Make a Start

As is often the case, I use the email from James Clear as a catalyst for ideas.  What is said often reminds me of what I have heard in another form.  That is very much the case today.
"Whenever you are stuck searching for the optimal plan, remember:  Getting started changes everything."
I so hold to that. It is why when I have a task to complete, I often put a timeline on it. The timeline may be two hours.  Mostly it takes me longer, but it does not matter to me.  It is the getting started that matters.  I know that once I start there is generally momentum to keep going.  Also I often get particularly interested in the project.
I do know I need to be careful about that one.  It is said of writing, that a book is never finished.  So many who publish, and the book is like done and dusted, go back to the manuscript and tweek.  The same can happen with my projects.  If I am not careful, I do not move on when I should, and revisit something that may be good with the goal of making it better.
That to me can be counter-productive.  Starting and finishing what I have in mind is a good start.  Where time allows maybe I can go back.  But I need to ensure that if I can not, what has been done is fit for purpose.
​"Strangely, life gets harder when you try to make it easy.  Exercising might be hard, but never moving makes life harder.  Mastering your craft is hard, but having no skills is harder.  Uncomfortable conversations are hard, but avoiding every conflict is harder.  Easy has a cost."
That is another thing I hold to.  Avoiding something may bring temporary relief but it only gets harder the longer I delay.  Merril and I often quote a classic story (with circumstance demanding alterations) about a guy who at 30 was thinking of learning the piano for 5 years.  He sought advice and was asked, “how old will you be in 5 years if you don’t learn it?”  He said 35.  Then he was asked, “how old will you be in 5 years if you do?”  He said, “35, how come the same?”
I feel I can add to that having gotten older and experienced health issues.  Not doing something at the time it is right and possible, can become a bridge too far when older.  Energy and health is not a given and should be utilized while there.  The future is an unknown.
Anyway, I do enjoy this stuff.  It all helps in determining what I do.  Sometimes I succeed and sometimes I fail.  Always I move on as a confident apprentice knowing that the teacher is on my side and wants me to success.