You have just had a great idea! Its a new project, its a new business, its a new invention or a new piece of art, its simple, its complex, or its an innovation! Your mind is bubbling with how great this idea is going to be and you are feeling motivated! Then it hits you. The seemingly, overwhelming enormity of what is actually the smallest of problems, taking the first action. It’s a simple enough thought, ‘Now I just need to start!’ but why does it seem to be the first and last thing you think about before you lose your enthusiasm for this great idea! You are talented, smart and capable but how many times has this happened now?
How frustrated are you with yourself that you can’t seem to take any action?
What is the answer?
I have been in this place more times than I care to admit. There are a countless number of great ideas I have had, that only resulted in wasted time, spent energy and money, and mis-placed enthusiasm for a grand total of zero sum return. I was always led to the same place, I would build up the idea in my mind about how amazing this new ‘thing’ is going to be, only to get to the starting line, frozen, paralysed and yet to take any action. I would begin to feel overwhelmed and unsure of my next or even first steps, or perhaps i tell myself little comfortable and convenient excuses like, “I’m just waiting for the right time”, or “I’m working on a plan” and meanwhile the idea dies a painful death in my mind.
Great ideas die in your mind without taking action
The answer to these problems is simple, ‘Just start!’. We want to tell ourselves reasons as to why it can’t possibly be that easy but the truth is, we spend far too much of our time and energy, complicating even the simplest concept of taking action into the most complex and difficult thing. Instead we need to take the imperfect action. Take the simple action. Take the obvious action. Even taking any action is better than no action at all!
What is holding me back?
Its you of course, but let’s look at some of the concepts or personas we indulge that hold us back and how to overcome them, you could be one or all of these to some degree. This few personas are by no means all of the reasons we may be unable to start but they are certainly common and destructive enough to de-rail any great idea.
The Perfectionist
The enemy of progress is perfection. Contrary to what you might think, perfection is not a good thing to aim for. Its especially unhelpful when you are trying to start something new or innovative. How can you expect the perfect start or finish on something you have not done before? Or an idea you just came up with. The perfectionist is an unrealistic, endless and torturous mindset and will ultimately doom any attempt of a first idea or action. There is certainly a place for striving to be better, but that is not the same as needing to be perfect, how do we even describe what perfect is? We can’t. Perfection is a myth that only reduces your momentum until you find yourself at a standstill in front of an impossible task.
The minimum acceptable level
What can you do to overcome being a perfectionist?
It might sound painful to the already tortured perfectionist but the sooner you realise “close enough, is good enough”, the better. To help with this, I want to introduce you to an idea that can bring some rationality to your irrational chasing of perfection. Its called ‘The minimum acceptable level’. This concept, when given a chance, can easily snap you back from the brink of perfection defeat. It can show you the simplest, quickest and most realistic way forward from where you are.
Take any given action or idea and ask yourself, “What would be the minimum acceptable level, that would need to be reached to allow the next step forward? I have found that my own usual range is to try and get something to between 60%-80% of my expectations. As you work through this concept you might find your own level is higher or lower and it may depend on the importance or type of action, but believe me, a perfectionist’s 60% is going to be the equivalent to the average person’s 80 or 90%. If you still struggle with this concept, externalise it further, “What would the average person’s minimum acceptable level be here? Is this close enough for the average person to move on? Would the average person notice the difference I am trying to make or would they be happy to accept this level and move forward to the next step.”
The time spent chasing that final 10 or 20% is wasting your energy, and is always going to be producing ever diminishing returns, the results will only prove to be marginally better or even indistinguishably different. If you find yourself obsessing over a detail that only you, as the perfectionist, would notice, then you need to re-focus again on the minimum acceptable level. Find this level, keep close to it, consistently check in with your progress from both your own view point and the perspective of someone on the outside. Just get to that minimum acceptable level, and move onto the next action! You can always come back and improve things when you have necessity or time to spare but right now you just need to start!
The Survivalist
Often, the fear of failure or judgment holds us back from taking that first action. We are innately conditioned to protect ourselves from potential harm, both physically and emotionally. This self-protection mechanism can be helpful in some cases and unhelpful in others. While in ancient times it kept us safe from immediate harm or even death, in modern times it prevents us from taking real or even perceived risks that could lead to great rewards. Even if those risks are actually only mildly uncomfortable and not life or death, the survivalist wants to stay where its comfortable. The fear of being vulnerable, of exposing our ideas to criticism, or the possibility of failure can be paralyzing all while only trying to spare us from harm.
