Tweet

Action, Not Motion, Grows Your Business

Written by: Stephanie Ward

Article Overview: Do you know how much time you spend on your business being ‘in motion’ instead of ‘in action’? Are you aware of the difference? Motion keeps you busy. Action creates momentum and the results you want.

Action, Not Motion, Grows Your Business

Do you know how much time you spend on your business being ‘in motion’ instead of ‘in action’? Are you aware of the difference? Motion keeps you busy. Action creates momentum and the results you want.

Think of it this way, action is something that moves you closer to your goals. Action has direction. Motion is simply movement in no particular direction, and can mean going in circles.

I don’t want to introduce a new tactic or strategy, I want you to take action on strategies you already have in place (or have been planning to put into place). You know enough, you are ready, now is the time. No more waiting!

You probably have a list of things you are planning to do. What is one thing on your list which appeals to you, that you are willing to take action on right now?

Here are some possibilities:

* Pick up the phone and make that call you have been avoiding

* Follow through with a prospect by sending an interesting article

* Send out that press release

* Get your articles published

* Start your own ezine

* Sign up for that networking event and go

If you’re not quite ready to start a new action why not take a look at what is working in your business and do more of it. If speaking attracts new clients to your business speak more. If networking brings you business, attend more events. If direct marketing works, expand your list. Get the idea?

I can hear you saying, that’s a good idea but... Imagine what would happen if you chose to skip the “yeah butts” and just went ahead and took action.

Delaying action is a waste of time and energy. Every time you think about doing something and then don’t, is time you could have used to actually get it done.

Fear is often the cause of inaction. See if you can identify the specific fear you have about taking a particular action. Then ask yourself, is it real? What would be the worst thing that could happen if you moved forward? Usually you’ll find that the reality of the situation is much less scary than you had imagined.

Keep moving forward by taking one step at a time. What could you do right now, no matter how small it seems, to move your business ahead. You are creative, find a way to make progress even if it isn’t how you originally planned.

Action does require courage. If it’s not just a little bit scary then my guess is that you are not stretching yourself. The good news is that you can take action even if you feel scared; it doesn’t have to stop you. Scary can be exciting, think about taking a ride on a roller coaster. You might be scared but you do it anyway because you know it will be thrilling.

But that’s just part of the story. When you take action, in addition to building your business, you also build your confidence which will inspire you to take even more action.

At the end of each day you want to ask yourself this question: ‘What action did I take today that will help me reach the goals I have for my business’? And you want to have a clear and resounding answer!

The bottom line is you have the power to take action right now, today, and every day after that. So tap into your courage and be willing to do what you know will create a more profitable business.

© Stephanie Ward 2007

Related Articles
  Desire Rain
  More Sales Means Less Confusion
  What makes a word a seed
  Be a Self-Starter
  Act In Spite of Your Mood

Article Tags: direction Motion



Related Forum Posts
My entry - 1. The Best Business Books Ever: The 100 Most Influential Business Books You'll Never Have Time to Read - this is a fascinating book about the history of Business theory, and I'd recommend it to anybody. 2. The Big Book of Small Business: You Don't Have to Run Your Business by the Seat of Your Pants, by Tom Gegax. Ditto. 3. PADI: The Business of Diving Book Okay, so this book won't be of use to anyone who doesn't want to start a scuba store, but I did, and this book was of course invaluable to me in reaching that goal.
Re: Blog sells for up to $15 million - Action speaks louder than dream. What are we doing about GT suggestion? We can make this work in 2010
Exclusive: Interview with Results - Hi Forum Members, I'm helping start up a Business Coaching and Consulting company here in Toronto, Ontario, Canada (a Subsidiary of RSC Business in Los Angeles). As a Research and Development Intern I am required to practice my listening and interview skills by surveying Small and Medium Businesses on thier Business. This Survey is designed by RSC Business to also assist the Business being interviewed more insight into their own business. I am looking to interview about 30 businesses across North America over the span of 3 months. At the end of these interviews I will be publishing a report of the results and they will be made available for free to the Interviewees. The Report data will include responses from a minimum of 100 interviews. I would like to extend this opportunity to members of the Forum. If you would like to have this short 20-30 minute interview conducted on your Business and you reside in North America please send me an email or PM. Please contact me at andy[at]jvprosperity[dot]com to arrange our interview and to get free access to the results when they are published.
Advertisement that sales - Plan your marketing programme. It should include commitment to capital resources. If you run a small business, you aren't likely to have a generous enough advertising budget that will allow you to run costly branding or campaign ads. Every advertisement you run must convey to your prospect a solid offer and attractive reasons to act quickly, and result in increased sales and an enhanced image of your company. Good advertising always pays its own way through increased sales and profits, improved cost-effectiveness, reduced selling costs and shortened selling cycles. A useful formula that will help you increase the effectiveness of your advertising efforts is A-I-D-A, which stands for Attention, Interest, Desire and Action. When creating an advertisement, always remind yourself that it should: (1) capture your prospects' Attention, (2) arouse their Interest in your offer, (3) create their Desire for your product or service, and (4) provide a powerful spur to Action, that is, turn your prospect into buyers. Remember, bad advertising is an unproductive expense, and good advertising is an investment in future profits!
Re: HOw to market a B2B consulting company - [quote="zohahunt77":428owzbi]Hi, I was wondering if anyone can tell me the difference between B2B and B2C. I don’t know about b2b marketing but I have done marketing so know things about it. I will suggest you to take online services which will spread your business all over web network. Online marketing is the best way to market any business.[/quote:428owzbi] B2B = Business to Business - You are marketing to other businesses. B2C = Business to Consumer - You are marketing to consumers.


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.

Tweet

Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!

Name:
Email:

Popular Articles

Google Panda and Your Search Engine Rankings

Why Use an Advertising Agency

Severance and Separation Agreements

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.