Summary

The article emphasizes the importance of starting tasks before feeling fully prepared or motivated.

Abstract

The article "Don’t Wait for Motivation to Strike" discusses the common tendency to delay starting new projects until conditions seem perfect. It argues that this perfect moment often never comes, and true progress is made by beginning tasks despite not feeling ready. The author suggests that taking action leads to motivation and momentum, rather than waiting for inspiration to strike. Over-planning is identified as a potential hindrance to productivity, as it provides a false sense of accomplishment without the real feedback that comes from execution. The initial discomfort of starting a task is acknowledged, but it is portrayed as a surmountable obstacle that is outweighed by the satisfaction of making tangible progress.

Opinions

Waiting for the perfect moment to start a task is futile, as it may never arrive.
Motivation often follows the initiation of a task, rather than preceding it.
Excessive planning can be counterproductive and detract from actual progress.
Execution provides immediate feedback and can lead to a sense of guilt or anxiety if avoided, but also to a feeling of accomplishment when faced head-on.
The initial resistance to starting a task is usually less daunting than anticipated.
Consistent action builds momentum, which in turn fuels further motivation and progress.
The discomfort associated with beginning a task is a small price to pay for the rewards of accomplishment and self-generated motivation.

Don’t Wait for Motivation to Strike

The art of starting before you are ready.

When tapping into new endeavors, we often tend to wait for perfect moments.

I will start my youtube channel once I have everything nicely set up.

I will start blogging once I have enough time in the morning to write without distractions.

I will start studying for my exam once I feel energized enough to remember everything.

As soon as timing and motivation are aligned in blissful harmony, I will start doing what I planned out for so long already.

To my surprise, the perfect moment never arose. I had to start before I found enough motivation. Before I felt ready.

But then, an interesting thing happened. As I was doing things without feeling ready, the motivation kicked in.

And it was after I took the first steps that momentum built towards my ambitions.

Here’s why I think that happened:

Planning is the enemy

At least too much of it.

Mapping out the perfect day brings plenty of joy. But at a certain point, this is all it does. It’s not productive, although it absolutely feels like it.

However, something is bringing more joy over time, as well as actual progress: Execution.

But why don’t we just follow through with our plans then?

Because there is instant feedback involved, while there is no feedback involved in planning. You could set up the worst plan that was ever thought of in human history and still feel like a champ for being productive afterward.

When setting out to work, however, you get instant feedback on your performance. You’ll feel guilty for procrastinating. The task may provoke anxiety when you don’t know something, and you’ll feel more exhausted overall from working.

This initial chance of pain is sufficient to make the task appear unbearable and pushes us towards procrastination.

However, if we stick with executing the task, the feeling of accomplishment will slowly overpower the pain of starting. It’s also when we realize the chance of pain was diminishing small all along.

And once we constantly push over this first hurdle, the progress we make will, in return, motivate us to go even further. Ultimately, this will build the momentum we were striving for.

Don’t wait for motivation to arrive. Build your own.