Ask This Question and Avoid A Life of Regret

Not sure whose job it is?Take the ball.Unsure how to get the work done?Take the ball.Waiting for someone to tell you to start?Take the ball.

Basically, it comes down to control and ownership.

If you decide to take ownership over something, it psychologically falls into your field of “stuff I can control.”

This is really useful for most things.

(There are some serious consequences for doing this in EVERY aspect of life, but in MOST aspects of work, this works pretty well.)When you frame something as “in your control” your approach changes. You start to see the ways in which you can make it happen.The neat thing is that even if you’re wrong and you “fail,” you’ll be left with the benefits of knowing that you didn’t leave any effort on the field. You did everything you could.No regrets.And when you only have one life to live, you really can’t afford to have many of those.The reality is that there are really very few negative outcomes to taking ownership and seeing most tasks and outcomes as within your control.

2 Minute Action:

What’s an excuse you’ve been making?What might you do if you couldn’t give that excuse anymore?What approach might you take if you had to make it happen even with your challenges?If you come up with multiple answers for this, try one of these today.The action may take more than two minutes, but what if it couldn’t?What if your life depended on it?(Because it kind of does.)

Don’t Quit Your Job. Here’s What You Do

What are you going to think about before you die?Did I create enough value for shareholders?Did I take enough time for myself?Did I work too hard for someone else?Probably not.You'll probably be more concerned about how much time you spent working for someone else’s dream.If that thought doesn’t create enough urgency to take action on your dreams, I don’t know what is.You only have the rest of your life.This reminder is for you, so you can remind yourself later.

2 Minute Action:

Create a quick list of small things you can do to start moving in the direction of your dreams.“Quit my job” is too big and complicated.“Find a supplier for Van Gogh tie fabric,” is more reasonable.Its up to you to make the time to start. It only takes 2 minutes.

What To Do When You Don’t Have The Skills

It’s not whether you have the skills—you can be taught.It’s not whether you know the right people—you can be introduced.

Its about 2 things:

Aptitude.Attitude.

These translate to:

Are you capable of learning the skills and executing the work ethic?And can you do the emotional labor of treating people with respect when it gets hard?Everything else is secondary.

2 Minute Action:

If you’re hiring for a position, applying for a position, or just staying where you are, these principles hold true.Many of you reading this are just starting your projects, or you’re getting to the place where it feels like you want to quit.Let this be a reminder not to quit today.Today isn’t your day.Take 2 minutes to consider what aptitude and attitude would be required to reach your dreams.Is that you right now?What would that person, the one who could achieve those dreams, do differently?I’m not asking you tus to be fluffy and philosophical.I’m asking you questions you can ask yourself later to get through roadblocks.If you want to be an anomaly, you have to act like one.Is that you right now?Write down a few characteristics of aptitude and attitude and make them happen, today.The more you do these things, the more a part of you they become.And the cool thing is:that’s up to you!