***Bridging the Great Divide Between Ideas and Action

One of my passions is coaching people with ADHD who know they want to experience more satisfaction and success in their lives, but are unsure as to what actions will best support this. I love being able to help them discover new ways of managing their ADHD and creating new strategies that maximize their strengths and minimize their challenges.  Through the years I have discovered that a large number of entrepreneurs struggle with ADHD which creates a unique challenge. These adults are gifted with having a zillion great business ideas, but then get stuck because they are not sure how to get those ideas into action. Whether you are an ADHD entrepreneur or not, it's not the lack of ideas that prevent you from enjoying success and productivity, it is closing that gap between your ideas and following through with the action to make it happen.

Unfortunately for many of us, all the energy and enthusiasm of new ideas can soon turn to overwhelm when we think about planning and implementation. Before we know it, the excitement of a new idea has been replaced by doubt, panic or anxiety.  Even fear may raise its ugly head as the steps, deadlines and how-to's involved in creating what you want become more real and grow into time consuming, confusing lists of details and have-tos. At this point it is easy to 1) get completely immobilized, or 2) convince ourselves that this wasn't really a good idea, or 3) choose an easier path that is completely opposite of where we want our life or business to go.

Here are three tips to help you get off the wild roller coaster of putting your ideas into action and bridging that great divide between concept and goal completion:

1.    Take action
2.    Get the support you need
3.  Be clear about your "disco ball"
 
1. Take action:
Putting it off will only intensify the fear and despair. Take for example writing this blog. Just sitting down and thinking about "what to write” made me a bit panicky. 

The more I thought about it, the more my brain became twisted and caught in all of the options. Thus, I kept putting it off, which made me even more frustrated, panicky, etc. I was on the idea-to-action roller coaster. It was not until I simply jotted down a couple of ideas for titles that I felt myself calm down. Even though I wasn't exactly sure about all of the details of the blog, how long it was going to be, etc., having a couple of titles written down gave me a choice.  I had taken action, it was in black and white and I had a choice. That is empowering!

2. Get The Support You Need
One of the final steps in a coaching conversation is to ask someone what support they need to accomplish the next steps.  Often this requires the help, advice, accountability or follow up from others.  As an ADHD entrepreneur, I have learned that at times enlisting the support of my team helps immensely with getting me out of my own idea panic. This act of breaking the project into steps or pieces always seems to help me get into
action. It's amazing how much simpler a task can seem to someone else who is not wrapped up in the complexity we have created in our minds.  At other times, I find the support of family, friends, and colleagues immensely helpful. Just talking about the ideas with someone seems to decrease any overwhelm.  Asking someone else what they think about an idea gets me out of my own head. The simple fact is, building a bridge is much easier with others involved.
 
3. Be clear about your "Disco Ball":

If you feel you are losing momentum in putting your ideas into action, it often helps to take a moment to get clear about the reason this action is important to you.  I call this reason your "disco ball".  Living with ADHD means that at times we are going to be tempted by other interesting things.  Your "disco ball" twinkles brighter than all of those other shiny objects or doubts that fight for your attention.  It truly is the "why" you want to take this action of crossing that great divide.  Our "disco ball" is what is so important to us – what drives us to take risks, spend the time or have the courage to take an action.  Simply, it is our motivation. To help get clear about your "disco ball" ask yourself:

What is important to me about taking this action?

What will this action move me closer to?

What will it cost me if I do nothing?  How would I feel? How will not taking this action step influence others?

Where will I be six months from now if I do nothing?

 What positive benefits will I experience when I take this action?

Getting ideas into actions can either be another chaotic roller coaster ride or if you apply the above tips, a step by step journey across the bridge from ideas to action.

I'd love to hear your thought about bridging the divide between ideas and actions!  Write to me at support@coachingforadhd.com