Nothing is ever perfect.  Nothing is ever finished. If you are truly committed to your blog, your relationship, your company, or whatever, you will realize that there will always be room for improvement.  Consequently, if you are serious about getting something off the ground, don’t aim for perfect, make the best bet you can with the information you have and aim for done instead.  Once it’s done/launched/started/etc, you have the rest of your life to spend your energy trying to figure out how to get it as close to perfect as possible.

But that’s not right.  We cannot transfer the same behavioral responses we have to physical walls to the mental walls we encounter.  First of all, although we may not want to lay claim to them, mental walls belong to us. They are ours.  No one else owns them but us.  Consequently, we make a choice about whether we allow our own mental walls to tell us to come through or stay out. Secondly, unlike physical walls, mental walls do not tell us where we should be (inside or outside), instead they are are simply a signpost of where we currently are.  Mental walls signal a position along our journey that is based on one’s perception of what is possible not what is actually attainable.

Those who choose to push through their mental walls will be met with great rewards.  On the other side of that wall there is renewed energy and a new sense of pride that comes with achieving something new in life.  There is excitement, inspiration and motivation attached to seeing what you are truly capable of.  And there is increased confidence and swagger born out of a realization that you can do more than you once imagined.

Neale Donald Walsch once said: “life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” So learn to break through those walls so you can begin living again. Don’t allow your own mental walls to keep you from achieving greatness.  Know that, once you push past that obstacle, there is new life waiting for you on your journey to the next signpost.

Experts have a way of dealing with phobias called exposure therapy, where they treat the disorder by exposing people to the thing they fear most, little-by-little and in a safe environment, until the sufferer is able to overcome their anxiety.  I discovered ET on My Extreme Phobia (see video below), where you watch people with extreme animal phobias go through a series of microactions (be in the same room as the puppy, touch the puppy, pick up the puppy…now be in a cage with 3 grown pitbulls) that ultimately end up freeing them from whatever fear has kept them from living their fullest lives. Watching the show made me realize just how applicable this approach is for those of us who are afraid to chase our dreams . 

If you are afraid to chase your dreams and not the type to jump into the water with both feet, there is another option: expose yourself little-by-little until you are ready to be immersed in it.  Pursuing our dreams can be scary, but continuously exposing yourself, step-by-step, to things connected to your dream can eliminate the fear that is connected to chasing them (because you allow yourself to realize it’s not as scary as you thought) and enable you to make healthy progress towards attaining your dreams at the same time.  Study the great artists and doodle on a piece of paper until you are ready to lock yourself in the house and paint until you have enough art to open a gallery. Build your company web site, incorporate your organization and craft your brand until you are ready to shout from the mountaintops that your company has arrived.  You see, when it comes to chasing our dreams, we don’t have to get there all at once, we just have to get there…even if it’s inch by inch.

A few years ago I realized that I was too blessed to ask for presents on my birthday, so, rather than asking for people to give me things, I started a tradition of asking those around me to give to themselves instead.  Today’s request: given that 2012 is the year of the microaction, I would like everyone to choose a microaction they will take this month.  For those that missed it, a microaction is a small action that will create a ripple effect in your life that will propel you into your desired future (think butterfly effect).

People have already started focusing on microactions.  Last week a few folks did things like put on their gym clothes, commit to write at a certain time everyday, etc.  Little things.  My ask of you is that you choose one microaction you will take this month and commit to it.  As always, feel free to tell me what your microaction will be by leaving a message in the comments or sharing on facebook or twitter (#microaction).  If you’re not the social media type, share it with those closest to you or just write it down in your notebook.  Whatever you do, make the commitment to make it happen…your future is depending on it.

And finally, I would be remiss if I didn’t say: thanks for the support, encouragement and love over the last 3 decades of my life.  I promise you that things will only get better from here.  I hope we continue to journey together.  Here’s to the next 3 decades together.

img src: getty images

But there’s a problem with big actions…sometimes the bigger the action seems (and/or the implication attached to it) the less likely we are to follow through.  The closer we get to taking “big” steps to create the future we desire (by doing things like quitting our jobs, following our passions, or starting our own companies) the scarier, sillier and more daunting those actions seems once the time to act is upon us.   This is one instance when bigger is not always better.

In fact, when it comes to making major moves in our lives, it is often better and easier to focus on the microaction(s).  A microaction is the smallest action one can take that will propel him/her into their future.  Rather than get stressed about changing careers at 30 and what your friends might say if you quit your good paying job, focus on the microaction: hitting send on an email that has your resignation letter attached.  Chances are, hitting send on an email is something you’ve done millions of times and so the actual act (pressing your finger to a button) is not a difficult task for you to do.  On the other hand, once the act is done, it’s done and you are off to your next season in life. While there may be complications along the way, like everything else in your past, you will figure out how to handle it.  The important thing is not trying to avoid the pain, it’s about doing what you need to do to usher yourself to the next stage of your journey.

