How Are You Voting With Your Actions?

Imagine going to a polling centre and putting an X in the box for the wrong candidate? Or walking into the local bank and putting a lodgement into the wrong bank account? – You’d never do it, right?

And yet we all do it.

We say that we’d like to lose a few pounds, and then take the opposite actions. We say that we’d like to have a successful blog, but only show up a handful of times to write some content. We promise ourselves that this year will be different and then we copy the same blueprint from last year. 

Now, while we’re deadly serious about all of the above, it’s exactly what the great James Clear said once, ‘Every action we take is a vote for or against our dreams.’ – And a lot of us, are voting for the wrong guy. 

So why do we do that? Why do we vote for the wrong thing with our actions?

The answer to that mystery is that 6-inch space between your ears. Because that’s where the decisions are made. And a lot of those decisions are made because of past life experiences, poor self-esteem, and just being, well, lazy with our decision making. 

How can we make better decisions that serve us? – Firstly, pay attention to how you feel.

Ever notice that when we’re down, we can hear the chocolate bar calling us? And then on days when we feel better about ourselves that siren song never registers with us? Or ever notice when we’re not feeling too confident about ourselves we back away into the smaller version of ourselves? But on more positive days we’ve got no problem stepping forward and taking action.

Secondly, think with the end in mind. – How am I going to feel after I take or don’t take this action?

Most actions usually leave us feeling a certain way afterwards. Sometimes it’s good, like a feeling of pride in ourselves, Other times its guilt, like why didn’t I say something back then? Or in some cases, it can be shame at our lack of control, like why did I eat all the chocolate cake?

Also, some actions like the sugar high we get are short-lived.

It felt good losing your anger with someone for those ten seconds, but afterwards, the guilty feeling follows you for the rest of the day.  It feels good sitting on the sofa and not exercising, but afterwards, we curse ourselves for our lack of commitment to losing weight. It feels good not to write today, but you know that tomorrow you’ll probably feel guilty for falling behind your writing schedule.

With that in mind, play your decision or lack of decision through that lens. I know it’s going to feel good, but how long is that good feeling going to last? And am I going to feel worse off? –  If you’re going to feel worse off, maybe the action you don’t want to take is going to be a lot better than the criticism you’re going to give yourself afterwards. 

Thirdly, pay closer attention to what you’re doing.

If there’s one thing our brain likes to do, is to make our lives easier by passing all our decision making over to the subconscious mind in the form of habits. 

We don’t even think about whether we should brush our teeth or not, we just head straight to the bathroom and start brushing them. We don’t think about whether we should have a cup of coffee but switch on the kettle and go looking for a coffee mug. We don’t think which is the best way to go to work, but head out the driveway and take the same route we always take. – And just like a robot, we allow that programming to take over without giving it any thought. 

Now while our brains are a wonderful creation, sometimes we need to take a hold of the reins, especially if it’s allowing us to do things that aren’t serving us.  Sometimes taking a moment, pausing, and then asking ourselves when we’re given a choice, what should we do? Can make us think twice about what we’re about to do/or not do.

So how are you voting with your actions? Are they bringing you closer to your goals and ideal life, or are they taking you further away?

Every day can’t be perfect, and we all fall off the wagon from time to time, but if on the whole, you find that your actions are votes for the right guy.  Congratulations!

But if you find the wrong one is still in charge, maybe it’s time to pay more attention to how you’ve been marking that ballot sheet of yours. 

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