Taking that First Small Step

That first step is a doozy.

It can be hard, even if it’s a step you've taken before. Maybe it’s a difficult step, a step you don’t like, a step you fear, or a step you have taken in a while. 

The reason you're not taking the step doesn’t matter. Not taking it does.

I restarted a project I set aside 20 years ago. I would write two or three sentences each day about my sons. I recorded ordinary events. Then I stopped. I decided to write about them from memory. I knew it would be a challenge.

I prepped for the task.

I bought new journals for each to make the task appealing to a journaling nerd like me. I made a list of some memories to start with. The task was written on my to-do list. Again. And again. And again. It wasn't happening.

I told myself writing anything in one of the journals would feel good.

In my journal, I committed to writing the beginning of one memory for one son. I didn’t have to finish writing the memory.

Once I started writing, the words flowed. That was the small step I needed.  

Taking that step felt so good. The words flowed. I finished the memory and wrote one for my other son.

I’m back on track.

"You must give yourself permission to begin small and go in baby steps.  These steps must be rewarded. Setting impossible goals creates enormous fear, which creates procrastination, which we wrongly call laziness." - Julia Cameron, The Artist's Way