Rick Torresen lays out W.A.L.K.: write a clear vision, take the first step, learn from failure, keep walking. He quotes Kris Kringle on putting one foot in front of the other and pushes past the talking phase into doing.
Welcome back to Timeout for Leadership. Thanks for sharing your time with me and for investing in your own leadership and your own personal growth. You know, I love to start with a question. Has anyone ever said to you that talk is cheap? What does that mean? How does that make you feel if they've addressed that to you? Let me ask you another question. Do you know anyone who is all talk and no action? Walt Disney once said, the best way to get started with something is to quit talking and start doing. Man, that's easier said than done. Don't you think it'd be easier to find your purpose and achieve your dreams, your goals, your destination if you'd stop reading about it, Googling about it, talking about it, and start being about it. We may not know exactly what the next step is or how to do it. But listen, that's okay. Sometimes we just need to go ahead and take the next step that's in front of us. We win not when we cross the finish line, but when we take the first step. Let me say that again. You win not when you cross the finish line, but when you take the first step. So. So what's the first step? In order to identify the first step, you need to make sure that your destination is clear. No one starts driving when they don't know where they're going. Here's the truth. It's scary taking the first step. Sometimes we're comfortable. We often have this internal dialogue going on in our minds. What if I get knocked down? What if I step and I look foolish? What if I step and no one steps with me? Or no one follows? What if? What if? What if? What if is the mantra of people who only talk about it. Why not? That's the mantra of those who are walking. We want to be people who walk about it and say, why not? So what keeps us from walking? These are things we've talked about in other episodes. They're the same things that keep us from doing anything and cause us to freeze in our fears instead of fighting through into our future. Here's a few of them. Fear, right? Fear is a big one. The fear of failure and the fear of success. Yeah, I said success. There's the fear of being the fool or the fear of being found out that we're fake. You know, we often talk about it because we want to project the perception that we know what we're doing, that we've got a vision and a plan. Typically, the only one we're fooling is ourselves. So how do we move from talking to walking? I'm going to give you a simple way to remember that one. Stop talking and start walking. But what's that mean? The W. Write it out. You need to have a vision and destination. And it must be clear. Write it down. The A. Take action. Decide on the very first step you need to take. Keep it simple and step. Just do it. Don't be afraid to fail. In fact, expect to fail. It takes the pressure off the L. Learn as you go. Failing does not mean failure. Unless you don't learn from the failing. You must be a forever learner. Get up. K. Keep walking. No matter what. You'll never lose or fail if you just keep walking. Remember what I said when we started winning the race happens when you take the first step, not when you cross the finish line. Can I share some real deep wisdom with you? Not from me, but from my friend Kris Kringle, as he shares and counsels the Winter Warlock to change his nasty ways. Showing my age. Here's what he tells him. No, I'm not going to sing it, but I'm going to share it. He says this. Put. Put one foot in front of the other and soon you'll be walking across the floor. Put one foot in front of the other and soon you'll be walking out the door. You never will get where you're going if you never get up on your feet. Come on, there's a good tailwind blowing. A fast walking man is hard to beat. Put one foot in front of the other if you want to change your direction. If your time of life is at hand, well, don't be the rule. Be the exception. A good way to start is to stand. Put one foot in front of the other If I want to change the reflection I see in the mirror each morn. You mean that? It's just my election to vote for a chance to be reborn. You put one foot in front of the other. You didn't know there was so much wisdom and truth in those old Christmas cartoons, did you? So here's the truth I want to share with you. We all have had or have dreams. We all desire to make a difference. For our life to matter, to leave our mark. We want to accomplish something in our lives that makes a difference. It's never too late to start. The hardest step is the first one. Make it simple. Once you complete that step, take the next one. And before long, you find yourself in your future living the significant life that you were created for. Remember what I always say you were created for More. More influence, more impact, more future. And more hope. I want to share with you an opportunity. We started a new Facebook community filled with people from around the world who are committed to their own growth and investing in the growth of those in the. I would love for you to be a part of it. It's a private group. It's called Created For More. The link is with this video and you can ask to join today. Just remember, put one foot in front of the other. You win not when you cross the finish line, but when you take the first step. Well, as always, I'm Rick Torresen and I'm believing your best is yet to come. Thanks for joining us for this week's Timeout for Leadership. For more information and resources to grow your leaders, check out our website@ricktorren.com and to be a part of the private Facebook community Created For More Follow the link and ask to join today.
