Copyright (c) 2010 Soaring Eagle Companies LLC

Let's face it; there is no substitute for action. While we can spend a certain amount of time thinking about our business, our goals, and various other aspects of our lives, nothing will happen without action!

Falling into the thinking trap can be very easy, particularly if you are new to a business. You start to plan.

You plan where you are going to put your office. You work on your goals. You plan how much money you would like to make (and how you would like to spend that money!). You plan who would like to join you in your business. You plan future meetings.

Basically, you have your entire future planned out in your head! In the meantime, the hours pass, the days pass, and you have accomplished absolutely nothing!

If you are not experiencing the success you want, maybe you need a reality check. Are you actually doing something or are you just thinking about it?

Do you wake up in the morning thinking about everything you want to get done? Do you actually do it or do you just make up the list? Do you sit at the computer thinking of all the things you need to do today, but never actually get around to doing anything? Or do you just get a small percentage of the tasks done?

Over-thinking and under-action can kill your business anywhere along the way. This is just as true for big businesses as it is for small businesses.

If you have ever worked for a large company you may have been part of a strategic planning process. This process can take days, weeks, or months. It can involve countless hours.

In the end you have some sort of document (the strategic plan) that is supposed to become the blueprint for the business for the next five years. A lot of thinking went into the document, but without action, nothing will happen in the business. All the time spent planning for success will lead to failure.

Don't fall into the planning trap. Planning and goal setting have their place, but you can't think your way to success. Even if you don't know completely what you are doing, if you do nothing it is guaranteed that you won't get any results.

"There are those who work all day, those who dream all day, and those who spend an hour dreaming before setting to work to fulfill those dreams. Go into the third category because there's virtually no competition." -- Steven J. Ross