Breaking the Cycle of Hasty Action
Breaking the Cycle of Hasty Action
How the AAA Model Turned an Action Junkie into an Intentional Creator
What do the following sayings have in common?
“Measure twice, cut once"
“Look before you leap"
"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."
"Plan your work, then work your plan."
"Don’t put the cart before the horse."
"Haste makes waste."
"Slow and steady wins the race."
"Better safe than sorry."
"Prepare today, succeed tomorrow."
"Think before you act."
Of course, they are all about the value of thoroughness, patience, and prudence.
They’re also principles that I have almost never applied.
Instead, I’ve always had a mindset of:
"Fortune favors the bold."
"Nothing ventured, nothing gained."
“Fake it until you make it”
"You miss 100% of the shots you don't take."
"Ask for forgiveness, not permission."
“Ready, Fire, Aim”
"He who hesitates is lost."
“Cross that bridge when you come to it”
“Learn by doing”
And being raised in the startup business culture, this action oriented mindset was even kicked up a notch.
You would often hear me saying:
"Let’s build the plane on the way down."
“Sell it into existence”
"Launch early, learn quickly."
“Throw shit at the wall and keep what sticks”
"Move fast and break things."
"Ship it now, fix it later."
"Fail forward."
This bias for action has value. You learn quickly. You innovate, or die trying.
You maximize your chances of startup success.
You also waste a massive amount of time and resources. You miss way more of the shots than you make.
And for me personally, I just can’t play this game any more. The waste of it all leaves me feeling empty, regretful, and exhausted.
This "spray and pray" mentality has disconnected me from the positive impact that I’m looking to make.
Slowing down seems counterintuitive, almost impossible, considering that my entire business career has been predicated on this action bias.
So how can this recovering action junkie break the cycle?
The Awareness, Acceptance, Action (AAA) Model
A fellow Impacters Co-op member introduced me to the Awareness, Acceptance, Action (AAA) model, which has been working wonders.
Having two steps to get through before taking action has helped me to flip the script.
I’m now hitting the mark with my actions, way more than I’m missing.
I’m doing less, while making a greater impact.
My work is more meaningful, and I’m feeling more fulfilled than ever before.
Rather than rushing into action, the AAA model helps me to pause, reflect, get my head straight, and then act with purpose.
Step 1: Awareness
When facing any problem, opportunity, question, or challenge, the first step is to cultivate your internal awareness.
What are the facts? What are you feeling? What are your initial ideas about taking action? What doubts or fears are coming up? What questions do you have? What could you test?
Then, expand your awareness to the external situation.
How can you empathetically connect with people or the situation, asking questions, doing research, and exploring the needs and opportunities for action that are present.
How will you know when your awareness is complete?
When your discovery keeps giving you the same answers. When you’re not learning anything new or important, then you’re ready for the next step.
Step 2: Acceptance
This step was the game changer for me.
I have a tendency to get excited about the potential future that my actions could create, and then get attached to that as an outcome.
Acceptance is about acknowledging that you cannot control the results of your actions—only your effort.
In the same way that AA teaches its members they are "powerless" over external circumstances, this step is about releasing this false belief (or hope).
The truth is that I can’t control anything outside of myself, and I can’t even control myself most of the time.
When I accept this, I can move into action with positive intention, and without attachment.
This relieves pressure and allows me to act from a place of purpose, not expectation.
This has been a difficult shift for me to make, so I’ve created some rituals to cement the new neural pathways.
I now start each work day by reciting an affirmation about being “free from the need to control outcomes” and focusing on “pulling, not pushing, trusting that what is meant for me will find its way”.
Also, as a result of a dream interpretation using the GodseyAI, after reciting the affirmation I’m now mytho-poetically using a movie clapboard to say “ACTION” and then at the end of the workday I say “CUT”.
This clapboard ritual signifies that my acting part is over, now it’s time to get the popcorn out and watch the other actors do their thing.
All this may sound a little cheesy, or even ridiculous, but it has made all the difference to the changing of my underlying belief systems.
Step 3: Action
Now, with a clear sense of awareness and acceptance, you are (finally!!) ready to act.
But this isn’t just any action—it’s right action.
It’s purposeful, thoughtful, and driven by your intention, and not a desire for specific results.
To help with finding right action, I’ve been asking myself:
What action will I be proud of, regardless of the outcome?
What will I learn or gain from this action?
How can I align this action with my impactful purpose?
How would it feel to not act at all?
Taking right action means choosing what’s most aligned with your values, your business, and the needs of the people you’re looking to help.
It’s all about moving forward with clear intention, and being happy with the effort, learnings, and experience, regardless of what happens afterwards.
Benefits of the AAA Model
By spending more time on awareness and acceptance, and then taking aligned action I have discovered three key benefits:
Deeper Connection: By cultivating awareness of yourself and your clients, you build stronger relationships and empathy. This helps you to better connect your actions with the true needs of the people you want to serve. You’ll be more confident in the value of your actions, and happier with the things you’ve done.
Reduced Wasted Resources: Slowing down and reflecting before acting helps you avoid costly missteps. You’re less likely to waste time and money on things that don’t make an impact because you’ve thoughtfully aligned your actions with needs. You’ll get more done with less, freeing up your time for other priorities, or for more aligned action.
Maximized Impact: When your actions are grounded in purpose and aligned with what the world needs from you, you have a chance to make your greatest impact. It is impossible to consistently make your most positive impact if you’re lacking awareness. And if you are attached to specific outcomes, then you’ll miss out on other potential opportunities because of the blinders you have on.
We’re Human Beings, Not Human Doings
Of all those sayings about the values of thoroughness, patience, and prudence, the one that nails it for me is:
Measure Twice, Cut Once.
You can’t take back an action. You can’t take back time.
Another Impacters Co-op member often reminds me that I’m a human being, not a human doing.
The Awareness, Acceptance, Action model has helped me to put this truth into practice, better than anything I have found.
Now over to you…
What do you think of the AAA model?
Have you found any other helpful models, tools, or practices for taking right action?
We’d love to hear from you in the comments below.