Has this ever happened to you? Your car won’t start and you keep turning the key while the engine just turns without ever starting up. You keep trying and trying, the power seems to be draining from the car and you’re just about out of patience. You even start coaching the car-“Come on, baby, you can do it! I know you can.” Then, you exclaim for all the world to hear –“Start! Come on car, just start! If you’ll just start, then I can get to (insert destination here)!”
You’re so frustrated and panicked that you’re going to miss wherever you were supposed to be, that you just need the car to start and the rest will take care of itself. Without that car getting started, you’re stuck.
Too many of us are stuck. Not in our cars, but in a state where we have thoughts of places we want to go and things we want to do, but we don’t do anything about it. We turn that key and turn that key but never crank the engine. Lots of great ideas come up but never amount to any action. We don’t do the littlest thing to just get moving.
Why are we more excited about getting that car to start than we are about getting our own motor running?
Don’t let another minute pass you by – just start. Turn the key – just move! If you’re looking to get in better shape, for example, just go to the gym – just get there! Walk in the door, look at the weights and the shiny machines, say hi to the trainers – congratulations, you’re in the building! And when you get there, just sit on a bike and start peddling. That’s it. You’ve officially started. Once you take that first step, then take the next one – come back tomorrow and ride the bike for 10 minutes. The next time ride for 11 minutes, etc., etc. Do you follow me?
Albert Einstein said, “Nothing happens until something moves.” I know this is very simplistic, but everything we do starts with that first simple step. Peddle the bike, make a phone call, buy a book, introduce yourself, take a class, open the door – every journey begins with a single step.
And don’t worry about the results, whatever you can do to get started, focus on that and nothing else. Stop thinking about it, talking about it, eating over it, drinking over it, complaining about it – if you just move, just begin and take the first step that gets you started, you can then take the next step and the next step. Just move it.
