is worth doing then it better be done well” is the idealism so many of us were brought up with or conditioned to. If you cannot to things properly it’s better to not do it at all.
Imagine, how many things in our life don’t get done at all because of our concern for perfection wins over the practice of “just doing it?”
5 reasons that make you indecisive!
- Overanalyzing: Paralysis by analysis though cliched is very real. Overthinking is the bane of potential high achievers. Overanalyzing and overthinking leads is the death-knell for ideas, opportunities and in many cases, even relationships.
- Self-doubt: Will I be able to do it well? Will I do it perfectly? Do I really have the ability? Am I dreaming? are some of the questions we ask in self-doubt. Remember, when you wait for conditions to be right before you act, there is always a reason not to act.
- Self-criticism: When you lead life with the belief that anything that is done has to be not just done well, you have to get it right the first time, then you tend to focus more why anything you do is not good enough. What is success? Who defines what constitutes success? Most of the time it is you and you are your own worst critic. It is a vicious cycle which leads to high level of stress, frustration and depression.
- Procrastination: Have you ever felt like you could have done somethings much earlier than today, maybe even a year back? As someone said wisely, “A year from now you will wish you had started today.” While postponing certain decisions can sometimes be productive, often it is more destructive when it turns into a habit. Imagine, how many times in your life have you said “I will see later,” and that “later” eventually ended up being never.
- Indecisiveness: Indecision creeps up on you slowly and silently, killing your self-confidence, focus and creativity. Often those who are indecisive end up with anxiety, lack of concentration, and limited growth. A decision taken is far more worth than not taking it at all. At least you know if your idea works, learn lessons and move forward. Indecisiveness kills progression and effects your mental wellness as well.
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