Stop Hesitating 🛑

The heck with hesitation. Imperfect action is far better than waiting for you or things around you to be perfect before taking action. 

My son Camden is in the 7th grade. He absolutely loves basketball. 

If he’s not at practice or working out, he’s finds a way to get a ball in his hand to work on developing his skills. 

Even when the weather is horrible – cold, raining or snowing, he finds a way.

The amount of time and reps he has devoted to it you’d think he’s really good. However, the challenge and difficulty of the season is the fact that he hasn’t been able to transfer that practice, and visible skill improvement into game time results. 

After hours and hours working with him and countless coaching conversations one would reasonably expect him to experience a breakthrough…

The next level moment where things slow down, become more clear, and start clicking. 

Unfortunately, he has been met with repeated frustration. 

The breakthrough hasn’t happened, yet. 

I’m guessing you’ve experienced the moment I’m referring to in your life too. Whether it was on a sports field, a classroom, or boardroom, you dedicated great focus, effort and attention to develop your skill and become as good as you could. 

Although the time was invested, you didn’t ‘get it’ as fast or as great as you wanted. 

Yes, a good amount of time is absolutely required to build skills, improve them, and build the confidence necessary to utilize them. 

But, that knowledge can absolutely also get in one’s way and prevent them from applying those new and improved skills because they are trying to make the ‘moment’ and action perfect. 

We often learn through a set of rules and fixed structure that when not present, throw us off. We freeze up, become fearful, and second guess our ability. Discounting the work we have put in and focusing on screwing up, rather than stepping forward. 

When we do this, we hesitate. We immediately think, “what if this doesn’t work? At least, if I don’t try it, I won’t have to go through the disappointment of realizing I couldn’t do it, or at least do it well.”

Following that logic, one would never see disappointment, and absolutely no chance of success. 

I love the Zig Ziglar quote “Anything worth doing is worth doing poorly until you learn to do it well.”

Being reminded of this, it hit me square in the mouth. 

“Son, stop hesitating. Believe in yourself. No one is great on the first try, or the many try’s thereafter. But, you’ve got to try to become great. And the gift and result of action is that it creates momentum…not the other way around.” 

Just as we are called to boldly obey God’s prompting, choose to Act and Respond with Urgency and Anticipation - Not Hesitation!!!

For when we hesitate, what happens? The answer is – not much; Nothing! 

The moment passes, and nothing was done. You missed it. The opportunity is lost. 

And we carry the frustration and possible pain of our hesitation. That’s a heavy uneasiness for we have no idea what would have come from responding with action.

I’d rather have the satisfaction of knowing that I met the moment with action and anticipation of good things to come from it. Even if I fell short, messed up, or missed the ‘shot’. 

This past week was tournament week for his junior high team. I’m pleased to share that Camden learned to let go of ‘perfect’. He began trusting his instincts and knowledge, began anticipating, and responding to opportunities with free-flowing urgency.

Did he make every shot? No. Did the team make it all the way? No. 

But, it was AWESOME to see him respond with action and be happy he did. 

Pushing worry and doubt to the back of his mind, believing in himself, and just GO! 

I pray we all do that more in our lives. 

Take Bold Action,

Brock 

P.S. Determine what it is you need to do – and then do it! Encourage others to do the same. 

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