<h1>Performance & Success Advice Blog Post # 12 - Get "It" Done!</h1>

As I type this blog post, this topic is one that is painfully relevant.  Since my last post, I have been jotting down ideas for my future posts. There was, however, one missing element.  I never took the time to actually sit down and Get "It" Done.

When I look at the phrase "Get "It" Done," I see two distinct definitions:

Get "It" Done-

1. Taking the necessary action (and time) to see "it" through
2. Doing everything within your power to ensure you accomplish whatever "it" is you need

We all practice definition #1 in our lives as we accomplish our goals and objectives.  It is definition #2 that I strive to achieve in my daily life.  

For this definition to hold true, you must recognize where your individual locus of control falls.  We are all accountable for our own actions.  Likewise, we all have the potential to do everything we dream of.  In order to achieve our dreams and goals, you need to be willing to take your life into your own hands, taking accountability for the things that you really want.

locus of control- One's belief about what causes the good and bad results in their life

• External - The degree to which you associate your fate, fortune, failures (and successes) to external factors as opposed to internal factors.  [Ex. Blaming tardiness on bad traffic (traffic being the external factor)]
• Internal - The degree to which you associate your fate, fortune, failure (and successes) to internal factors as opposed to external factors [Ex. Taking accountability for the poor grade you received on an exam for not studying harder (you not putting forth enough effort to study being the internal factor)]

*TIP* - Develop a winning attitude and an internal locus of control!  Together, this will allow you to hold yourself accountable for your results (positive or negative), ultimately achieving greater levels of success.

Here is a real life example that I find amusing of how to take control of your life and Get "It" Done!  As of a couple weeks ago, I had only a few weeks left of one Marketing Strategies class until I graduate with a Bachelor's of Science in Marketing and a concentration in Sales.  All that I needed to do was pass the class with a C or higher.  This week in particular, I had an extra case of "Senior-itis."  Instead of studying or reading the Harvard Case for the exam, I only skimmed through it once.  When I got my grade, the result, of a 68% on the exam, I knew precisely what internal factor caused this.  I realized that in just a few short weeks if I didn't get a C or better in the class I would not graduate.  I knew what I had to do...take control and Get "It" Done!  What did I do?  I prepared extensively for the next test by reading the Harvard Case several times, highlighting the important information, and talking about the case until I was confident I knew the material.  The result - I was the only person in the entire class to get a perfect score on the test, so the professor gave me 107%.  Today, I have a 98% average in the class and will graduate with the Dean's List Honors.

The moral of the story is simple.  I was not happy with my result - the 68%.  The "it" that needed to get done - graduate!  My locus of control - Internal, since I knew my lack of preparation was the cause.  What I did - own up to my mistake, laugh about it, and buckle down to do everything in my power to ensure that I graduate.

This is no secret.  Like Nike says..."Just do it."  Take control, do what you've gotta do, and Get "It" Done!

Do you procrastinate?  We all do...learn how to use active procrastination to get done what you need to, and put off the things that are not so important in Eat That Frog!

Questions?  Comments?  Blog with me!