The Senate Finance Committee’s move to approve the 10-year health care reform plan yesterday (as well as the unsurprising backlash) got me thinking: there really are people out there who are so concerned with perfection that they’re willing to paralyze the process.

And here’s where I raise my hand.

I am guilty. Throw the book at me and send my ass off to do community service.

I’ve had some amazing things happen with my business lately, all of which are a direct result of pulling my head out of my ass and focusing on goals instead of obstacles.

The issues facing our national health care dilemma aren’t unlike those facing my business and maybe yours as well. There will always be those more than happy to voice opinions of dissent against your actions, directions, motivations and words, but isn’t it really about The Process?

Christ, there isn’t a single policy in U.S. history that hasn’t been debated since inception. The Constitution (hell, people argue for or against it and interpret it for a living), prohibition (result – repealed), The Bill of Rights (also known as Why the Supreme Court Doesn’t Golf More). Health care reform is the same – and while I don’t particularly care where you personally stand on health care (if you’re interested, you can read where I stand here), it’s about taking action and not being paralyzed by perfection. Aside from giving women the right to vote and ending segregation, I doubt there’s one policy in U.S. history that we’ve gotten right from the get-go (and there are still those who would, unfortunately, argue with me on both those decisions).

Why do we expect the perfect solution for our health care challenge – or issues facing our business – from square one?

I’ve had the most success with knowing where I want to be and making goal-oriented decisions to help me get there. They’ve been – slap me and call me Sally – overwhelmingly RIGHT. Previously stalled by focusing on things like “I need more money to do that” or “No one’s going to listen to me because” or “Well, I don’t really need to do that now,” I asked a better question:

Why the hell not?

Suddenly, those things aren’t obstacles anymore. Why?

(stealing some more words from Nigel – my business coach)

I moved the train.

When I thought about my business, everything was “later” because I didn’t feel like I had what I needed. Thus, most of the things I wanted couldn’t be “now.” The train was miles down the track. I had no sense of urgency to shit or get off the tracks.

When you move the train – shorten your timeline, say “why NOT now?” – you’ve got a whole lot of motivation to take a crap, pull your pants back up and get moving.

My pants are up, and so are the pants of the U.S. health care system. Have we gotten it collectively RIGHT yet? Oh, hell no. But starting The Process and taking action starts moving us towards the RIGHT goals. We as business owners, not unlike the U.S. government, can change how we move along the way.

Paralysis by analysis or Progress via embracing The Process. Your choice, my friends. I know it’s mine.