photo by steveweaver
I’m not much of a performer. Of all my acting endeavors, playing Gretl von Trapp in The Sound of Music — a role that required small stature, little speaking, and a couple one-line solos — was the closest I got to a starring role. The last time I performed a poem in public, I downed two beers and inhaled a cigarette five minutes before stepping on the stage. I hate beer, and I don’t smoke. But I needed something to help calm those knocking knees.
My shining moment in performance, however, came when I least expected it. I was 12 years old, and my friends and I had decided to spend the summer in theater camp. It was opening weekend of The Enchanted, and I had the distinguished role of “Girl #3.”
Half an hour before the show began, the director marched backstage and revealed a minor crisis: Executioner #2 was at home with a fever. His understudy was at home with his head in the toilet. A nervous chatter spread through the room. The funniest scene of the play was the rap song performed by the executioners — how could we fill the gap?
I sauntered up to the director and joked that I could fill in for the Executioner. I sure did crack a smile on her face, though it wasn’t one of amusement — “Wonderful,” she said. “Go review the script.” And with that she walked briskly away, presumably to deal with another minor crisis.
I was silent for a moment, as I imagined the mortification that surely was to come. Me, rapping? On stage? Dressed as a man? Sure, I knew most of the verses by heart after sitting through countless rehearsals, but the anonymity of being Girl #3 suited me just fine. But at this point, I didn’t really have a choice. I had to take the plunge.
I actually don’t remember what I did on stage. As I cavorted around with pigtails jutting out from under my solemn executioner’s hat, adrenaline rushed through my body, letting instinct take over and pushing consciousness aside.
But when the reviews came in, they were glowing. My friends were on the floor laughing, and the audience members (read: the parents) were terribly disappointed that they did not have their camcorders. I got my 7 minutes of fame.
Ready, Fire, Aim
So why should you care about my wholly unimpressive career in acting? What was the point of that lengthy story?
The only reason I gave a Tony-worthy performance that night was because I took the plunge. I didn’t pause long enough to let doubt paralyze me, and I didn’t get so caught up in practicing that I lost momentum. I looked at the script, made sure I had the material down, and went for it.
The popular phrase to describe this approach seems to be “Ready, Fire, Aim.” Sounds good to me. Brian Clark expands upon this idea on Copyblogger, focusing on its application to business and social media. Chris Guillebeau also advocates it as his plan of attack. The idea isn’t to jump in headfirst without a shred of preparation. Rather, you:
1. Make some sort of plan. Get your ideas and your goals down on paper.
2. Execute that plan. If you wait for your plan to attain perfection, you’ll end up doing a whole lotta nothing. Launch now, even if you’re still feeling things out.
3. Adjust and improve. Plans are allowed to change, so learn from your mistakes and triumphs.
4. Re-execute. Keep creating and launching. This is a lather, rinse, repeat kinda cycle, so feel free to keep fine-tuning until you’ve created your ultimate [fill in the blank] .
The key is that Step 1 does not mean to research every possibility and try to devise a fail-proof scheme. You won’t know the most effective way to proceed until you actually do it, and you’ll probably waste a lot of time and miss a few opportunities in the process.
Solid Proof
I can vouch for the business benefits of the Ready-Fire-Aim approach. When I began my freelance writing business, I needed an income. I didn’t have time to drag out the planning process, so I launched, and then adjusted along the way. Of course I made plenty of mistakes, but that’s how you consistently approve the method to your madness.
I got my spot in the zany world of online freelancers, and I slowly and steadily showed my worth. If I had fretted and planned and re-planned before launching the business, I might not have enough baht in my wallet to splurge on a glass of wine (a luxury indeed here in Thailand), and I certainly wouldn’t be taking a trip to Indonesia at the end of this month.
But the Ready-Fire-Aim approach has an appeal much broader than merely business matters. My decision to move to Thailand may have seemed somewhat capricious to some, but it has brought about a slew of wonderful things in my life. I got a decent idea of what to expect, saved a modest safety cushion in the bank, and flew to Thailand. When you plunge right in, you have no choice but to learn and grow. Worst-case scenario, it completely sucks, and you move on with life.
