Stop Dreaming, Stop Waiting, and Start Working

Just Start Now

Start what you say? How about start traveling and stop waiting to take that vacation until you’ve lost weight? Or stop waiting to get married until you have an exorbitant amount of money to have your dream wedding! What about stop waiting to start that new hobby, or put off writing that novel when you have more time? Or, are you waiting to spend more time with your family or friends until after you’ve “made it” in your career? The longer you wait to do these things, the less likely you are going to do them.

As as self-proclaimed perfectionist, waiting has been something that I’ve become very familiar with in my life. And I can honestly say, that if I could do it all over again, I wouldn’t wait.

The longer you wait to do something, and the more you push it to the side of your mind, the easier it is to just stay where you are.

It’s much harder to try to make a change rather than just stay where you are, comfortable and familiar.

“If it doesn’t challenge you, it doesn’t change you.”

– Fred Devito

The “Reasons”

You probably think you have some reasons for waiting. But have you completely and honestly really considered if those are valid reasons? And if they are valid, do you know how to overcome them?

The way to tell if your reasons for waiting are acceptable is to ask yourself if you are just scared to do it (whatever that is) or not- or if it’s because of some sort of vanity.

If it’s not fear or vanity that’s keeping you from taking action, you probably do have compelling and legitimate reasons to wait on something.

However, if it is fear or vanity — you’ve got to come to terms with the fact that you’re just hindering your own progress, and you’ve got no one else to blame except yourself.

Or in other words, to help you finally get to those things that you have always wanted to do– but for some reason or another, haven’t done yet. You probably have some reasons– but have really considered if those are valid reasons?

And if they are valid, how do you overcome them? Let’s dive in deep today and consider those reasons that have been keeping you from your dreams- and why you need to stop waiting until “Later”.

First let me say, I’ve been there, and done that too! Really, this is such an important topic for me because it’s something I’ve actually struggled with in so many aspects of my life. Waiting until Later.

“Don’t wait for change. You change.” 

– Earl Nightingale

It’s going to be very hard.

I’ve been there, and done that. This is such an important topic for me because it’s something I’ve struggled with in so many aspects of my life.

Waiting until “later.” (You can read more about how that topic ended up becoming the name for my blog here.)

I definitely thought all my reasons for waiting were valid. But, over years I’ve kept repeating this pattern over and over, and messing things up royally in my life.

It took the reality of my own mortality to finally realized that I had to stop waiting for everything to be “perfectly” lined up and “ready” to move forward.

Not that I was going to die, but the fact that my reproductive abilities might, actually scared me into action. Unfortunately, for me, I did wait too long.

I know there are other options to becoming parents and that’s what we’re going to be working toward now. But it is painfully regrettable that my own procrastination kept me from potentially realizing the opportunity to have my own children.

Have you put things on hold in your life too?

If you’re like me, and like many women, you know what I mean. You know you’ve put things on hold in your life too, and you want to stop!

Maybe you haven’t accomplished goals because you were too scared? Or maybe you’ve been waiting for the “right guy”, or to be a certain weight or have a certain amount of money, or live in a certain place, or finish school, or have kids or WHATEVER. But, whatever your hang ups have been, let’s just consider how you can start to work to overcome.

What ever your hang-ups have been, now is the time to consider how you can start to overcome and move forward.

The Formula

“I have CDO. It’s like OCD but the letters are in alphabetical order as they should be.” 

-Author Unknown

Kidding aside. There’s no time like the present to start working on your dreams.

Why wait until “later” to be happy and have the success you really want?

As mentioned already, I have had a lot of experience with “waiting”, which definitely has not always served me well. I’ll also admit I’ve been lucky to have achieved a lot of success too.

But, I’ve also failed SO MANY TIMES- and at SO MANY THINGS!

However, I’ve finally found a formula that I now use as my “guiding” direction anytime I’m about to embark on some new goal or project or anything that might be taking me out of my comfort zone.

This has been critical for me to work through fear, pain, anxiety, or whatever emotion that might be holding me back– and here it is– it may start at any point in this chain, but what it usually starts with is Courage.

