Have you taken action yet?

Last week I wrote about why lack of action will mean many well thought out, carefully written and vividly pictured goals will not be achieved this year.

How they will just remain dreams forever.

The first 8 regular working days of 2011 are almost over for most of the world. Have you taken action towards achieving your goals for 2011 yet?

I am writing  this post the old fashioned way with pen and paper in the hospital  because I have had a sudden personal reminder of the importance of taking action every day.

Even though I am a Baby Boomer, one of my my main sources of enjoyment and exercise is to ride my horses as often as possible. Since moving to Canada, I have got used to riding in temperatures well below freezing. But as a former inhabitant of the tropics, I find it easy to justify not riding if it’s also very windy or cloudy. I also avoid riding on bare frozen or icy ground out of concern for my horses.

Adverse weather conditions – real and imaginary – had prevented me riding for the last three weeks. I was determined that I would ride yesterday as the weather forecast called for sun and there was good snow cover on the field.

It was sunny in the afternoon, the wind had almost stopped and the temperature climbed to -6.5 C (17F) . So I saddled up Magic Penny my difficult Paint gelding and rode around the fields for 20 minutes.

About 4 inches of snow on the ground, much more at the bottom of the field to the North of the bush. Crisply cold but not unbearable.

Magic Penny’s hooves squeaking in the snow, then crunching through the brittle crackly layers in the deeper stuff. His breath condensing in clouds like a fairy tale snorting dragon. Mike the dog a smaller version of the same.

Altogether a magical experience, I got back with a burning face but feeling alive. Feeling good that I made the effort and took action when it would have been so easy to procrastinate and stay warm. The experience more enjoyable because the horse behaved himself better than usual so it was a fairly calm ride.

Today the wake up call and the reminder of why action is so important .

At 11 am, I presented myself at the hospital for a treadmill stress test  to determine how well my heart is functioning after last years heart attack. I only expected to be at the hospital for an hour but brought my e-reader just in case.

The treadmill exercise went well, no pain, no discomfort, heart rate at 128, just like running a marathon a few years ago, not even breathing very hard.

The test over, I had to lie down on the examination couch, still hooked up to the monitor. I waited and waited, the doctor and techicians studied an ever expanding pile of printouts with concerned looks on their faces.  A couple of phone calls were made, I was asked repeatedly if I felt any pain, pressure or other symptoms. I felt exactly the same as before the test.

What was causing the concern was that it was taking too long for my heart to return to the baseline reading taken before the test. It eventually took over 20 minutes instead of the expected 4 or 5.

So I was kept at the hospital for a series of tests and told that I will be here until 9 pm when a follow up blood sample will be taken.

Having got sleepy from reading “The History of the Fall and decline of the Roman Empire” for 3 hours, (reading more classics is another of my goals this year) I phoned Sue to bring me a notepad and pen so that I could write this post and salvage something productive from the day.

I have had a good few hours today to reflect on things. What if I had not taken action to ride yesterday? I would not have ridden today and between this medical problem and the weather (it’s snowing hard as I write) it could be days or weeks before the next opportunity.

In the overall scheme of things, one ride on my horse is not going to make the difference between me achieving my goals this year or not. It’s not, of itself, going to make a difference in my business, nor is it going to put  money in the bank.

But that choice to take action is a building block to reinforce the habit of taking consistent and persistent daily action. That is the value. And that is how goals are achieved, making the right choices, one  after another.

How are you doing? Have you taken action towards achieving your goals this year?

If you are having trouble getting started, Alan Densky is running a promotion for his self improvement products this month. He is offering some big savings and some free stuff, check his site out here. Neuro-VISION

Wishing you success in all your endeavours.

P.S. Want a chuckle? Visit J.Daniel’s Woodchips blog. If you are a Baby Boomer or close, his last post will bring back memories.