Do you let yourself off the hook? Sometimes I do, but I almost always regret it.

I’m sitting at my computer on Monday evening. A couple of days ago, I committed to a 21-day blog challenge, which just happens to start today. It’s 10:10pm, and here I sit staring into space, yawning, and wanting to jump into my jammies and go to bed.

Nothing stopping me, right?

Wrong. I committed to a 21-day blog challenge. I owe somebody a blog. That somebody is me.

So how do you do commitments? A lot is expected of us these days. Everyone is crazy busy, and always, always we are being asked to do more, to take on something else. Sometimes it’s something that interests us, and we sign up for it — a class, a training, a webinar, a blog challenge.

Is your word your bond? If you say you’re going to do it, do you? Or do you make excuses or defer to something much more important that is demanding your time?

I have really had to look at this recently. As much as I hate to admit it, I’m a joiner. Are you? I’m on an eternal quest for knowledge. I always want to help out. I enjoy being a part of things. Sort of.

Around the first of the year, I ordered a groovy little workbook called “2015 Create Your Shining Year” by Leonie Dawson. Yes, I’m an older gal, but I love color and whimsy. It makes me happy, and danged if the book didn’t have a LOAD of substance to it. So what? you may be asking.

While I was working my way through the book, I realized that no matter how many courses I signed up for, I had to do my part which includes, but is not limited to:

• reading the material
• participating in the calls
• doing the homework
• integrating the information into my life

Well, crap! I didn’t know I had to do all of that.

Really?

So have YOU had this experience?

In the land of magical thinking, buying the course and giving an email address to someone should be enough. Don’t you think? I mean, we paid our money. Shouldn’t it just get into our heads through osmosis?

Guess not. (Remember, I told you awhile back that it’s a real challenge living inside my head? whew!)

I really don’t like to say I’m going to do something and then not see it through though I have gotten pretty good at it. Frankly, I should know how to do practically everything on the planet based on the courses I own. But I decided it was time to take a new approach. Here’s what I came up with, and it might be helpful to you as well:

Consider. Decide. Act. Complete. Implement.

When that enticing little tidbit rears its sweet head begging you to click ‘BUY ME,’ put it to the first test:

Consider.

Look at it. Check it out thoroughly. What attracts you to it? What is the benefit? Is it relevant? Is it something that will hold your interest? Will it help you accomplish your objectives? How is the customer support?

By the time you answer those questions, you should have a pretty good idea if this is worth your time. If it seems like a good fit for your current needs, the next step is to:

Decide.

This is where the rubber first begins to meet the road. You have done a review of the item at hand, and it has passed muster. It will yield results that you can use. You are going forward with it, eyes wide open. Great! Go ahead and click “BUY ME.” So now you own this grand piece of magic. Whether you hold it in your hand or get to it via mouse clicks, now it’s time to:

Act.

Yes. Take action. Get started. Attend the live events. Do the self-guided webinar. Put it in your planner, so you’re sure to keep up and move right along. And if you do just that, soon this adventure will be:

Complete.

Get it done. Keep taking those steps, going through the lessons, taking notes. And last but not least, when the big day comes, and you can mark the last module “Complete,” then you will:

Implement

It does you no good to have all that knowledge and expertise in your head and not use it. This is where things get exciting because you can actually see the fruits of you labor. I can try those new tricks and maybe even share them with others.

You have taken something from start to finish. Yay for you!

We live in a world with so many shiny objects vying for our attention, and they’re dressed up so pretty that we hardly resist! Without a doubt, there are many outstanding programs out there which can open up a whole new world for you. Try this process, especially the first step of considering if a particular product is right for you.

Won’t you be happy when you own that material and make it work for you?

Implementing,
Steph Marks

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Are you a joiner, or do you lean toward practicality when it comes to new things? Leave a comment. If this article was helpful to you, feel free to pass it along.