In 1963, Mary Kay Ash, resigned from her job out of frustration from being passed over for promotion. She came up with the idea of writing a book to help women in business. What emerged from the book idea was a business plan that was later implemented and turned into a multimillion dollar business. In 2001 at the time of Mary Kay Ash’s death, Mary Kay cosmetics had over 800,000 representatives in 37 countries with total annual sales of over $200 million.
According to Mary Kay Ash,
Ideas are a dime a dozen. People who implement them are priceless.
Everything starts with an idea and you have the capacity to generate lots of ideas. You can also find plenty of ideas online on just about anything you can think of. Yet many people fail to act on their ideas and the world ends up missing out on the potential that was never realised.
Why do people not act on their ideas?
Here are some of the reasons people have come up with on why they do not take action on their ideas.
- Lack of confidence
- Life gets in the way
- Too busy with work
- No motivation or drive to act
- Lack of support
- Discouragement from friends and family members
- Fear of failure
- Lack of know how
- No money
- No plan for action
- Don’t know how to do it
- Too young
- Too old
I am sure you can add one or two more reasons to this list.
It doesn’t matter why you have not been taking action on your ideas. What matters is your answer to this question. Do you think you would be a better person and the world you live in would be a better place if you make a decision today to act on some of your ideas? If your answer is yes, then you need to stop making excuses and start implementing some of your ideas. Here are some things to help you get started.
10 Keys To Help You Become An Ideas To Action Person.
- Put first things first – There is always something you can do now with the limited time, skills and finances available to you. Find out what that is and then get started doing it.
- Believe in Yourself – Your belief in your self will be aided by your having a strong sense of purpose. What do you want in life and from life? With a sense of purpose, you will find it easier to commit to ideas that align with your purpose. You purpose serves as a screen that filters ideas.
- Get connected with the right people – People are your greatest ally and your greatest adversary. You will need to keep searching until you find people who will encourage, inspire and motivate you to get going with your ideas.
- Equip and train yourself – If you haven’t got the right skills and experience, then go and get it. Read books, attend courses or take up employment in companies that will provide you opportunity to get the skills your need.
- Set goals and realistic targets – Everything in life takes twice as long and costs twice as much. Set SMART goals and then proceed to create realistic plans that will lead you to achieve your goals.
- Set realistic time frames – Every new project is an adventure into the unknown. This will almost always result in costs and time delays you could not have envisaged at the start. Build some margin into your time estimates.
- Research to refine your ideas – Your idea in its current form will undoubtably undergo numerous refinements before you start. However, do not try and overdo the research. You know enough to get started and you will discover the rest along the way.
- Be committed to your success – Have you got a success mindset. Do you believe that you are going to make a success out of your life. If you do, then commit to your belief by taking actions that will bring you closer to your stated objectives.
- Find a coach or mentor – A coach is a trained professional who by asking the right questions is able to draw out the potential within you. A mentor is someone with experience in what you want to do. Mentors will share their experiences and give you tips that can help you avoid mistakes along the way.
- Be willing to adapt and change – Be flexible. Be a person who is open to new ideas and is willing to try new things. As you review and measure your progress against set markers, be willing to change course if necessary. You will need the wisdom to know when to persevere and when to pivot.
Decide on your next step and then act. Or leave a comment and tell me what else is holding you back.
