Do something

This post is about getting started.

I, like you, have been caught in the trap of thinking about doing something, or lots of things and after a lot of thinking, doing nothing. Or perhaps looking up one or two things on the Internet about the thing, only to stop or get side tracked by something else and again, not doing anything!

In trying to understand why this is, or more importantly trying to get past this point, I've read a number of books and blog posts on the topic. I like this quote from James Clear: "Doing the work + patience = results. Planning to work + patience = you're just waiting." And also from James: "Finish something. Anything. Stop researching, planning, and preparing to do the work and just do the work. It doesn't matter how good or how bad it is. You don't need to set the world on fire with your first try. You just need to prove to yourself that you have what it takes to produce something."

This blog is an example of that. I've thought about doing this blog for a long time - several years in fact. I've had several starts and stops with long pauses in between. I've investigated how to build blog sites, and spent time reading books, summarizing books, collecting quotes and thinking. On reflection, all this is work - and necessary work - it would be difficult to write these articles and post on a blog site without any of the aforementioned activities, however it could very easily amount to nothing other than developing my own thinking, which is OK, but not what I was aiming for when I thought about creating a blog. The purpose of the blog was to share what I have learnt so that others could benefit from this.

You might say that I don't have time, whereas the reality is that there is always enough time to do the things that matter. It is easy however, in the distracted world that we live in, to let your hours fill with things that are not important. As James Clear says "The most important skill is controlling your attention. This goes beyond merely avoiding distractions. The deeper skill is finding the highest and best use for your time, given what is important to you." And: "You begin to grasp that when there’s too much to do, and there always will be, the only route to psychological freedom is to let go of the limit-denying fantasy of getting it all done and instead to focus on doing a few things that count. ... If you never stop to ask yourself if the sacrifice is worth it, your days will automatically begin to fill not just with more things, but with more trivial or tedious things, because they’ve never had to clear the hurdle of being judged more important than something else." - Four Thousand Weeks, Oliver Burkeman

Once you have decided what to do, you must do the work. And do that work over time, sometimes a long time. While some things we do will have an end - a point at which the thing is complete, others will not. Learning and your health as an example have no end point. You may have goals like prepare for an exam or a competition however you're going to spend more time in the process of learning, practicing or working out. Passing the exam or winning the competition are enjoyable yet brief moments in time. You must learn to enjoy the process.
"All the best ideas come out of the process; they come out of the work itself. Things occur to you. If you're sitting around trying to dream up a great idea, you can sit there a long time before anything happens." - Chuck Close
It is also important to appreciate that "quality long-term results, require quality long-term focus". As the saying goes, Rome wasn't built in a day. Small things, done well, done regularly, will accumulate over time into amazing results. You have to be patient and sustain the work over time.

But what work should you do? Work on things that interest you. If you are interested in something, generally you don't have to force yourself to do the work, the hours tend to race by, because you're deeply engaged in what you are doing.
"It's essential to work on something you're deeply interested in. Interest will drive you to work harder than mere diligence ever could. The three most powerful motives are curiosity, delight, and the desire to do something impressive. Sometimes they converge, and that combination is the most powerful of all." - How to Do Great Work, Paul Graham
Stretch yourself; work on things that are hard.
" 'Adversity has the effect of eliciting talents which in prosperous circumstances would have lain dormant.' This quote from the great Roman poet Horace applies directly to human nature. People would not know what they are capable of without adversity forcing them to discover these talents." - James Clear
If you work on hard things, when faced with a challenge you will be able to look within and say 'I've done hard things before: I've studied and done well on an exam, I've completed a difficult assignment and got a great mark, I've walked to the top of the Fushimi Inari Shrine through the 1000 torii gates, I've climbed to the top of Mount Kosciuszko' and so I can do this too.
"Our self-image is composed of historical evidence of our abilities. The more hard things you push yourself to do, the more competent you will see yourself to be." - James Clear
Don't set limits for yourself. There are enough people in the world that will want to set limits for you but try not to let them. Be wary of people that are always negative, that are destructive; they will drag you down. Surround yourself in people that will support you, challenge you and help you grow.

"You're never ready for what you have to do. You just do it. That makes you ready." - Sybil, Flora Rheta Schreiber
The greatest example of this is being a parent. You are never truly ready but then you have a baby that you need to care for and you just do it because you have to, and all of a sudden, you are ready.
"One day you will wake up and there won't be any more time to do the things you've always wanted. Do it now." - Paulo Coelho
Do something, pick something you're interested in, and get it done!