The Hardest Part Is Getting Started. 2 Powerful Tricks That Will Help

What’s the hardest part of achieving your dream?

Whether it is big or small. Starting a side hustle. Getting fit. Finding a mate. Building a business. Qualifying as a lawyer.

The hard part is always the same. And you need to realise what this is so you can overcome it.

How I learnt this

Over the last 8 years I’ve completed the following:

*Ran Edinburgh & London marathons

*The 3 Peaks challenge — climbing the highest peak in England, Scotland & Wales within 24 hours

*The Welsh 3000’s challenge — climbing the highest 15 peaks in Wales within 24 hours

*Climbed the highest two mountains in North Africa in deep winter snow.

Guess which was the hardest mile in training for all these challenges?

The first one.

Always the first one.

When training I rarely gave up on mile 3 or 5. But plenty of times I have given up on mile zero and not gone for a run.

We look at challenges people take on and think about how hard it will be to build a business or write a book. But the hardest part is always the same -starting.

This applies to everything we are trying to do.

*More projects fail by not getting started than by grounding to a halt halfway through.

*More ideas fail by not being tried than by not working out.

*More resolutions fail by remaining an intention than by falling to temptation.

Spend thirty seconds thinking about your own experience and you’ll realise how true this is. How many times have you not started something?

Like trying to push a broken down car — the hardest part is to get going.

This happened to me yesterday.

I wanted to improve my writing. So I completed a course. Then rather than action any of the ideas I learned I spent the morning doing everything but writing. A bit of youtube, then facebook, then a news site. I know — you’ve been there.

The hardest part is always getting started!

So how can we overcome this tendency? You are going to need a couple of power tools to win this battle.

Here’s what has worked for me.

Two powerful tools that will you get started

In my own battles to get started, these are the best two ideas I’ve tried.

1. Start so small that you can’t fail to start.

We can be so foolishly ambitious.

We don’t meditate, then decide we will meditate thirty minutes every day. We don’t exercise and then will try and hit the gym three times a week. Or you put off writing that book for years and then plan to write a 1000 words today.

Putting together a new grand plan makes us feel good (which is why we do it). The problem is that it tricks our mind into thinking we’ve made progress.

Grand plans don’t work so why not try small instead?

And I mean ridiculously small. Embarrassingly small. ‘Today I am going to write one paragraph for my book’ or ‘tonight I will do five sit-ups before bed’.

You will struggle with this. You’ll want to make it bigger. You’ll tell yourself it isn’t enough. That one paragraph or five sit-up are not enough.

But you are forgetting that the hardest part is getting started.

2. Play a trick on your mind

This is going to sound stupid but I promise you it works.

Tell yourself you are not going to do it but you are going to do the step before.

Here’s a few examples:

• I’m not going for a run, I’m just going to put on my trainers
• I’m not going to write, I’ll just open my writing page.
• I’m not going to do any reading, I’ll sit down with my book

Guess what happens? Most of the time you get going anyway. Crazy I know but it works.

If you can find a way to overcome the resistance to get started. And then consistently practice this. Then the world’s your oyster. It really is.

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