Let Us Begin: On Getting Started

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao Tzu

Indeed… yet that first step is the most difficult to take.

For me, this rings true across the board – from taking out that first plate from a clean dishwasher, to putting on workout clothes, to writing the first word of this musing. Small examples of a larger problem.

Consider the difficulty in starting a larger endeavor. Maybe something you have a burning desire to create, or something you have a long-standing desire to do, an endeavor that you truly care about. With all that passion backing the cause, why then would getting started prove to be such a challenge?

Standing at the precipice of a Great Beginning my inner-perfectionist takes hold. I demand excellence. I want the end-product to be great. I want the end-result to be a reflection of the vision. So, I do not begin.

Is that not the best lie you have ever heard? I did not begin a project I am passionate about, because I want it to be perfect. Brendon Burchard, personal development guru, coined this the “perfectionist lie,” and calls it the “prettiest excuse.”

At its root, the perfectionist lie is a pretty mask for fear, uncertainty, and distraction.

Fear of failure, fear of success (in an odd twist, I have learned that both the fear of failure and fear of success can live happily – exhaustingly – side-by-side in my head), fear of being judged, fear of finding out that I’m not as good as I think I am. Uncertain about how to begin, uncertain of my ability, uncertain if this passion-fueled endeavor is even the right path. Distracted by tasks of the day, distracted by the needs or wants of others, distracted by the intoxicating pleasure of wasting life on my Facebook news feed.

Wow, that is some powerful mental crap.

Here’s the deal: fear is not going away, you may never be certain, there will always be distractions. Move forward anyway. Choose to be okay with feeling fear and uncertainty. Manage distractions. Break up with excuses. Step bravely and boldly into your Great Beginning. Time is a finite resource, now is the time to begin.

Not perfect? Fine. How about it is done?

Take a single action. Begin.

“We at some point have to take ownership of our lives and realize that it is not because we’re pretty and we’re perfect, it is because we are scared and our lives are messy, and we haven’t got control of it yet. So this day, let’s start that, let’s be okay with the fear, let’s be okay with the fact that everything is going to be messy, but at least begin. At least complete it. Because nothing is perfected anyway, until it is completed. First it has to be completed, then we can tinker and tweak it, and perfect it.” – Brendon Burchard