Just Do It. We can thank Nike for popularizing this short phrase for over 25 years. The essence of athletes putting aside whatever stops them and just performing is a perfect parallel for business leaders and professionals today.

Great Advice

One of the most important pieces of advice I often give people who ask me is quite simple - Just Do It. Yep, that’s how I make the big bucks….dolling out three word responses (I kid, kinda). It is actually great advice in many cases (where people are clear about what they want and why they want it). The advice is simple, clear and actionable. Sometimes people push back and think it isn’t actionable as I don’t spoon feed them detailed execution steps to “Just Do It,” but that would be giving them a fish vs. teaching them to fish. In reality having a “Just Do It” mindset and attitude trumps any specific content or execution suggestions. 

This advice is so good that if people actually followed it half of the coaching and consulting industry might disappear. Really. What happens in the moment that someone is given this advice, internalizes it, and takes it on is incredible. It is soberingly simple yet forces a powerful decision in one’s mind - a decision to act. This is often the tipping point in a personal or professional transformation; declaring a commitment to something. Too often people swirl in their ideas, dreams, thoughts and plans, but never really stand up and say “I’m going to make this @#%! happen!” 

The Ugly Truth

Here’s the ugly truth that, if you are honest with yourself, will disgust you. We spend a disproportionate amount of time, energy, thought and emotion on resisting getting in action towards what we really want. I’ve personally found that sometimes the ratio of time spent resisting vs. time it actually requires to do what’s needed is 10:1. That’s what disgusts me - all of the time I’ve pissed away worrying, plotting, thinking, planning, talking, avoiding, researching, and justifying. Had I been given the advice of “Just Do It” and been coachable I would have accomplished far more, with less effort, in a shorter period of time. 

Justify It

In a previous post I wrote about resistance being your worst enemy. Consider “Just Do It” a proverbial fly swatter or weed killer for your resistance. For me this is a continual battle (poetically, I even resisted writing this blog post!). Below are some examples of things I say to myself which are all stinky, lame, common forms of resistance. Think of what you are avoiding and fill it in after the … (if you can’t confront your own just use my “write the Just Do It blog”): 

  • I don’t want to...
  • I don’t know how to…
  • I don’t feel like…
  • I don’t have the money to…
  • I need help to…
  • I can’t…
  • I’m too overwhelmed to…
  • I’m avoiding…
  • I’m too exhausted to…
  • I’m afraid to…
  • I don’t know where to start to...

These are great ways to justify not getting things done and letting yourself off the hook, but they are crappy ways to run a business, advance a career, or lead your own life. 

How to "Just Do It"

I have to continually remind myself that most of the time the answer is to “Just Do It” regardless of what excuse (see above) I have. If I’m really stuck I’ll watch the video below and it does the trick! Here are 5 tips to help you "Just Do It":

  1. Commitments - Make specific same-day commitments to someone who will hold you accountable (“Juan, I am going to send this document to you by 11 AM"). These sort of self-imposed deadlines that you share with someone else can really get you moving. 
  2. Do it now - The best time to get something done that you’ve been putting off is RIGHT NOW. Drop everything. Grunt it out and move on. 
  3. Focus - Nobody is actually good at multitasking. Do yourself a favor and put your iPhone on silent and face down, close your office door, don’t answer calls, turn off any alerts or pop-ups on your computer and minimize everything except the task at hand. When you actually focus on just one thing continuously progress happens rapidly. 
  4. Ask - Ask yourself “am I more committed to my lame excuses for not getting things done or to having what I really want in life?” We fight hard to procrastinate, justify, and resist, yet we often quickly surrender to not achieving our goals. Don’t let this be the thing that keeps you up at night…for the rest of your life. 
  5. Phone a friend - Call someone you trust (even better if they’ve read this blog post) and ask them to tell you to Just Do It. Feel free to share all of your excuses and then have them encourage or bark at you to "Just Do It!" If you’re being extra obstinate have them throw in the “F-in” part. I’ve done this a few times and it really works!

Okay, after you watch the video (and comment below or share this post with your friends) …. Just Do It!

Curious to know who Art Williams is? Well, before you discard his "just do it" advice consider that he's a Billionaire on the Forbes list who founded and eventually sold a very successful life insurance company. If you liked this clip check out his entire speech from this 1987 convention. 

Photo credit: Scott Feldstein via Creative Commons http://www.flickr.com/photos/scottfeldstein/