My final example of how well Ready-Fire-Aim has worked for me (as I imagine you’re getting a bit weary of hearing all about my fabulous successes) is in my creative writing. The fundamental habit that transformed my devotion to writing was simply to make a daily writing routine.
Before, I would sit in front of my laptop and wonder how exactly I was going to extract a stream of brilliance from my brain. As you can perhaps imagine, this led to absolutely nothing. I had no momentum, I was scared of writing crap, and I just kept sitting there plotting possible sentences in my mind with my fingers motionless on the keyboard.
On the other hand, when I write regularly, I gradually learn what works and what doesn’t. I go back and edit, and I constantly try new things.
But none of this can happen unless you spit it out. Whatever you’re creating, launching, or giving birth to, just make it and get it out there. There’s always room for refinement, and your changes will be all the more effective if they’re grown from real-time experience.
So, has anyone here taken the plunge? I’d love to hear your own stories of victory in the comments. Or, if you want to blow my whole theory out of the water, tell us about your utter failures.
Add your comments below, or click the title of this post if no comment form is visible!
If you enjoy this blog, I invite you to subscribe by e-mail or by RSS reader (links are near the top of the sidebar).
{ 88 comments… read them below or add one }
← Previous Comments
Just my two cents. This is the automatic reaction to all learning experiences from the time we are born. We don’t plan to learn to crawl, walk, run, etc. We just dive in. In school and college, and early in our true adult lives we often over think and talk ourselves out of numerous opportunities or experiences. But then there comes a time when you are not jumping in alone. You are tied to a chain of other people like never before and you have to give some thought to the rest of the chain. To continue the metaphor, if you dive in while on the chain, there are three basic possible outcomes. One, everyone is in sync and lands beautifully. Two, you dive in, but the chain stays still pulling you back crashing into the side of the cliff. And third, you manage the dive, but the rest of the chain gets pulled clumsily and may or may not correct themselves to match you before crashing into the water and rocks below. So either everyone comes out OK, everyone else is OK, but your life passes you by while you are in a state of resistance (resentment?), or your life is, OK, but you throw everyone else life into a moment of disarray. If you look at all three, either some planning took place or lack of planning caused some damage to someone.
There are many occasions when it is still very good policy to just jump in such as when trying a new hobby, exploring personal growth, or trying a new fashion statement. But most things you choose will impact other people and they should be considered.
Planning is not only beneficial for the people in your life. Thinking through any process will help you to identify tools that are necessary or could make the task easier.
One more thought before putting this ‘book’ to bed. It is important to have the courage to dive in, the maturity to plan things out and look to the future, but most important of all is to have the intelligence to be realistic and remain flexible. But that is just my point of view.
I really enjoyed your article and all of the comments. This was a lot of fun. I am very glad I stopped in!
Laurel Plum´s last blog post..Basic Kitchen Organizing Part 3 – Inside of the Refrigerator
Sawadtee ka Zoe!
Living in Thailand and blogging! I’m envious! Really enjoyed your post and your blog looks great.
I very much use the “Ready, Aim, Fire” approach in my life. My husband and I have wanted to live in Australia for ages but have put it off; now we have decided that there will never be a perfect time to go, so we are ‘taking the plunge’ and are just going to go anyway!
Have fun.
Coral´s last blog post..Don’t Wait for the Lights to Turn Green
I find that after taking the plunge, learning and being able to adapt to the changing circumstances is one of the most important lessons.
If you stop learning, you’re brain dies.
Thanks for the excellent read………….:)
FIrst of all, congrats on being chosen for Chuck’s project. Every now and again I force myself to take a plunge. Lately it’s been ukulele playing, getting up on stage and performing in both small and large groups. It’s really nerve-wracking. What if people hate it, what if I stuff up? But I’d much rather do something like that than sit back and watch others do it because I was too scared. The results of my last efforts are up on my website and youtube. I’ve still things to learn but that’s cool.
jen´s last blog post..Soon
Hi Zoe,
I read your post with a great deal of admiration, and “Yesss’s” accompanied by several fist pumps. I have done my entire life like that, and even have a similar picture of a guy diving from a high place into a pool below. To me that picture has always meant “Go”. But I must admit I thought my behavior was because I was an ADD Aries. Good to know I am an intuitive business builder who can correct as I go. Congratulations on new visibility, and I read your post about being Geeky to the Core. I like those kinds of inner experiences. Not fever, but interacting with my inner language mavens. Are you sure Patrick Buchanen did not possess you? Mike Logan
Hiya – I am committed to coming over to read your blog for the next two weeks, but from I see so far, I won’t be stopping then. For this post – I agree that too much planning stifles creativity. For me at least that proves true. Even when I do come up with a plan, I usually end up changing it. So, why not just jump right in/
see you tomorrow!
dlyn´s last blog post..Sunday
Most people wouldn’t call me timid, but I am when it comes to diving into scary (or at least what I perceive as scary) waters. Thanks for the great advice. I enjoyed this post.
