The Preparation Paradox

Hey everyone,

I've recently caught myself stuck in a perpetual cycle of preparation.

We can often find ourselves in the process of starting, but never really taking any action. Perpetually planning for the big day that we start doing, when we're fully equipped and all-knowing. That day will never come though, and we'll never be as prepared as we hope to be. But that's okay.

Having a good enough basis to get going on something is far better than preparing without end because planning can only get us so far. When we are stuck in the process of starting we may still feel like we’re making progress or getting things done, but most of the time it's just an illusion or a lie we tell ourselves to avoid the pain of actually taking action - the pain of actually doing the thing that we are afraid of.

We are afraid because it might be difficult, we might not feel like we know what we’re doing, and we might be afraid of what other people might think or say. But in the end, the only way to really get going, and get good, is to actually get started and start taking the actions we need to move us forward.

We can prepare to start with the best equipment, skills, and methods, knowing everything there is to know, everything that could possibly go wrong and how to fix it, all until the heat death of the universe - or we can just get started with the minimum that we need and figure the rest out as we go. That way we’ll at least have something to show, and something to be proud of: the ability to take action.

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Best regards,
Jacq van Jaarsveld