It’s Not Enough To Know…

“You Must Do…”

I’ve been fortunate enough to work with thousands of entrepreneurs around the world on a regular basis and help them overcome their challenges.  In the next several message I want to take some time to talk about the reasons why unfortunately most of them have failed in the past and what they can and need to do in order to succeed going forward.

While I believe these lessons to be valuable for anyone in business, I also believe that they will help anyone outside of business and in everyday life.  One of the most surprising things you’ll find as you read through these next several messages though is that you probably already knew most of these lessons.  The question though is what are you doing about it yourself?

Are you applying them in your life and your business or are you letting things slide.  I guess that’s the first and probably one of the most important lessons I want to share with everyone is that it’s not enough just to know about something.  You must actually do it.

About once a month, I get to talk to a room full of about 100 people.    One of the subjects I talk about is a book called The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.  I ask people to raise their hands if they’ve heard of this book (which has been around for over 30 years or so).  Usually about 80% – 90% of the room raises their hands.  I go on to tell them that the author of the book, one Steven R. Covey, spent years upon years researching these habits and interviewed thousands of highly successful individuals to come up with these 7 habits.  He goes on in his book about how every highly successful individual he talked about had these 7 habits and regularly applied them in every aspect of their life.

Do you know what these 7 Habits are?

If you don’t know what they are, don’t feel bad.  Neither does over 99% of the room I ask.

That’s right.  Out of an average room of 100 people, less than 1 person (that makes what, half a person?  Just kidding.) knows what these habits are.  One person will probably know 2 or 3 of them at most.  Another might know another 1 or 2.  Eventually, I get through all 7 of them by helping them “remember” what these habits are.

And if you don’t know what they are, make sure you look them up.

Anyway, here’s the thing, usually over 80% of the room knows about these habits and their story.  Yet no one REMEMBERS the habits.

So the million dollar question is, “if you don’t know what these habits of highly successful individuals are, then how can you apply them to your life?”

Think about that.  Unless you’re unconsciously applying them by habit – which most people are not – then how are you applying these habits in your life when you don’t even know what they are?

Now ask yourself, “what kind of results are you getting?”

Are you highly successful?

If so, Congratulations!  Keep on keeping on!

If not, when would now be a good time to remember these habits and start applying them to your life?

You’ll be amazed at the difference in results you’ll get when you start applying these habits.

Which leads me back to, “It’s not enough just to know about something.  You must do it.”

The actual quote by (depending upon who you read) Bruce Lee or writer and Statesman Johann Wolfgang von Goethe is, “Knowing is not enough, we must apply. Willing is not enough, we must do.”

Of course, I’ve said it to, so you can just quote me if you’d like  ;o)

Regardless, as I go through these lessons, remember, it’s not enough for you to just read about them.  You must do; you must apply; you must implement them over and over again until they become hab

its in your life.

So here’s this week’s action item for you:

Learn The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.  Read the book.  Study the habits.  And start using them in your life, one at a time; one by one, until they become your habits and you start seeing the results you’re looking for.

You’ll be amazed at the results!