“Just do it” isn’t a plan
In yesterday’s essay, I mentioned my friend/brother and long-time mentor Peter Cook and his seemingly limitless font of personal discipline which means he can get stuff done simply by willing himself to do it.
Except… that’s not what he does.
See, I know I’m not disciplined enough to get everything done by willing myself to do it, so it makes sense that I would have to make other arrangements in order to ensure I make good on my commitments, but Pete… he could just do it, couldn’t he? Apparently not. Even people with as much discipline as Pete will run out at some point, which means that having a plan that extends beyond discipline is key.
As a result, I’ve become very sensitive to the phrase “just do it”. It’s an excellent marketing slogan, and a terrible strategy. When I hear someone respond to the question “how are you going to achieve that?” with the phrase “I just need to do it”, I’ll always press them to think more deeply about the path of progress. I’ve been coaching creators long enough to know that very few find success by pretending to themselves that they’ll just do it.
Still, after years of being attuned to this phrase, occasionally when someone asks me how I’m going to achieve something, from deep in the neurological circuits of my language centre I feel a familiar phrase brewing; ”I guess I’ll just…”
I can usually stop myself from actually saying it, these days, but the horrid beast still lurks within me.
“Just do it” isn’t a plan.
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