Sherre´s last blog post..NOT enjoying autumn
Hi Zoe! This is nuts. I’m impressed that you’re responding to comments. You’re inspiring…
Tobey´s last blog post..How to Peel a Pommelo
love it! and i totally agree. I am a little neurotic and i do like to plan a lot of things, but sometimes, you just gotta jump feet first cause timing is never going to be PERFECT. A lot of times when i go out of my “comfort zone” I’m surprised that what i see as me being a total lunatic nerd, others find fascinating and *gasp* sometimes “cool!” LOL!
liz´s last blog post..Top 13 VOTE Posters: Don’t Forget to VOTE
I’ve had such a wonderful time reading all your comments, and some of you have challenged parts of this post in great ways.
In a few e-mail exchanges with you readers, it became clear that this approach is especially effective when it comes to creative endeavors.
Definitely not appropriate for every life situation, though…! Laurel Plum made an excellent point about considering the effect it’ll have on those around you.
Hello Zoe. I love your post and I love the idea that you are living in Thailand. Sounds exotic!
I take the plunge every time I go into a coaching call. I tend to be a person who likes to be well prepared, but you can only be so prepared for a coaching call. One can never tell what is going to come up. I actually have the feeling of stage fright in the minutes leading up to a call. But when the phone rings, I answer and take the plunge. It’s interesting to watch this process. And I’m quite enjoying it too.
I understand about “making” the time to write. I did that today for the first time and HATED it! I wasn’t inspired. I didn’t like anything I wrote, but I saved it and will sleep on it.
Davina´s last blog post..A Ghostly Life Experience
Hi Zoë,
Like others I found yours via Chuck’s so it would appear his masterplan is coming together somewhat. A great read about “Ready, Fire, Aim” approach.
My own personal version was kinda like this, got offered a job hundreds of miles from home, didn’t tell anyone, just accepted it. Didn’t think about it again, told everyone 30 mins before I left, threw my computer some cothes and my guitar in the car and off I went on my merry way.
I knew if I had to think about it and talk to people about it I then there’s no way I’d have made the leap.
Anyway, a great read and I’ll likely be facing the sack once again as I spend my day reading the archives!
Cheers…
Me
Me´s last blog post..Fascinated By Good, Destroyed By Evil… What Is there to Believe In?
Great post. Taking the plunge is a very good sentiment. You gave an example of how it worked for you, and explained why it would work for everyone else. I try to take the plunge in life, but probably don’t do so as often as I should.
I’m proud of your rapping efforts, I really am – as a performer who can’t get much more out of my career than playing Jesus in a nativity play, well done on the RFA approach!
Michael Lee´s last blog post..Melbourne Cup Day 1996 (the legend of Janie Jane)
@ Davina – Sometime I feel like that stage fright is a great rush. But maybe that’s just in hindsight, cause I’m pretty sure it’s not fun while you’re feeling it!
@ Me – That’s one way to make sure you’re not compromising your plans! That’s a brave move, my friend.
@ Michael – At the risk of sounding ignorant: What’s RFA? At any rate, Jesus is a pretty big role to take on… a more challenging role than Gretl, anyway
.
Hi Zoe:
I am here via Chuck on Twitter (I just followed you as well). I think neither failure or success blows your theory out of the water. Failure is only failure if you haven’t learned anything from it and applied it in your life. I also think that there is a balance of plunging in and having some goals to get where you want to go.:) I am, by personality, one to sort of jump in and then ask how deep the water is…until this past year when I decided to start my own business; all of a sudden I had info overload and was literally paralyzed by wanting everything to be “perfect”…”ain’t gonna happen babe, so get your butt in gear and get movin” (voice inside my head talking!)
