Why Is Getting Started So Hard?
Getting started. My oh my. Isn’t that age-old conundrum. There are a few reasons why I think getting started is so difficult. Here’s my top three:
You’re afraid that once you get started you might not like what you’re working on - it always sounds better when you’re dreaming, the cold reality is often a buzz kill
You’re afraid that once you get started that project is going to take a lot more energy and time than you want to spend
You’re afraid that once you get started, you’ll find out that you can’t pull it off. Period.
Anyone struggle with my top three? Since there are always great reasons to NOT get started, here are a few simple tips I’ve used to GET started. Because there is always a creative project that I need to be working on, and there are many reasons why I haven’t rolled up my sleeves and started plugging away.
Get started. Seems obvious, yes. But honestly, getting started is its own motivation. Once you do you can begin to see where this thing might end, and you can envision its happy conclusion.
Bite off just a little chunk at a time. If you’re like me, the project just seems too big to start, let alone finish. If you give it a little love, one moment at a time, you might be surprised just how quickly you can move it to completion.
Don’t overthink the end date. Once I get started on a creative project, I often have an end date in mind. But that can be disappointing when it starts to stretch out to the far horizon.
TRY to enjoy the process. We hear this all the time, and I am perhaps one of the worst people when it comes to this but try to enjoy where you’re at as you create. This is as important as the result. It’s the enjoyment and the learning all in one place.