(1) Courage leads to taking (2) Chances, or in other words, becoming willing to try something new or working toward making a Change.

(3) Next, making Changes is the big step. This is when you do whatever it is you need to do to get your new desired result! And after you take this step, it will likely determine your (4) Result. Usually, either Success (Yay!) or Failure.

BUT Failure is not the end, or the last step.

Because either way we obtain (5) Growth– and Growth gives you the FUEL and the STRENGTH you need to come back around full circle, and give you a renewed sense of Courage– to try again or try another way.

But, that only occurs when you remember to use Failure as a TOOL. Use it to your benefit, not your demise! Use Failure to propel you up and forward– not down and out!

And then you’re back to (1) Courage, which starts the cycle all over again. So the trick is to keep going until you get to the loop where you obtain the right Result- whatever that is for you.

You just have to keep at it! And remember failing is not bad, it’s just one point on your progression path.

The Next Step

If you have ever asked yourself something like, “Can I really change my life?” I’m telling you that I sincerely believe you can change.

Why? Because I’ve done it, even when it seemed impossible.

Don’t get me wrong, it does take SO much hard work, tons of determination, perseverance in getting through challenges and taking risks. It can also take tears, sadness, struggling, and definitely overcoming the fear– but it also includes laughs, excitement, and joy along the way — even before you achieve success.

You’ve got to be willing to change to get something better, or to be who you truly want to be. And, there’s no better time to start than right now.

Because guess what? This is the ONLY life you are going to get doll!

Here’s just a few examples of real things that we do that might keep us from succeeding:

• Want to lose weight, but you aren’t even exercising and still eating fast food at least once per week?
• Trying to get out of debt but you’re still buying that $5 coffee and going out to lunch every day?
• Really want to make more money, but you’re not doing anything to work toward making that possible or a reality?
• Hate your job, but you’re still just working your 9–5 every day with no prospects in sight?
• You’re bored with your life, yet you try nothing new, and keep doing the same tired things you always do?
• Stuck in a bad relationship or no relationship at all, and you’re not doing anything to remedy the situation?

Do any of these sound familiar?

Because if you’re not working toward your goals daily, you’re really just getting further away from accomplishing them.

“In absence of clearly defined goals, we become strangely loyal to performing daily acts of trivia.” – Author Unknown

What’s next then? How do you start?

You must take action! My brand, Later-Means-Never, is being built to remind people (you) that the time to live your life is now- not later.

Now, that does not mean to “eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die” AT ALL. That’s nearly the exact opposite of what I am saying here.

What “Later-Means-Never” really means, or what it’s meant to provoke in you, is a sense of urgency. To remind you to start working toward your growth sooner than later- to stop waiting.

So decide to work on some aspect of your goals today, and every day. Because life is precious and oh-so-short- and I know you want to make each day count.

So if you’re someone who’s tired of wishing your had what you really wanted, or were the person you truly meant to be- then now is the time to take action so that you can make those changes.

Taking action is the foundation of the process to change. Not just deciding to take action, but actually taking action.

And even though I don’t know you (yet), I know that you have talents. And I know that you have some amazing life experiences that no one else has.

Your unique background and knowledge are some of the key tools that you can and will use to get on the path to your changes and improvement.

So many people are “blocked” or stuck because they won’t face their problems or may just be too scared to deal with the “hard truths” of their situation in life. Or they might even be embarrassed to admit that they are not where they wanted to be in life at this time. (Believe me- I’ve been there)

But to create true internal happiness, we all have to honestly face our hard truths, and either change them for the better, or just keep going on as we are. Which is fine, if that’s what you decide.

And please see wherever you are right now is OKAY. Making any change has to start from somewhere.

That doesn’t mean you’re a “failure” or anything. It might just mean that maybe you’re a little off track from your life’s goals.

Or, maybe you haven’t even realized what they are yet- and again, that’s okay!

But please, just stop waiting until later to do this — make goals, design a plan, , strategize to overcome barriers, and take action- start today.

So — tell me what YOU are going to start working on?

If you enjoyed this post and you’re ready to start working on your goals, click here to get a free copy of my 2019 Goal Planning printable pages.