I like your writing style; weaving your pieces of your life story in is perfect. Looking forward to reading more!
Congratulations on being the first for such a really cool project, and also for having a really awesome name. I love your writing, it’s well woven and thoughtful. I love that it doesn’t in any way feel like just another blog. I’m proud to have you in my reader, and will be back as soon as you light it up again. Have a great day.
Writer Dad´s last blog post..Let’s Get Our Kids Drunk! or Happy Halloween!
It’s a fine line between planning and over-planning! It is very true that “baptism by fire” can be a true booster, especially if you have fallen into the trap of using planning as a delay mechanism so you don’t actually have to act.
You do have to act. Plan, yes, but once you have a basic direction, move forward and make adjustments on the way. Burn your bridges along the way.
As a weird but essentially related aside, everyone around me is amazed by my ability to “dunk” things. A paper ball in a wastebasket ten feet away? No problem! A half empty coffee cup in a waste bin 15 feet away? Easy! I can dunk almost anything in any type of container (and in case you are wondering, it works with basketballs too) but on one condition: I have to do it without thinking!!! If I stop and aim, I miss 80% of the time.
The lesson here? Do not let your brain get in the way! That goes for writing or for any other endeavour you embark on in like.
Alain Lemay´s last blog post..Helping Bloggers get some exposure!
@ Danielle – Yes, that balance is key. No good jumping in aimlessly…!
@ Writer Dad – What a lovely compliment. Great to have you reading : )
@ Alain – A half-empty coffee cup flying 15 feet? Sounds a bit messy. Impressive, though, I must admit!
Hey there, over from Chuck.
Nice post. I’m very much a ready, steady, fire type of gal. Although that’s not the first impression I give. I make plans, I map out itineries, I read recipes… but when it comes to doing it, I follow nothing but my intuition.
One of my biggest plunges was emigrating to the Balkans, without EVER having visited before. Friends kept asking in awe, but, don’t you need to see the place first?
Nope. You see, I’m okay with turning back, letting go, things not being perfect, making mistakes, and learning by trial and error.
Giving up perfectionism goes a long way in this.
Mon @ Holistic Mama´s last blog post..pioneering begins!
Great storytelling and a really nice connection to how diving in can be applied to other life decisions and goals. I agree–too much thinking and planning is a sure way to squeeze the instinct and heart out of what we’re trying to do. Plus, sometimes we don’t know exactly what we’re trying to do, and we have to find out along the way. Too much planning doesn’t leave room for those mid-journey wanderings and adjustments.
Kristin T.´s last blog post..Old baggage & new beginnings on election eve
Followed you here from the Chuck Westbrook’s blogger appreciation project.
This post is actually something I needed to hear. I read the entire thing, evaluated my moving situation, cocked my head, and simply said: “Woah. Woah, this is right. Holy hell, I need to do something.”
This blog is SO saved under my feed reader’s favorites folder.
nicopolitan´s last blog post..Vegas Bound
@ Mon – Sounds like you have the ideal balance — learn what you’re working with, then jump in and go with your gut.
Your move to the Balkans sounds like my move to Thailand. A lot of people said, “Well, what if you hate it?” I completely agree with you…room to try again, try a new place, appreciate your mistakes. Are you still in the Balkans?
@ Kristin – I’m all about figuring it out as I go : )
@ nicopolitan – *big grin*
Another Chuck participant. I was quite impressed with your post and I do agree with you. I’ve been a writer since 1980, both in the corporate world, and as a free lance author. In the corporate world they want tons and tons of upfront planning and I found that it took all the creativity out of my writing. Outlines, drafts up the wazoo and I ended up with boring drivel that had none of my personality left in the final draft.
When I quit writing and started blogging, I initially just blogged about whatever struck my fancy. When I look back at my posts from 5 years ago, they tend to be off the wall because I just had no idea or structure at all. So I learned that I needed to keep to some topics, and to keep other topics off my main blog.
Last year I started a group blog. I planned and planned, I did the blog design, I hired the writers, I came up with a mission statement, I got the blog up and running. You know what happened? 5 of the initial bloggers quit because I was too controlling over content. I overplanned and they kept telling me that they wanted to use the site to sell their books, and I accomodated them. I was an idiot. I replaced them, I took off all the buy my book references and the blog flourished. We’re not huge, but we are a niche blog with a dedicated audience of several hundred daily readers, and it’s a nice creative blog.
