Nick Smith of Clear Path Training and I are traveling paths so close together, they are almost one. in fact, you might call it The Clear Path. When I read his book, The Art of Accomplishment: 35 Surprisingly Simple Ways To Start Reaching All Of Your Goals, and compared the thought leadership in it to that in my own book, The Science of Making Things Happen: Turn Any Possibility into Reality, I got chills. We speak the same language, but in different voices that illuminate each other in a complementary way. It occurred to me that putting these two primers together would be powerful stuff, and so I asked Nick if I could interview him for my blog. He graciously agreed, and not only that: he’s now a faculty member of the Possibility Institute! Exciting stuff, but let me get you connected to Nick right now. Here’s our conversation.

Nick, your approach to coaching, like mine, is a science-based approach. Tell us about it and why it works.

Kim, I followed the approach that I did because like so many others, I bought into the ideas of “The Secret” and used to think, “If I just think hard enough or hold the right mindset, riches will start flowing in.” While that is partly true, I was leaving out some very important steps; one of the most important steps being action. I learned that in order for me to get what I want out of life, I needed to change not only my thinking, but the incorrect behaviors I established through years of experience. I studied with some powerful coaches and read every book I could get my hands on about the subject. I noticed common themes emerging. Every person I interviewed, read or coached with EARNED their success. Many of them were terrible at their profession when they began, but each stuck with the principles I share long enough to create their world the way they wanted. The reason my approach is scientific versus metaphysical, is because it is testable. I know that results don’t lie. My actions either create the results I want or they don’t. If I do not have what I want in my life, I can deduce that adjustments need to be made. If I make those adjustments, I can eventually create the outcome I desire. The problem I see is most people quit before they ever make the adjustments. They see the failed result, and quit. My book teaches them how to push through that.

How did you come to discover the 35 key strategies in your book, The Art of Accomplishment?

In the last question, I touched on where these principles came from. However, many of them came about through experiences I had. For example, the certainty cycle was created after having a conversation with a company I worked with. The owner asked me a question and I answered her based on the knowledge I had at the time. After disagreeing with each other, I decided to dig deeper. I learned about probabilities and certainty. One of my favorite books on the subject is “The Black Swan” by Nassim Nicholas Taleb. That book opened my eyes and helped me to see that particular situation in a new light.  I learned these 35 strategies by questioning the way I did things as well as the way other people did things. I wanted to know why we do what we do, and in that process I found an effective path for transitioning into successful accomplishment.

Where do you find most people get stuck as they deal with events happening in their lives, and how does your program help them get past that?

I find most people get stuck in the thought of dealing with events. Their thoughts keep them inactive. Through my program, we may strategize on or think through how to approach the event, but the greatest change comes not by thinking about things, but by doing about things. My program gets people out of the thought process and into the doing process. Action is what creates the results.

How does someone hold on to clarity about their path? How can they deal with doubt?

I find the best way to keep clarity is to keep sharing the path. If someone continues to share where they are going, they are more likely to get there. As far as doubt goes, I feel doubt quite frequently in my life. How do I deal with it? I allow it to occur, notice it is occurring, and take action to prove it wrong. When I don’t feel strong enough to break through on my own, I call my coach or a trusted friend and get them to help me get into action. I am certain I will experience doubt many more times throughout my life and I am unwilling to fight against it. Instead, my goal is to become neutral to doubt, to treat as if it were any other emotion. I think doubt just shows me how I feel when I approach uncertainty. The only way through it is to act in such a way that I find out if that doubt is true or just another story. As I test things, the doubt goes away. The only way I have found to effectively test things is through action.

Can you share one technique that most everyone can benefit from?

Yes, stop promising to change! A promise to change is useless if you have a history of being a word-breaker. Nobody needs your promises if all you are going to do is break them. Instead, change to promise! Change your life so that when you make a promise, you know you will keep it. Start being the person you would have to be to keep your promises. Remember, don’t promise to change; change to promise.

If there was one thing you’d want my readers to know about themselves, what would it be?

If I were to tell you one thing about yourself, it would be “Stop the Insanity!” Stop doing the same things while expecting different results. I know that is an overused idiom by Einstein, but it applies. Many of you are reading the right things, going to the right seminars, making the right goals, and many other things, but you are still doing the same things you have always done, hoping that life will be different. I know this because you and I are a lot alike. If I could say one thing that would help you it would be, Get Help! There is no reason for you to do it alone. More often than not, when one is left to do things alone, he or she goes back to what he or she knows. Join a group, hire a coach, DO something that will get you into action and out of the perpetual cycle of learning without action.

Lastly, how can my readers find out more about your book and how to get in touch with you?

Your readers can learn more about my book and my work by visiting my website at www.clearpathtraining.com. The best way for someone to experience what I do is for them to have a one on one conversation with me. For your readers, I am willing to waive my fee for one session so they can experience what it is like to be coached. They simply need to email me at nick@clearpathtraining.com with the subject line “Will you coach me?” Kim, I love what I do and am delighted to be a part of the Possibility Institute faculty!