We are hard wired to prioritise avoidance of losing rather than the pursuit of success.
What can you do to beat the fear of failure?
This is a very primitive reflex therefore it needs higher level thought to overcome and integrate. You absolutely need to realise and acknowledge the risks of continuing with your actions or ideas. You need to be protected from blindly walking into danger, however, you also need to give equal consideration to the greater risks of not continuing.
As the survivalist, you are pre-conditioned to focus on what is at stake to be lost. You can use this constant ‘focus on loss’ to your advantage by instead considering and labelling what you will lose if you don’t continue on with your idea or action. To confront and integrate your survivalist nature you have to explain to yourself what would be more harmful, the potential failure risk of starting something new, not succeeding, or the certain and painful failure of not starting at all and always wondering what could have been.
If you suspect that this survivalist mentality prevents you from taking action, subconsciously telling you all the reasons why not, you need to balance those thoughts and remind yourself of all the things you could lose or miss out on if you don’t push forward. It may also be helpful to externalise this and consider who else will lose when you don’t realise this amazing idea you have. Just make a start, and trust that you will be ok!
The Over-planner
It’s essential to have a good plan. A good plan provides a roadmap for success and rather than being caught up in the whirlwind, we can elevate our vision to look forward and into the future. As the Over-planner, you get so caught up in the planning that you never move from the planning phase to the action phase. This is commonly referred to as ‘analysis paralysis‘. We overanalyse, overthink, and over-plan to the point where we become overwhelmed with details and possibilities. While it’s crucial to be prepared, there’s a fine line between suitably thorough planning and paralysing over-planning.
You never move from the planning phase to the action phase.
How to stop Over-planning.
The key is to create the simplest most basic plan, with as few steps as possible. If there arises a necessity for your plan to be more detailed that will present itself. Over planning only wastes energy and momentum trying to foresee all possible permutations of a path, most of which will never happen. When we have a great idea, it’s easy to get lost in the vastness of the entire project. Looking at the bigger picture can be intimidating. We start thinking, spiralling about all the steps, all the challenges, and all the potential pitfalls. Instead of being motivated by the end goal, we become daunted by the roadmap we have created for ourselves.
The solution? Break it down. Focus on the immediate next step. Celebrate small milestones along the way. By concentrating on one task at a time, the larger project becomes more manageable, and the journey becomes enjoyable. When considering what and how much to plan, the further out a goal or target seems, the simpler, broader and more strategic the plan should be. The closer and more imminent something seems, the more tactical a plan might need to be, with more detail and prescription. Don’t forget though, at all costs keep the plan as simple as it can be, while still doing the job, excess detail can cause confusion and actually create the opposite effect of a great clear plan.
Final thoughts
It’s no coincidence that my first public post is about this topic, its something I want to do for myself, if others read or share this and get something from it then i will be glad to think i have helped get some great ideas off the ground!
I know too well, how easy it is to get lost in the dreams and aspirations of what could be, without taking the necessary steps to make it a reality. The longer you delay taking real, tangible action, the harder it becomes to just start. Your fears and doubts will become self-fulfilling prophecies, and you will end up feeling stuck and unfulfilled, with another idea fading away. I hope i have shown you that in the process of bringing an idea to life, the biggest obstacle often isn’t the external challenges but our internal battles. Whether you’re a perfectionist seeking the unattainable, a survivalist paralyzed by fear, or an over-planner lost in the details, the key is to recognize these traps and understand and mitigate them. The most successful people you know are successful because they push through where others won’t, they take action.
So, don’t let your brilliant ideas fade away into the idea graveyard at the depths of your mind. Embrace the imperfections, face the fears, and simplify the process. Your idea deserves to see the light of day, and everyone is waiting for your contribution. Take a first step today, and let your idea live by just starting that first imperfect, scary, simple action!
Feeling inspired?
Share this post with someone who needs that little nudge to kickstart their dream project. Leave a comment about the first action you are taking, your great idea, struggles or your successes and let’s spread the message and empower each other to take action!
BtrSelf 