Massive Action

Move from learning about your goal to creating the result.

By Brooke Hicks · The Life Coach School

You can spend an entire week working on your goal and never actually move toward the result.

You read. You research. You take another class. You have excellent notes and more ideas than you know what to do with.

But have you applied any of it? Have you created something that gives you real feedback?

What massive action means

I define massive action as continuing to take action until you get the result you want.

That definition is about commitment. It doesn’t mean doing the same thing endlessly when it isn’t working. It means being willing to learn, regroup, and try a different approach.

Think about going to the grocery store. A red light doesn’t usually make you abandon the trip. You recognize it as part of getting there.

Yet when we pursue a new goal, one obstacle can become proof that the whole idea is wrong. We interpret the interruption as a reason to turn around.

Recognize passive action

Passive action is consumption. Reading, studying, discussing, and planning can all be useful. But understanding how to do something isn’t the same as doing it.

Learning about exercise doesn’t complete a workout. Reading about building a coaching business doesn’t put an offer in front of a potential client.

Ask yourself whether you’re consuming or creating. What is the tangible action that would let you test what you’ve learned?

You don’t have to give up learning. You need to notice when learning has become a comfortable place to hide from the risk of application.

Expect feedback that doesn’t feel good

You may make an offer that nobody buys. You may publish work that gets little response. You may try a process and discover it needs substantial revision.

Those results give you information you couldn’t get from thinking alone.

The challenge is how you respond. Thoughts create feelings, feelings drive actions, and actions create results. If you decide an unsuccessful attempt proves you’re incapable, discouragement may lead you to stop.

You can instead evaluate the attempt and remain committed to finding a way forward. What worked? What didn’t? What will you try next?

Manage the urge to quit

Often we want to quit because we want to stop feeling disappointed or embarrassed.

Notice that distinction. Is the goal no longer meaningful to you, or do you want relief from the emotion of this particular setback?

Allow yourself to feel what came up. Then look at the problem from a place that lets you consider solutions.

You may need new information, a conversation, or a different method. Use learning in service of your next action.

Choose a thirty-day practice

Pick a goal that matters and identify a concrete action you can practice for thirty days. If you’re a coach, you might commit to writing consistently. If you’re learning self-coaching, you might commit to a daily thought download.

Define what doing the work looks like. Keep track of your attempts and what they teach you. If you miss a day, examine what happened and return.

The useful question is whether you’re willing to show up again after an imperfect attempt.

Massive action introduces you to the obstacles in your way and to the thoughts you have about them. That is where you can learn, adapt, and create the result you’ve been studying.