11
Walk Slowly, but Never Backward
O
N THE FIRST
day
of class, Jerry Uelsmann, a professor at the University of
Florida, divided his film photography students into two groups.
Everyone on the left side of the classroom, he explained, would be in the
“quantity” group. They would be graded solely on the amount of work they
produced. On the final day of class, he would tally the number of photos
submitted by each student. One hundred photos would rate an A, ninety
photos a B,
eighty photos a C, and so on.
Meanwhile, everyone on the right side of the room would be in the
“quality” group. They would be graded only on the excellence of their
work. They would only need to produce one photo during the semester, but
to get an A, it had to be a nearly perfect image.
At the end of the term, he was surprised to find that all the best photos
were produced by the
quantity group. During the semester, these students
were busy taking photos, experimenting
with composition and lighting,
testing out various methods in the darkroom, and learning from their
mistakes. In the process of creating hundreds of photos, they honed their
skills. Meanwhile, the
quality group
sat around speculating about
perfection. In the end, they had little to show for their efforts other than
unverified theories and one mediocre photo.
*
It is easy to get bogged down trying to find the optimal plan for change:
the fastest way to lose weight, the best program to build muscle, the perfect
idea for a side hustle. We are so focused on figuring out the best approach
that we never get around to taking action. As Voltaire once wrote, “The best
is the enemy of the good.”
I refer to this as the difference between being in motion and taking
action. The two ideas sound similar, but they’re not the same. When you’re
in motion, you’re planning and strategizing and learning. Those are all good
things, but they don’t produce a result.
Action, on the other hand, is the type of behavior
that will deliver an
outcome. If I outline twenty ideas for articles I want to write, that’s motion.
If I actually sit down and write an article, that’s action. If I search for a
better diet plan and read a few books on the topic, that’s motion. If I
actually eat a healthy meal, that’s action.
Sometimes
motion is useful, but it will never produce an outcome by
itself. It doesn’t matter how many times you go talk to the personal trainer,
that motion will never get you in shape. Only the action of working out will
get the result you’re looking to achieve.
If motion doesn’t lead to results, why do we do it? Sometimes we do it
because we actually need to plan or learn more. But more often than not, we
do it because motion allows us to feel like we’re making progress without
running the risk of failure. Most of us are experts at avoiding criticism. It
doesn’t feel good to fail or to be judged publicly, so we tend to avoid
situations where that might happen. And that’s the biggest reason why you
slip into motion rather than taking action: you want to delay failure.
It’s easy to be in motion and convince yourself that you’re still making
progress. You think,
“I’ve got conversations going with four potential
clients right now. This is good. We’re moving in the right direction.” Or,
“I
brainstormed some ideas for that book I want to write. This is coming
together.”
Motion makes you feel like you’re getting things done. But really, you’re
just preparing to get something done. When preparation becomes a form of
procrastination, you need to change something. You don’t want to merely
be planning. You want to be practicing.
If you want to master a habit, the key is to start with repetition, not
perfection. You don’t need to map out every feature of a new habit. You just
need to practice it. This is the first takeaway of the 3rd Law: you just need
to get your reps in.
