What's the Best Time to Start a Big Project? You know, the one you have outlined, is sitting on your desk, and is ready for your total commitment?

RIGHT NOW! Not an hour from now, not tomorrow. Now.

That "get going" voice will make you miserable if you don't get started. Nag, nag, nag!

It's a whole lot more comfortable to "start" than to listen to your own voice yammering at you in the background. If you keep putting your beloved project off to accommodate more mundane day to day chores, even the really important stuff, such as spending time with family and friends,  then you'll never get anything started. Ever. You'll be in the same place next year that you're in today, only more frustrated. The work that means the most to you, your raison d'etre will be postponed indefinitely. No!

Ugh. Pretty grim, huh? Seriously guys. I'm not referring to IM only. It pertains to anything you have a burning desire to do, even building a tree house in the back yard.

Are you on stall? I know what's stopping you. Same thing that stops me more than I care to admit, even though I'm admitting it. It's called the big "R", RESISTANCE. So why does the infamous "R" get in yours and my way? I think it is because we all tend to complicate things too much. We make things out to be bigger than they really are, then they take on too much importance. We put too much pressure on ourselves. IM, and creative projects should be fun, not heavy. IM is not a burden, it's a privilege. Fun, not a chore. A "chore" is emptying the garbage and sweeping the walk and raking the leaves.

Let's look at IM for a minute. Granted there is a lot to learn, and connecting the dots is not just a phrase that trips glibly off the tongues of experienced marketers. It's real. You literally have to "see" the connection of things before you can apply them.  Awww, relax. Have some wine. All the techniques take time to sink in. Then apply them you must. If it doesn't work the first time, then do it again. And again. Every action gets you closer to your goal, so just the act of starting brings you closer to your goal and your success. The best ideas happen during the process of "doing" because that's when you can try things out which gives birth to new ideas. When we think too much, we worry. When we worry, we are focused on negatives. When too focused on negatives, we won't even start.

The good news is "starting" is the hardest part. Once you start, then your confidence and enthusiasm will carry you, even through challenges.

You know, it took me forever to write my first article. Would you believe 6 months? I'm not referring to "completing" an article. I'm referring to starting it. Just the first word. For some reason, I had it in my head that writing is something I don't do regularly, therefore I couldn't do it for public consumption. This, even after I had been writing content for every website I made. I had myself pretty well defined, and by doing that I cheated myself of possibilities.

Do you see how we confound ourselves? We create castles of mental barriers. Pretty self defeating. If you see it for what it is, you can overcome these barriers. Remember how in awe and terrified Dorothy was of the Wizard of Oz? She pulled the curtain back and saw that he was a regular guy. Then she threw water on the wicked witch and the witch dissolved into a puddle. And Dorothy got back to Kansas. Of course there would be no story if the author made it that simple, as simple as it really was.

I'm starting some ambitious projects and am suffering from resistance.  I love these projects and desire more than anything to get them rolling. Instead of going right to them, I decided it was more important to empty the garbage and raid the refrigerator. Am I crazy? Maybe I'm just human.

Am I not a grown up? Do I not vote? Can I not go into a bar and order a drink if I want to? Man or mouse, I'm too adult for the big "R".

OUT WITH RESISTANCE!

Back to Kansas!