Action-oriented
One of my favorite quotes is “be impatient with action, yet patient with results”
One of my favorite quotes is “be impatient with action, yet patient with results”
I’ve always believed that two of the most killer qualities an individual can have is to be extremely action-oriented, the type that will go out and just do something, and to be extremely patient with results. These two qualities together account for about 80% of the battle.
What is being action-oriented? I define someone who is action-oriented as the opposite of a consulting group. Someone who is going to ignore the theoretical and go straight to the real world. They are going to avoid spending 6 months surveying prospective customers on if this is a product they want, and instead throw together an 80% MVP in a weekend, and have customers giving feedback by Monday morning. Are action-oriented people perfect? No. They make mistakes. They do things that can make them look stupid when they are way off the mark. But, the benefits greatly outweigh the drawbacks, as action-oriented individuals are able to cut through the BS significantly faster than the more theoretical approach, allowing them to get to market faster, with a more market-driven product.
How can you become action-oriented? There are a few key factors that can help someone become action-oriented
Be confident in yourself. In order to go out and do something, you first have to believe that you are someone that can make the right choices. You have to believe in yourself.
Come to grips with the fact you are going to feel like an idiot. Action-oriented people miss the mark. Read Sam Walton’s book, he described himself as action-oriented and he talks about how many times he missed the mark.
Just do it. This one is surprisingly tricky for some people. Don’t make excuses, drink a coffee, take a caffeine pill, put on noise-canceling headphones, whatever it takes. Just do it. Don’t overthink. Just go out and do it. There is a saying in investing that “time in the market, beats timing the market” and in my opinion that still reigns true in this situation.
Patience is the part that I struggle with the most. Being action-oriented has never been an issue for me, but staying patient and refusing to get stressed from the unstoppable progression of time is something that I believe is more difficult. But, the data is impossible to ignore. Look at some of the greatest businesses. Some of them had modest success for almost 20 years before they broke out. Stay patient. Rome was not built in a day, and neither was Apple.