But before we dig into the solutions what is brain crack? In my opinion brain crack is know by several terms,  being in your own head, “wannabepreneur“, risk adverse…and a variety of other terms.  Brian crack can be broken down to it’s simplest form to be holding ideas in your head without putting them into action.  This holding of the ideas creating some sense of comfort or progression, while in essence creating nothing more than a false sense of productivity.  This is what fellow blogger zefrank has to say about brain crack (Warning: The video contains some NSFW language at the 1:30 mark, but the first 1:30 makes it worth a watch.)  Thanks for the song Ze.

Because with out the next step of some physical action the loop of great, world changing ideas continue to be puffed up into the greatest ideas the world has never seen.   This idea holding thoughts can be of several types, planning to exercise, planning to change jobs, planning to turn a new idea into a product, etc.  All of these things are not bad activities the problem stems from the planning activities continuing on a perpetual basis.  Each time we let ourselves get wrapped up in just  the planning activities they do not lead us to the next stages (generally the riskier ones).  And it is these loops that I would like to address.

5-S teps to Kick a Brain-Crack Addiction:

1) Get it ALL Out…and Down!

As simple as this step sounds this provides the the required brain cleanse allowing you to empty your thoughts completely of all the various ideas, tasks or hurdles.  This step basically provides two basic functions, one is to clean and capture.  The first part, Clean, allows your mind to be empty subsequently allowing more focus and a further ability to handle new challenges and to accept new opportunities.  This step out of all the steps should be the simplest due to the sheer fact that there is very little personal risk involved, unlike the remaining 4 steps.  So now that we have got it all out, lets take a look at the next step.

2) Take Action!
One of my favorite quotes by Tom Peters is:

Ready Fire Aim

I love this quote for so many reasons but mostly for the simplicity, as you dig down however there are several lessons to be learned.   First, be ready, which to me means to be prepared. More specifically, whatever your path, prepare for success, stay up to date in your industry, keep your skill currents and know as much as you can about the path your are about to embark on.  For example, I am working on releasing a new kids toy, so I am in the process of becoming an expert on the toy industry and what it takes to bring a toy to the market. But that is my path, for you it might be to lose weight, or to change a bad habit, learn everything you can about those paths, it will help you in the next step which is to Fire. Though fire might sound like an easy step it is having to fire without ever aiming that takes the guts and preparation. The other interesting part of this process is that people often get stuck at this point in a type of analysis paralysis.  Trying too hard to workout every detail and every possible scenario, this is where the process seems to get hung up for most of us.  We wait for every possible bit of info, so that we do not make any “mistakes”.  In reality however, or lack of action is exactly is the source of all of the problems.  I am not suggesting that we run out and try to fly, what I am saying if you want to fly, build some wings, strap them on and jump! (maybe not off of a bridge, but the roof or better yet the deck…the important part is to JUMP).

3) One Small Step…

The other key to success is after you make that first jump to continue to push forward, one small step at a time.  Just like the lunar landing, preparation is key, planning is important but once you jump (blast off in a rocket), your job is still not finished until you take that first step out of the lunar lander.  Though the jump can be one of the most anxious moments, for others the first step can induce similar reactions causing people to reconsider or hesitate.  As you can imagine hesitation at this point induces failure!  But if you do take that first step now you have options, options to make new choices and to make course corrections which push you closer and closer to your goal.

4) Put it on a Shelf, or in a Box!

It is possible that after you have put it all on the line that your project or self improvement will not proceed to the desired results, that is just a fact of life.  It is possible to do everything right and still not find success, does that mean you quit?  Of course not!  So what do you do next?  The next step, like with the first step, you need to finalize the project.   It is important to finalize the project so that you can focus your attention on the next project unimpeded by the results, failures or successes, of the previous ones.  This step like the initial step helps keep our mind empty of baggage and focused on moving forward.  The other important part of this step is to celebrate our successes and to honor our defeats and the lessons learned.   I personally review examples of each to help me jump start new projects.

5) Rinse and Repeat

With a few successes  under your belt you have to keep pushing.  Building on small or large successes and being vigilant to incorporate successful tools and experiences into each new project.  We have all heard of one hit wonders or people who’s results do not last.  The primary reasons for this lack of success is abandoning the things that made them successful in the first place.  Do not let that happen to you, find your focus, stay the course, make adjustments as necessary and enjoy the ride.

One Last Note: Why do we stay addicted?

One of the main reasons we stay addicted to brain crack is that we enjoy playing with ideas and just that action makes us feel like we are doing something to change our situation. Let me be blunt, because I have had to have this same blunt conversation with myself, until your ideas are out of your head they are useless.  Unless you share your ideas, talents or take action on your plans they are useless, get out, talk with people, make plans, take action and keep me posted on your results!