Do What You Can

“It is the greatest of all mistakes to do nothing because you can only do little – do what you can.”―Sydney Smith

We all have dreams. We also all have lives. Lives full of interruptions, distractions, obligations, and responsibilities.

How are we expected to make time for growth when some days it’s all we can do to keep our heads above water?

When it comes to investing in professional development, it’s easy to fall into the trap of doing nothing because we don’t have time to do it all.

128 Tips to Make You a More Effective Leader is all about - practical application. So what if “a little” is all you can do? Maybe “a little” is all that you need. Sixty seconds is all it takes to make changes that matter. It’s rarely the big broad sweeping changes we make that create the most profound difference.

It’s the baby steps we take, shifting our behavior and putting sustainable habits in place that create the most profound changes. Do what you can, a little today, a little tomorrow…and eventually you will find yourself doing things you couldn’t before.

The only way to eat an elephant…is one bite at a time.

Are You In Good Company?

Stop and take a look around. Who are you choosing as your friends, colleagues, and employees?

Those who continue to bring out your best self…or those who put you in touch with your lesser self?

Studies show that if you want to lose weight, hang out with people who eat well and exercise. If you want to stay out of jail, hang out with people who live by strong moral and ethical values. If you want to be successful, surround yourself with people who are already successful.

It’s not rocket science…unless that’s what you’re into...in which case go ahead and surround yourself with rocket scientists.

In order to achieve the goals that are important to you, you must be in control of your choices. In order to be in control of your choices, you must first be aware of them.

Make a list of the 5 people in your life that you invest the most time with. As you look at each name on your list, dare to ask yourself one simple question:

“Does this person bring out my best self or put me in touch with my lesser self?” If the answer is ‘my lesser self’, maybe it’s time to invest some lesser time with them and invest more time with people who bring out what is best in you.

I’m Stuck! Six Ways To Release The Glue

We feel stuck for many different reasons, but when you boil it all down, most ‘stuckness’ comes down to some form of fear. It might look like overwhelm or denial or uncertainty, but at the root, it’s a form of fear. We are afraid. We don’t like to talk about being afraid, so we make excuses to externalize our fear. It’s not the right time to act. We haven’t figured out our plan yet. We need to gather more data. The economy is weak. Blah blah blah. These excuses serve to keep us even more ‘stuck’ because they allow us to justify why we are not acting. The problem… we are still stuck. If you are stuck, try one of the following actions and see if it helps you take even a baby step forward. Three baby steps give you one full step, so let’s get started:

1.     Remind yourself of what the compelling opportunity is if you were to move forward. What have you got to gain?

2.     Evaluate the real consequences of taking action now. It might not be as risky as you think.

3.     Brainstorm alternatives that reduce the risk – even crazy ones can show you a path forward, or can demonstrate that your current situation isn’t really that risky.

4.     Talk to someone who has taken this risk or a similar one and find out how they did it. Maybe you can apply some of their lessons learned to your situation, or maybe you can increase your confidence in yourself.

5.     Ground yourself in the wisdom and experience you bring and remind yourself that you have overcome many challenges before. Tap into the strengths that enabled you to do those and you may find they apply here too.

6.     Go away. Really! Get out of your current environment and get some fresh perspective. Stop thinking about where you are stuck and immerse yourself somewhere new and different. Even for an afternoon. Get a cup of coffee downtown if you work in the burbs. Get a cup of coffee in the burbs if you work downtown.