I feel inspired. I just don’t know where to start.

This is how I have felt on and off over the past 3 years.

You probably have seen all the inspirational content on social media… Influencers. Artists. Photographers. Authors. Affiliate marketing. Drop shipping. Blogging. YouTube shorts. All these content creators create with clear claims that they can show you how to make an impact and make money. Personal blogs and podcasts from your friends trying to make some sort of impact. You see people reading loads of books, or getting super fit.

You want these things.

It is almost overwhelming though.

Then you check your email and see the subscribed blogs come through, and you learn something new as you read Young Money Jack, Money with Katie, and International Intrigue. You think, “I could do that. I want to do that.” You see all of this content flooding your world and it stirs something in you. It is actually inspiring you. It is tapping on something deep in your soul that says “you can do that”. Maybe there is this tension between both wanting to make some hustle money, and wanting public influence, and wanting to make an impact. Maybe you are just trying to take some steps to be more disciplined, to be healthier, to change some habits.

That’s definitely been the case for me.

But. Where do I start?

Starting anything is the most painful part of accomplishing anything.

We keep pushing off that thing we want to start for a lot of reasons. Maybe I want a clear plan and vision, or I am afraid of the work it will require, or it is going to require a level of change I am uncomfortable with. Whatever it is, something is acting as a blockade between you and starting that thing.

And for me, I have started things before. Some things have gone well, and others have not. Some things produced great fruit, and others have fizzled out. Remember Insulated Life podcast? Not a bad idea, and it was done well, but life took a turn for both of us.

So I am stuck. Perhaps even the word ‘discouraged’ fits on some days.

I do not know where to start, or even how to start. So what do I do?

First, start with yourself.

If you want to create or accomplish anything of value, the first place to start is understanding yourself. For the context of this, it is important to acknowledge that word, ‘value’. Personally, I do not want to create something that has no value to myself or to others. But in order to create or accomplish anything of value, self-examine is critical.

Some questions you need to discuss with yourself are…

Why do you want to do this?

Your purpose for doing something is what will sustain you on the worst days. Looking at your own ‘why’ for doing or creating something, and understanding what drives you in that thing, allows you to have a foundational building block.

Your ‘why’ is the critical foundation on which everything else rides. Having no ‘why’ is like a vehicle having no wheels. And a bad ‘why’ is like a tire with the metal showing; it is only a matter of time before it fails you.

It is too common in US culture to do things without asking ‘why’. Why is this important to you? Why do you see this is a value to others? Why are you choosing to do it this way?

Do you really want to do this, or do you just want the fruit of this?

When I was younger, there was more than one occassion where I was stranded in my car on the side of the road. And it was not always because I was broke down. I simply ran out of gas.

Paul Brown said, “Either you truly want to start something new, or you don’t.” Your desire is your fuel. Without genuine desire, or with the incorrect desire, the vehicle will not move. In fact, it can cause a lot of damage to the vehicle if the incorrect substance is put in as fuel for the vehicle.

Be honest with yourself about the desires of your heart. Eventually, those desires will be made evident.

Do you know what it takes to do this, and/or do you know where you need to grow?

We can learn a lot from kids. Life really is as simple as they make it seem; adults make things complex.

My toddler is learning to talk, and she is learning to draw shapes. Perhaps one day she will write a book or a blog, but even if she has a desire and a powerful why today, she cannot do that in her current stage of life. She has loads to learn, so she needs to be content in this season of learning.

That same toddler has no idea how to drive. She loves to hop in the front seat, with the engine off, and scream, “Daddy! I drive!”.

One day, she will.

But she is not there yet.

And that is okay.

Be honest with yourself about where you are at and where you need to grow.

These questions, and others of self-examine, require an abundance of humility and honesty. When you are humbly honest with yourself, then your work and creative content and accomplishments flow out of a place of security. You can produce or build or work towards something without the need for external appreciation.

Next, start anyway.

We have a million reasons not to start something, but a few pieces of wisdom really helped to settle me on starting anyway. It really is that simple.

Choose impact over income.

I personally desire to do something of immense impact. When that is my focus, then I do not need a perfect plan or strategy. What I do need to do is start!

While starting does not guarantee impact, not starting guarantees zero impact.

Choosing impact over income allows me to control the motive. If income is my motive, then the motive is controlled by other people. They have to like what I am doing. Choosing impact allows me to start on something I care deep enough about to share with others.

There is freedom in pursuing impact.

There is a difference between a regret and a redo.

This was shared with me just recently. When you look back a year from now, there will be a difference in regretting something or wishing you could redo it.

If you start now, you might wish you could redo things. You might look back and wish you had done another round of edits on that book, or had used different lighting in your TikTok. That is fine. You can live with wishing you could redo things.

If you do not start now, you need to ask if you will regret not starting. And in this moment, you know if you will regret it.

I know I will regret if I do not publish my book before the end of this year. Yes, maybe it is not perfect. Maybe it does not sell. Maybe people disagree with me. Maybe I will look back and wish I had done my cover differently. All said and done, my friend shared a great piece of wisdom: “a published book at 80% (or 65%) is still progress; a book in print is better than the best intent”.

You can live with ‘redos’. Regrets you need to change immediately, in that moment.

It is better to have started something and wish you could redo it, rather than have not started and regret missing the opportunity.

I would rather make a mistake of action than a mistake of inaction.

Another piece of wisdom from a different friend of mine. I want to live by this. At least my mistakes of action show that I made effort.

When I was in high school, I played percussion in the marching band, not particularly skilled but, good enough for government work. I was one of five bass drummers. One day we were working on a new song, section by section. It came time for the percussion section to play, so we played our 8 measures. Our conductor asked, “who made a mistake there?” He was trying to see if any of us could recognize our own mistakes.

My buddy on the bass drum next to me raises his hand, “It wasn’t me. I didn’t play at all.”

Remember Ms. Frizzle? “Take chances; make mistakes!”

So, what are you waiting for. Time moves forward with or without your permission.

Start today.