Too much planning…. it doesn’t work for me!
margalit´s last blog post..Yes we can
@margalit – It’s tough to have writing be your “day job” and your creative pursuit — if you spend all day having the creativity sapped from your writing, sometimes writing’s the last thing you want to do when you get home.
I love hearing how blogs change and take a new direction. Your project sounds interesting. What’s the link to the creative blog?
Whoa! A lot of comments. They must be keeping you really busy
I’m a very big fan of ‘ready, fire, aim’ approach.
I’ve got my own share of success and failure. When I got my two degrees, I had this detailed plan to get out and become a Special Education teacher and go to the U.S. or Europe. Unfortunately, things didn’t work out as I had hoped. I didn’t get the job but a new opportunity arose.
It was an English teaching job to China.
Had I stuck obstinately to my former plans, I would not have been here eating dimsum and Peking duck and learning kung-fu.
I applied the same formula to my fiction writing. I had many failures and a few success but the important thing was I learned a lot and adjusted along the way. The surprising thing was how my blog has helped me develop and reach out to people through my writing. That was so not part of the plan.
Where in Indonesia are you going to? You must see the Bromo volcano in Java. It’s spectacular! And I’d invite you to read my post on some dangers in Indonesia just so you know what’s likely to happen. Be fully covered unless you’re going to Bali: Kidnapped in Indonesia”
Kate´s last blog post..How To Get Clarity In Your Life
@ Kate – I love your turn of events! I can really relate to the blog being an unexpected motivation and connector… I never predicted that myself.
I’m most likely going to Sulawesi, but flying into Jakarta. I cannot wait! I’m running over to read your post now…I *would* like to make it back to Chiang Mai.
Zoe, the link to the ‘creative’ blog is
http://mid-centurymodernmoms.com
margalit´s last blog post..I’m channeling Amy Pohler this morning
I love this post. So simple. I’ve been waylaid from my writing for two years, two deaths, a divorce, several moves and raising my 3 kids by myself. Now, its a daily thing. I made a word processing document that I print out each night and fill out each day: “Daily Writing Topic” and, because my brain is wildly creative, I have check boxes for 8 different topics. I find that the list frees me to write about one thing, because I know the other 7 are remembered somewhere. And the writing, the daily writing is the huge step towards expression. Little bits, every day.
Love your blog!
Mary Wallace´s last blog post..Chickens before Humans
Hi Zoe,
Here from the Chuck project and a little late but I have just been reading through all of your posts and they are excellant! I really like your style and your spunk! I am also a jump in with both feet first type of person and also a long term planner and sometime the conflict of both parts of my personality get me into mischief!
I’m going to be looking forward to reading your entire series as it comes up ( as you can see I read ahead,) this is going to be fun!
Wendi Kelly-Life’s Little Inspirations´s last blog post..High Flying Faith
@ Mary – A daily writing routine is an excellent way to collect your thoughts and develop your writing. It sounds like you’ve had no problem at all sticking to yours!
@ Wendi – Wee, thanks for appreciating my spunk : ). That makes for an unlikely combination, but those are usually more fun anyway!
@ Margalit – Thanks for sending me the link. You’ve got some stories up there that are simple yet quite touching : )
I love your anecdote. I’m starting this process right now, searching for a potential new job and developing some future writing ideas. Thanks for sharing.
The Modern Gal´s last blog post..How to remove that out-of-date bumper sticker
This is particularly apt for photography where often the most difficult step is getting out of the front door. And if where you go is not the right place you’ll likely be led to the next place and to the one after that until the picture appears.
david sanger´s last blog post..Authenticity
@ David – Oh, very true! I’ve got plenty of photographers/photojournalists in my realm, and they’re constantly negotiating the where-to-go factor… good to have momentum, though
.
sure – momentum helps overcome the fear factor…
BTW, perhaps you know fellow travel journalist Joe Cummings also in Thailand:
http://www.joecummings.com/
@ David – Yep — small world w/ the expats in Thailand! Joe and I have crossed paths a few times.
← Previous Comments
{ 5 trackbacks }