Did you see the news regarding the High Court judgment on Brexit?  The government has been told that it must pass an act of parliament in order to trigger Brexit and that therefore MP’s must be fully involved in how and when that decision should be made.

Was this legal action brought by the Remain camp?  Was it brought by the opposition Labour party in its pursuit of ensuring we have a democracy genuinely by and for the people?  Was it a crowdfunded effort brought by the 48% of us that didn’t want to leave the EU?

No. It was brought by one individual, a successful business woman and philanthropist Gina Miller.

Lets just pause for a moment: an individual took on the might of the UK government and the Leave camp and challenged their right to bypass the sovereignty of parliament in the brexit process.

WOW.

The genuinely interesting thing is that Gina Miller didn’t do it because she stood to make some huge personal business fortune or because she had vested interests she did it because she held a deep rooted belief that

“I simply couldn’t keep going to bed every night thinking, well what does [the Brexit vote] mean for my children, what does this mean for the future, what does it mean for everyone?” Miller said. “Knowing that there was no plan in place, and knowing that we were really facing a treacherous future ... I just felt I had no other alternative.”

So, she personally funded a legal challenge via her lawyers, Mishcon de Reya, and did something about it.

I’m not going to analyse Ms Miller any further or get into how fortunate she was to have the personal wealth to do so. The notable thing is that she is clearly a very principled, committed and strong willed person and if you care to do a rudimentary online search you’ll see that this is just one of several principled campaigns she has led.

What I’m amazed and inspired by is her sheer will and courage.  I can break it down as:

  1. She focused on her goal - her desired outcome: to ensure that the sovereignty of parliament held sway over the Brexit decision

  2. She connected to it emotionally - she could envision a future for her children that filled her with dread and couldn't tolerate that

  3. She took massive action - she commissioned a law firm and bankrolled court proceedings

Now, I face challenges to get shit done every single day and i'm not taking on the Brexiters!  I’m sure many of you reading this have the same issue.  So, let’s allow this amazing lady to inspire us in the way we set our goals and dedicate ourselves to achieving them. Let's follow her approach

  1. GOAL
    Where are you trying to get to?  If the ‘now’ is the before state, what does the ‘after’ you want look like?

  2. WHY?
    Why do you want it?  Close your eyes and dig deep, what is it about the current state of affairs that you need to rail against?  What is it about the after state that so excites you? How can you summon up the emotional pull of this as and when you need reminding?

  3. WHAT?
    Break it down, what are the steps between where you are now and where you need to be?  What are the biggest, scariest, most fundamental steps you need to take?

  4. MASSIVE ACTION
    Which of those biggest, scariest, most fundamental steps can you do immediately to make a dent in achieving your goal?  Hone it down: what 3 immediate actions can you take that feel sizeable enough to catapult you into “I’m really doing this” mode?  Can you address the scariest bits first?
     

  5. STAY ON TRACK
    It won't be a smooth, direct route to success so check in on your goal and your progress.  Do you still feel the same way? Are the steps towards the goal the same?  Are you taking enough significant action?  the aim is to remain in actionmode but ensure you;re pointing in the right direction.

If Gina Miller can take on the British government and win just think what you can do with a less daunting challenge!

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