Have you ever made up your mind to do something, did it and then had disappointing, lackluster results?

Well, you're definitely not alone in that.

Recently, I came to realize that there are people who make up their minds to do something and take "Action" right away, only to become defeated and never look back and stick with their idea. Tjhey don't achieve the results that they desire and self improvement and sucess seem a distant dream.

You see, the problem is not necessarily with the idea but rather in their need for immediate gratification and taking "Action" right away. Immediate gratification has become so inherent in our society that even "Action" has become a problem just like fast food and diet pills.

Sure, there are entire billion dollar industries built on fulfilling the need for immediate gratification but, sometimes the cost is too high and often it is more than just money.

I've personally seen men with reputable and thriving businesses make such immediate gratification "Action" decisions and lose the trust and money of the customers that they worked years to acquire. They ruin the success they worked hard to achieve.

Our personal lives and businesses are not the only things that are affected by such decisions. Our customers and family are too.

In the end there is really only one course of "Action" that should be taken and it is often not even considered. It is "EFFECTIVE ACTION" that makes all of the difference in our lives and businesses. Strange?

Effective Action can only be taken and applied when we use the SMART Goal Setting Principle with a twist.

SMART = Specific + Measurable + Achievable + Realistic + Timely

Specific: A goal needs to be exact and clearly stated. Vague and general terms are not goals. Your brain needs to focus on a specific target.

Measurable: How do you know when the goal is completed? When stating your goal you should state how you are going to measure when it is complete. If you don't know the measurement then you will never know that you have achieved it.

Achievable: Your goal must be attainable. If you have not learned what you need to know in order to attain your goal, then you must either learn it and then apply or find someone to assist you that already knows what you don't. Think about past achievements or failures in your life and apply some of the lessons that you learned.

Realistic: Being realistic is a bit tricky. What may be realistic for you may not be realistic for others. You can see this truth throughout your life. Keep your goal within boundaries that you set and upgrade how realistic it is as you get closer or achieve more.

Timely: Keep a specific time of day for working towards your goal. In addition to that, keep a timeline of when you intend on completing each portion of your goal. Keep track of each item completed and when. Tracking is an essential element in achievement.

The twist in taking Effective Action is in the asking of specific questions. The questions are not asked of others but they rather are asked of you!

For example, if you wanted to lose weight and didn't have a lot time to exercise; your question would be:

Q - What is the most time efficient or effective way for me to lose weight through exercise?

A - The most time efficient way would be through interval training or sprint training type of activites that involve little time and maximum effort, which result in maximum fat loss.

Thanks to the information age and your own subconcious mind, the answers are available but you just have to ask them.

Effective Action involves a little planning, thought, and question asking but, the results will be available as proof that this method is better than just taking plain "Action."

So in the end it is "Effective Action" that gets the results you want and they are not always immediate. Self Improvement and Success are guaranteed!

Copyright 2005 Rasheed Ali