Your Action, Your Success

By Diane Dresback

Feeling frustrated because you can't get more done?

Many of us want to accomplish more. Perhaps it is to start and finish a project, develop a new skill, begin a new hobby or career, improve in our work, or just be more productive in general. But we have self-sabotaging habits and tough roadblocks preventing us from making headway.

YOUR ACTION, YOUR SUCCESS addresses many of our challenges and offers solutions for getting ourselves moving.

• Consider the reality behind finding time and setting priorities.
• Face your fears and roadblocks.
• Determine your unique definition of success and what motivates you.
• Engage in introspection, analysis and basic planning.
• Set yourself up for success and taking those first crucial steps.

Begin with YOUR ACTION, YOUR SUCCESS today and imagine where you can be in 3 months, 6 months, a year from now. Soon you will be on your way to getting more accomplished and celebrating your progress!

"We all have those items on a 'to do' list that we never seem to get to. Diane teaches how to tackle items in a well-written, easy to read and understandable way." -Natalie K., Human Resources Professional

"Instead of mindlessly following lists of commands about how to be successful, her conversational and storytelling style puts personal perspective around her motivational concepts." -Webb P., Filmmaker

"Ms. Dresback offers readers an in-depth view into what prevents well-intentioned individuals from achieving their goals and provides valuable insights to help anyone push beyond perceived roadblocks." - Kimberly T., Financial Services Professional

• Language: English
• Publisher: Mindclover Productions LLC
• Release date: Mar 16, 2016
• ISBN: 9781963762204

Book preview

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Your Action, Your Success

Copyright © 2016 by Diane M. Dresback

All rights reserved. Written permission must be secured from the publisher to use or reproduce any part of this book, except for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles.

Contact Information: www.dianedresback.com

Published by Mindclover Productions LLC

Phoenix, Arizona, USA

ISBN - 978-1-963762-20-4 (ebk)

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1 - A FEW PRELIMINARY THOUGHTS

2 - MEMORIES VS. DREAMS

3 - A CONVERSATION WITH YOUR ME

4 - WHAT MOVES YOU?

5 - YOUR DEFINITION OF SUCCESS

6 - WHAT STOPS YOU?

7 - TIME

8 - FEAR

9 - PLAIN OLD PROCRASTINATION

10 - AVOIDING ATROPHY

11 - SETTING UP FOR SUCCESS

12 - UNSURE WHERE TO START

13 - THE MAGIC OF SMALL STEPS

14 - UTILIZING OTHERS

15 - IDENTIFY WHERE TO BEGIN

16 - CHANGING HORSES MID-STREAM

17 - THE 3 UN’s

18 - DEALING WITH DISAPPOINTMENT

19 - MAINTAIN A HEALTHY OUTLOOK

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

BOOKS BY DIANE M. DRESBACK

BACK COVER

1 - A FEW PRELIMINARY THOUGHTS

I’ve always been kind of a doer. Crossing through items on a To Do List just plain feels good! Knowing that something is done, finished, accomplished is freeing. Many times simply because it means I can begin focusing on the next project. Yes, some may wish to tighten the screw that might be loose in my head, but that is the way I am put together.

Now, I’m all about celebrating the completed thing, with all the people involved (if it was a group effort). Absolutely recognizing all those hard-working individuals who contributed both small and large pieces to the final outcome is very important to me. It’s just that I don’t dwell in that zone very long before actually moving on to the next idea. Usually, my project list is stacked up, so I look forward to moving on and it takes discipline to remain focused to finish the current project.

For me, it is exciting pulling out the next project, figuring out how to accomplish it, getting it done, and then feeling good about being finished so I can go on to the next challenge. That is pretty much how I’ve been for decades. This most likely explains why I describe myself as a Project Person.

But I know many people may not consider this normal or easy. So my natural tendency has been to encourage others to accomplish their own projects or goals or dreams. Nothing inspires me more than seeing individuals step out and find ways to move forward themselves. I love hearing people talk about experiences and outcomes that they achieved after thinking for so long that they didn’t have the time, money, energy (the list goes on), or believing they simply could not do it.

My hope in writing this book is that you become one of those people who can say you have finally achieved something you have been wanting to do. Then perhaps pursue another thing and another. That’s the bottom line for why I’m writing this book.

