Kids have the most amazing insight if you stop and listen
to them. Our daughter has an adult relative who lives far
away who said to her "I wish I could see you more often".
Do you know what she said later? I don't think he means
it, or he would see me more often. Good observation.

Let's look at this more closely. When the relative above
says "I wish", this person is indicating that 1) they have
not made a decision to make it happen and 2) the ability to
make visits more often is not within his/her power. To
that, I say poppycock!

The decision to "make it so" is the key. Not the how, or
why. For any goal, one just has to decide to it and then
figure out how. The how will follow. To achieve a goal,
it's crucial to decide to do it. It doesn't matter really
how or whether you feel that circumstances are outside your
control. The means to accomplish this goal will present
themselves after you decide. Waiting to think about it or
wish about it moves one no closer to achievement. .. and
wastes time that could be used constructively toward the
goal.

Ok, ok, Nike beat me to it....

To get what we want, we need to get rid of the words
"would", "could", "should", "wish", "might" and replace
them with "I will" or "I won't". There's no doubt that the
Nike slogan has appeal: Just Do It!

If you look at the cause and effect decision making that we
do for so many of our decisions, it's very simple:
deciding to do it should be first, then how. How many
times have you dwelled on making a decision because you
started thinking about the how and got stuck? I have, a
lot. Unless I take notice, this is the first place I go.
It has kept me from taking positive actions more than once.

Many people are comfortable in their world of would, could
and should. It's easier to make excuses for failure that
way. No promises made to anyone (including oneself), just
wishful thinking. Of course, like our daughter pointed
out, it's almost always a failure mindset. Without
commitment there is no action.

An easy example of this that we all can relate to is diet
and exercise. Many of my friends wish they weighed less or
"had a body like X". Deciding to get fit and eat right is
the first step. The how becomes evident with a bit of
studying and organization. Next thing you know... a whole
new fit body!

So, it's more the wisdom of our grandfathers and
grandmothers than modern science. It goes like this.
1. Consider decision and its impact to you and your
important people
2. Decide to do it or not
3. Then, figure out how

I for one am working on replacing the "would, could,
should" in my vocabulary with "I will, I can, I shall and
you bet!". I have been amazed at the difference that one
simple paradigm shift has made in my life. Just Do It!

About the Author:

About the Author:
Ainsley Laing, MSc. has been a Fitness Trainer for 25 years
and writes exclusively Body for Mind eZine. She holds
certifications in Group Exercise, Sports Nutrition and
Personal Fitness Training. She is also a professional
engineer and mom. To see more articles by Ainsley visit
http://www.bodyformind.com or the blog at
http://www.bodyformind.blogspot.com