The Eight Minute Power Call

By David Herz

Posted on Dec 23, 2014 by in General


What you can accomplish in the next year, or ten, and what can we do to make that happen?


I start with the old saw that “people overestimate what they can do in a day and underestimate what they can do in ten years.” I think it's a good point of departure. Some of us start on big projects, become overwhelmed, and give up. Others drive ourselves, regardless of the impact on other areas of our life, to accomplish what we said we would. But some, and these I consider wise, recognize that any project, big or small, is just the sum of many smaller steps all designed with that particular goal in mind, and if we take just a few steps every day, in a year (or ten) we'll have come quite far.


So I was going to invite you to imagine your long term goal, and invite you to look with me to see what we can build to start you on your path now. And since I like to give credite where it's due, I went to look up the quote - forms of it are attributed to Anthony Robbins, Bill Gates, and Anonymous - and came across They Are Wrong About Your Potential by Craig Ballantyne over at Early to Rise.


He takes issue with the quote and makes a great point, which is that “Most people OVER-estimate the obstacles in front of them and UNDER-estimate what they can accomplish.” And while he suggests this runs in the face of Robbins' advice, I think it explains it. It's the obstacles, for many of us just the time and the perceived bigness, that keep us from taking the actions in the first place, or that has us taking incomplete actions.


Now Mr. Ballantyne has a business mastermind, and suggested his people woefully underestimated their capacity. So what? What they all did do, and what Robbins/Gates/Anonymous' quote suggests, was set a plan and got into action. Perhaps if they'd known it would be so easy, they'd have started earlier. The point here is we cannot know what will happen until we step into action, but then the experience just might surprise us:

We had definitely committed ourselves and were halfway out of our ruts. We had put down our passage money— booked a sailing to Bombay. This may sound too simple, but is great in consequence. Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favour all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way. I learned a deep respect for one of Goethe's couplets:
Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power and magic in it!


W. N. Murray, The Scottish Himalayan Expedition (1951)


So my suggestion is that whatever works for you take. Maybe you like to think that the many days in ten years, if pointed in the right direction will bring you to your goal. Maybe you're happier to know that it might be easier than you expected. The problem is neither perspective will get you very far if it isn't married to a plan of action.


So we've come around to the beginning again. For what would you like to remember 2015, or even the end of 2014? Write it down. Then Call me. I'm now offering the eight minute power call to take a look: You'll declare it. You'll tell me what usually gets in your way or what you need to make it happen. You'll see if coaching makes sense for you, and we'll see if it makes sense for us to do business.


In the meantime, I wish you a happy and a healthy holiday season, and an amazing 2015.

This entry was posted by David Herz and filed under General.

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