Who am I to be writing about this stuff? Well, I am me! You can read in the back under the About This Author section more about my background and education. My experience ranges from years of corporate human resources, training, education, independent filmmaking, writing, volunteering, leading teams, and so forth. Unless I am quoting someone else, the information in Your Action, Your Success is what I have discovered about motivating myself and encouraging others in getting things done.

This book is not packed full of positive quotes or stories about famous athletes or successful businesspeople overcoming struggles. If you are looking for that type of reading, you might want to consider another resource. There are plenty of excellent books addressing those topics available in the marketplace.

Instead, this is a very practical get going book. I will be sharing stories throughout the book from my own experiences and interactions with others as illustrations so you might connect with the ideas being presented.

I’m not claiming to have succeeded at everything I have tried (neither in other people’s eyes nor even my own). Rather this book is my take on getting things done. It is based upon things that I have experienced, learned and discovered over many years of wonderful opportunities to interact and be around other people.

What I ask of you is to enjoy the journey. Be open, honest and gentle with yourself while developing a firm and disciplined hand. Apply suggestions when they fit as we are all different.

There are lots of travel books out there. Big thick ones that focus on the best-kept out-of-the-way restaurants, memorable sports locales or breath-taking natural wonders. Websites dedicated to ensuring our vacation takes us on the backroads in order to discover hard-to-find antique stores or golf courses with the most challenges. There are plenty of travel shows, podcasts and even home videos on YouTube to help us find out where we might want to travel prior to leaving for our own trip.

It is the same for motivation. There are numerous experts, books, blogs, podcasts, webinars, and organizations out there all focusing on how to get ourselves motivated. Such resources are helpful and inspirational and I have read, listened and participated in many over the years. Most of them have great things to say and useful suggestions.

It would be interesting to conduct a poll to find out just how many people who engaged these resources actually did something. I’m sure there are some. Maybe not completely in the way that was presented or suggested, but with one or two things, nonetheless. Just as for me writing this book and my intentions to help, to encourage, to let you know that you can accomplish what you would like, no one can force you to do anything.

The honest to goodness truth remains, we can listen to motivational people all day long, but unless we take that first step and second step and third step ourselves, it does absolutely no good.

Don’t give up on trying to achieve something. It doesn’t matter what it is. While reading Your Action, Your Success, the actual thing you want to do is less of a concern than actually figuring out how to do it and starting to work towards it. Your goal or objective might be anything...

Become a wine connoisseur

Understand investing

Be an artist

Seek out a particular profession

Improve a work skill

Learn or pursue a hobby

Household projects and improvements

Learn and/or excel in a sport

Master an instrument

Be more creative

Weight, exercise or health objectives

Educational courses

Plan for a future vacation

Start a business

Become a top salesperson

Flip houses

Design a clothing line

and on and on and on!

My mom was my first and consummate example of getting projects done. Her hands were always busy with her varied arts and crafts. She was never idle, ever...did I say ever? Even when she and my father watched television nightly, she was working on something.

Trying her hand at many things, over the years she created literally hundreds and hundreds, maybe thousands of items — some small, some large, some in between. Beautiful glass art dishes finished in an afternoon. Delicate hand-painted porcelain figurines that took weeks. A gorgeous crocheted California King bed cover that filled the evenings over years.

Even though she sold a few things here and there, she wasn’t focused on selling but instead on the pure joy of giving many of those creations away to friends, families and even strangers at times. After my mom left this planet, I carefully packed and sent off 25 boxes of handmade items to family and friends. Of course, I still have a lot of those wonderful pieces myself.

Maybe you want to leave behind special physical items, a legacy, stories or photo books. Perhaps you want to gain satisfaction from knowing you helped foster children, found homes for animals, facilitated food programs for those less fortunate. And we cannot forget the more practical things like cleaning out the junk room, attic or storage unit. Whatever it might be, you can make it happen.

Please do not give up on yourself. I certainly won’t. I want to see you succeed no matter how simple or complicated your objectives might be. So let’s talk a little about dreaming.

2 - MEMORIES VS. DREAMS

Memories can be like dreams in every single way,

But memories are in your heart and dreams are only play.

Those words were the final two lines from a poem that I penned back in high school. Now decades later, I realize just how meaningful those words have turned out to be. That was a long time ago but the intent remains the same, it’s just now I have many more years of experience to back up the original claim.

You can dream about doing something for years and years. But unless