Mindset
“The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.”
― Walt Disney
It’s Mother’s Day weekend, and it had me scrolling through my picture library looking for photos to use as a tribute to all the mothers who have been part of our journey.
Thank you, by the way.
Maybe that’s the first place to begin when talking about action and the danger of waiting.
I don’t think anyone on this planet truly knows or feels ready to become a parent, especially a mother. Giving birth is no picnic, and everything that comes afterward is always being experienced for the very first time.
If we waited until we were ready, many of us would never have children at all. And we all know where that leads.
And that’s the point.
Don’t wait.
As I thumbed through old photos (that’s old school for scrolling), I started realizing just how much I’ve done, seen, tried, failed at, explored, and attempted again.
Life is not really about achieving as much as it is about exploring what’s possible.
Everyone wonders why we are here. What is our purpose?
The truth is that life itself is the gift.
A gift of opportunity.
A gift of possibility.
We get to do this.
We get to try.
The doing is in the being, and the being is in the doing. They coexist. We try things, we experience them, and through those experiences we discover where we find joy, meaning, frustration, heartbreak, excitement, and growth.
We feel it all.
That’s what our senses are for. They allow us to experience what it means to be alive.
But far too often, we are consumed by either the beginning or the end, instead of the experience itself. We let the fear of negative outcomes stop us from moving forward, or we become so attached to positive outcomes that we lose touch with what is happening right now.
Too often, we convince ourselves there will be a better time.
That this thing can wait.
That we can wait.
But time runs out.
It always does.
And none of us knows how much sand remains in the hourglass.
That book you wanted to write…
Write it.
That trip you wanted to take…
Take it.
That friend you wanted to call…
Call them.
That conversation you wanted to have…
Have it.
That course you wanted to create…
Create it.
That person you wanted to become…
Become them.
There is no reason to wait.
Waiting is like a mirage. Everything looks interesting, but nothing is ever truly experienced.
Mark Twain once said, “The secret to getting ahead is getting started.”
Imagine the possibilities created by your actions, not your inactions.
Walt Disney had a dream. He wanted to build a place where people could experience joy, even if only for a day. A place where imagination, wonder, and possibility came alive.
One could argue that it has become far too commercialized and materialized over time. I understand that perspective.
But I still prefer to recognize the intention behind it.
The belief that people could imagine something greater.
The belief that possibility matters.
The belief that dreams are worth pursuing despite obstacles, setbacks, criticism, or doubt.
That is the essence of action.
The willingness to move toward possibility before certainty arrives.
The key to overcoming impossibility is often found in a single moment of action that sees past doubt and chooses movement anyway.
As Pablo Picasso once said:
“Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.”
So…
What will you do today?
