238. The 2 hidden barriers to action

Are you wanting to take action on something and struggling to break through the procrastination?

It's not a lack of motivation, time or opportunity....

In this episode I reveal the two hidden barriers to taking action - ENERGY and RESOURCEFULNESS.

After this episode you will be ready to dive into that goal you've been putting off for too long.

Transcript

Hello welcome back to That Voice Podcast.

Exciting news.

Something I have talked about for more than 3 years is finally going to happen…

I am officially writing a book.

Woohoo!! It’s called VOICEPRINT and it’s all about how to leave a lasting impression when you speak. Your voice is as unique as your fingerprint. And this book features not only my holistic approach to voice and speaking training, but lots of little personal stories that I have not shared before.

So very exciting.

This episode isn’t about the book, it’s about why I took so long to take action on this book.

And of course it’s how I help my clients take action on their speaking – we often need a taste of our own medicine don’t we.

I used to think Oh you just need motivation. If I was more motivated I’d write the book. And you might think oh I’ll do more speaking or posting when I’m motivated to do it.

But motivation is fleeting. It’s like a spark, that fades before anything happens.

And then the next excuse creeps in.

TIME. I’ll do this once I have time for it.

My book writing always went to the bottom of the list. Because I prioritised clients and workshops and social and this podcast and you know what happens when things are at the bottom of the list? They stay there, because the reality is. You never have time, you always make time. You find time. Not having time for something is just saying it’s not a priority for you.

Then there’s the falsehood of waiting for an opportunity. When the opportunity presents then I’ll write my book. I was waiting for some kind of sign – and the universe always delivers signs when you ask for it and listen for it. But as Mel Robbins says no-one’s coming to save you. And just like you make time, you also need to make opportunities.

So when it comes to taking action you’re not being held back by a lack of motivation, by a lack of time or by a lack of opportunity.

Breaking through procrastination by taking action comes down to two things. And identifying these things helped me take action in my life, and they will help you too, because they’re not the things we’re usually told.

So the first one is ENERGY.

This is the fuel for action.

If you’re burnt out of overwhelmed or emotionally drained, taking action can feel impossible.

And I remember at times last year, even into early this year I felt so lazy, I was literally lying on my bed or watching TV and I was like, what is going on? But with all the family stress and other curveballs, I was low in mental, physical and emotional energy.

And if you’re working to overcome perfectionism this is really important. I’m a recovered perfectionist, thank goodness, but back when I was experiencing this. The more I procrastinated, the more I beat myself up, and the more exhausted I felt.

When your energy is not thriving, you’ll go from the spark of motivation to the snuff of burnout in an instant. I was working with an amazing client last year, CEO of a start up and we were working on her presentations and speeches and confidence, but there was so much going on, she was feeling so under the pump, so burnt out, her health was suffering, she was getting recurring colds and things like that. So there was no way nailing her presentation was even o the radar, because her energy needed to be replenished first.

So if you’re wanting to take action on something and struggling to ‘get the motivation’ ask a different question. Do you have the energy for it?

And this could be a day-to-day thing which can be solved by one of the big five – more sleep, more food, more drink, more exercise or a shower. It could be related to your cycle if this applies. My late luteal phase into menstruation I literally feel my energy slow down. So listen to your body and take action accordingly. I understand this is so much easier if you work for yourself. I grew up like many of you I’m sure where no one could even know you were on your period and you had to act like nothing was happening. And as a reporter there were many days I was literally running with a microphone on big news days writing so many stories on day one of my period.

And if your energy is much more depleted that a day to day or cycle thing. Burnout, exhaustion, grief, chronic stress… then that needs to be addressed first. And you can actually do this through your voice. I offer Voice Clearings from time to time – reach out for next dates. And go back and listen to a great episode with Joanne Makas called Heal through your voice episode 159.

So ENERGY number one.

The second hidden barrier to taking action.. is RESOURCEFULNESS

So with my book, I knew I had what it takes to write a book. There was no imposter syndrome or anything like that. But what was holding me back was the know-how. I wasn’t capable on my own to navigate all the moving parts of the book business. Because writing the book is only a tiny part of it right. So reaching out to the experts to help me was essential to move thigns along. I’m working with Dean Publishing in case you’re wondering. And oh my gosh, there are things you need to do to write a book I had no idea about.

Taking action is about identifying the resources you need to pull in to make it happen. It’s bringing in the right team to equip you with the ability to take action.

So my clients who reach out to help them with their speaking gigs. They recognise they don’t have the skills on their own to turn their message into a speech, to navigate all the moving parts of a speaking event, how to leverage that opportunity.

And recognising your own resources. You have so much within you, you can do it. And as a coach that’s a lot of the work I do, not giving people a great voice, but reminding them they have that within them already. So finding people who ignite that fire within is the most potent resource you can have.

So what do you think?

ENERGY plus RESOURCEFULNESS is what you need to take action on your goals. The things your want to achieve.

And if those goals include growing your business or advancing your career or sharing a message on online or on stage then investing in voice and speaking training, like my online group program Soul Speakers, is going to get you closer.

I’ll leave you with these 3 questions.

1.       What do you want to take action on?

2.       Do you have the energy to get started?

3.       Do you have the resources to make it happen?