It's in the doing!

Image from: http://www.figuregirlworld.com

Here's a trick question for you I've seen posted several times around the web: 


Five frogs are sitting on a log. Four decide to jump off.

How many are left?



The Answer: FIVE.




Why is that the answer? Because deciding and doing are two completely different things. 

"A real decision is measured by the fact that you've taken a new action. If there's no action, you haven't truly decided." - Tony Robbins 

There are literally thousands of blog postings, books, seminars, etc. that describe how to make decisions and why you should make them. I just felt that a blog about mentoring would not be complete without mentioning the topic and addressing an underlying reason why people (i.e. mentees) hesitate to make a decision and take action. That underlying reason is a fear of course - the fear of being wrong and making a mistake.


Here's how I help my mentees/protégés overcome hesitancy and leap into action: it's a matter of recognizing that each mistake has the gift of learning enveloped inside. It is often said that you learn more from your mistakes than from your successes. That potential is certainly there and can be unlocked by those open to it. 

“Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new.” – Albert Einstein

So if you approach your decisions as something that will either lead you to success or will lead to learning then making decisions will be far easier. Because those are both desirable outcomes.


The true enemy is inaction because that course will lead you neither to success nor to knowledge. Often the path to success is only through failure. Think of the legendary story about Thomas Edison having tried to invent the light bulb 999 times before finally succeeding. Edison didn't see those 999 times as failures but as an education. As his famous quote goes: "I have not failed. I have just found 999 ways that won't work."


Keep deciding. Keep doing. Keep learning!

"In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing." - Theodore Roosevelt