“It may be a very small
circumstance, but it is the direction and not the magnitude that is
to be taken into consideration.” – Genevieve Behrend
This quote was taken from a
powerful work of Genevieve Behrend called “Your Invisible Power.”
She explains that once you clearly
identify your “ideal conception” or vision for your life you can
rest assured the initial conditions needed to realize that vision are
either already in your life or will soon come into view. When a
condition arises that requires action, simply act in accordance with
that vision. It is at this point the quote referenced above becomes
pertinent. What exactly does she mean by this?
When talking about living our
vision and achieving our goals, we often take the stance that
everything has to line up perfectly before we can embark on our
journey. As though all the traffic lights were required to be green
for us to leave our driveways. It is an all too common approach. How
many times have you heard someone you know, maybe even yourself say,
“when the time is right”, “when it comes together”, or “when
the opportunity presents itself”? Maybe you have even thought you
couldn’t start because you didn’t know how
you were going to get to the outcome you desired.
It has been said that that luck
is opportunity met with preparation.
Yes, opportunities must present themselves but this is not a problem.
The problem lies in people’s lack of preparation. People fail to
prepare. Preparation is acting in accordance with your vision on
whatever you can do right now and as new circumstances present
themselves. This is key to the process for 2 reasons. First, what
good is an opportunity if we are not prepared for it? Second, the act
of preparation often creates opportunities that wouldn’t have been
available had we not prepared ourselves.
When we are approached to invest or
partner in someone’s business, our first response is always the
same. “What is your business plan and what steps have you taken
already?” Obviously, these are things we would want to know before
making any decisions but there is another, more subtle reason for
this question.
We want to see if they are
practicing the principles we are discussing here. An overwhelming
majority tell us that they have taken no steps or have no business
plan because they were unsure of how to get the business off the
ground… often they add that they were hoping we could help them
with those issues.
Every once in a while someone
gives us a business plan and the steps they have taken. Of course,
the overwhelming majority of these
people have plans still require work and some of their steps involve
mistakes that will create more work. Here is the point: We would
rather see business plans and steps taken that contain mistakes or
incomplete items because of lack of knowledge than nothing at all.
Why would we want to partner with
someone who won’t take risk being wrong? Why should we put in more
effort than they are willing to for their
business? Why invest in someone who is not preparing to succeed?
Any one of us can walk a thousand
miles just by putting one foot in front of the other. It is not a
matter of trying to figure out how to leap one mile at a time but
simply doing one small thing toward what you desire.
This is a powerful
concept you deserve to grasp. Do not get hung up on trying to figure
out the best way to cut corners. Do not try to calculate every move
that has to be made before taking action.
Take ANY step NOW! Put just one
foot in front of the other and continue to do so. Leave NO stone
unturned along your path. Following any clue, no matter how
insignificant it may be, can make more of an impact in your
achievement than you could ever imagine ahead of time.
Do not hesitate! Take your first
step today. It matters not what the first step is only that you are
taking it. Buying a book, researching online, calling a friend with
experience, creating your purpose and vision statements, learning how
to write a business plan, creating a contact list, or countless other
small steps are still steps in the right direction.
Create momentum
by taking action. Create success
by taking action in the direction of your desire.
By,
Michael Bloxton,
President & CEO,
oneMYnd, LLC.