In 2012, don’t allow your progress to get stalled because you get too overwhelmed with what seems impossible, boil things down to ittiest bittiest action you can take that will send you on your path.  Don’t overthink it.  Make 2012 the year of the microaction.  You’ve already spent 30 days strategizing; you know what the right answer is.  Now you just have to find the smallest and easiest actions you can take until you get it done.

What’s the first microaction you are going to take this year?  Leave your comments below or share with your friends in facebook or twitter (use hashtag #microaction).

There are three responses to fear: fight, power up and get ready for war;  flight, strap on our Nike’s and get the heck out of there; or freeze, become so overwhelmed with the feeling we become paralyzed.  Many of us never reach our full potential because we tend to only use the flight or freeze responses to fear. The reason we lean so heavily on flight and freeze is because we don’t believe the potential upside of what we have to gain is anywhere near the gravity of the danger we perceive lurks behind that door should we open it.  Consequently, we convince ourselves that it is better to run the other direction or do nothing, than face the pain that may occur should we fail. The problem is that we tend to overestimate the threat of danger; in other words, our perception is not reality. And while it is true that there is no promise that we will always be met with positive results when we chase the extraordinary, it is very likely that any potential negative consequences that may arise will not be as bad as we estimate beforehand (yes, the girl may break up with you, but it’s not going to kill you).

The correct way to learn to deal with fear is to learn to respond with the fight mechanism (unless someone has a gun to your head or you see an angry lion up ahead). Rather than run with our tail between our legs, we should learn to face our fears head on and push through to our desired ending. Metaphorically, this means allowing your heartbeat to accelerate (encourage/motivate yourself), tunnel vision to take over (prioritize & focus), and ears to shut down (stop listening to anyone who is not pushing you towards greatness). It means rolling up your sleeves, strapping on your gloves, and swinging with everything you’ve got until you’ve won. It means refusing to back down, even when things aren’t going your way, because you know you have too much to accomplish-and anything worth achieving won’t come easy.

Has fear robbed you in the past? Determine now that 2012 will not be a repeat and you will fight to do what you know your heart is telling you to do; flight and freeze are not options when it comes to your vision, dreams, passions, and goals.  Declare now what you will not be afraid to fight for in 2012. Leave a note in the comments or share a message with your friends in facebook and twitter (use #imnotafraidtofight as your hashtag).

Evernote:

Evernote is a multiplatform storage technology that helps you “remember everything.” Found a blog post you like, click and save. Want to write yourself a note, it’s super easy (audio included). Want to keep track of the people you met at that conference, Evernote Hello will help you capture their info and all of the details around the event. I use it for everything: storing blog ideas, capturing my billion dollars business ideas, maintaining all of my favorite data, powerpoints, articles, etc.

Asana

Asana is a web application “that connects everyone with what’s going on, their shared priorities, and who owns each part of the effort.” It’s essentially a project management/to-do list that you can share with your friends and colleagues. I use it to set personal and professional goals and have friends that have access to my goals so they can hold me accountable.

Track & Check:

Track & Check is a mobile app that “helps you overcome your bad habits and achieve your goals.” The app provides an easy way for you to pretty much track any goal and we are all know that, what gets measured gets done. I use it track some of my health goals (hours slept, calories, etc)

Sidenote: In addition to these 3 tools, here’s a book I strongly recommend you reading as well. It won’t take you more than 2 hours and the idea will stick with you for a lifetime.

Flinch:

Flinch is an ebook by Jullien Smith (of Trust Agents) so wonderful he made it free so that everyone can benefit from the ideas within it. The basic idea behind the book is simple: we were all born with a flinch mechanism that was designed to save our life in the event of danger (sabretooth tigers, bears, etc); however, we no longer wrestle with such life-threatening dangers and so the flinch is simply keeping us away from accomplishing great things (due to an invalid fear). Consequently, Jullien encourages us to embrace the flinch and push through the flinch towards greatness (or failure – however, he argues the failure probably really isn’t as bad as you imagined).

So there you have it. 3 tools and a book you should adopt/read before the year is out.

Can you tell them you saw major shifts happening (in your family, company, industry or world), tapped into them, and had a definitive impact on the people and things around you?  Can you tell them you are most proud of a few major contributions you made to the space where you gave the majority of your life each day?   Can you tell them that followed your passions and it paid off?  Fast forward; it’s your retirement party, what are we celebrating: the death of a job or the life of a career?  

When your retirement party comes, what are the 3-5 things you want to be able to say you did to contribute?  Are you on the right trajectory to accomplish those bigger things or are you simply carrying out the day-to-day routine of your job?  If you changed nothing regarding the path your feet are on, which place would it lead you?  It’s the #2012preaseason of what will be the best year of our lives and now is the time to make sure we are on the right path.