There always seems to be a better time in the future. A time in which you’re fully motivated, not insecure, and completely confident to finally work on the things you want to do. The things you daydream about – the things you know could change your life if you did it – the things you ultimately give up on, because this “readiness” you’re waiting for never comes.
The fire that once started in your heart slowly dies out, and you convince yourself that you’re simply facing reality.
You’re only seeing this blog now, but I’ve actually wanted to start it quite a while ago. It was always in the back of my mind, but whenever I was about to get going, I gave up before I even started. The timing just never seemed to be right. No matter how long I waited, I never felt ready enough.
My ideas never felt developed enough. My writing skills never felt good enough. My stories never felt interesting enough. Unfortunately, the popular “Believe in yourself, you got this!” pep talk didn’t seem to work on me.
Fast forward to today, 3 years had already gone by, and I still don’t feel ready yet. But if that’s the case, what changed? How are you seeing this article?
I realized that achieving my goals had nothing to do with my state of readiness or feeling of adequacy– and it has nothing to do with yours either.
Why Do We Seek Perfect Conditions?
Ask yourself this: In a world where it’s impossible to fail and you are guaranteed to succeed in whatever you do; would you still avoid it?
The answer is probably no. You’d drop everything in your hands and start pursuing your passions.
Ultimately, it comes down to fear. You’re scared of failing, getting fingers pointed at, and being judged – you’re insecure about your abilities to accomplish what you want.
So, what do you do? You avoid doing the task at all, so you won’t have to face the possible consequences.
Then, in order to move forward and achieve your goals, is the cure to remove all these fears and insecurities before you begin? Turns out, it’s not.
Moses – From Self-Doubter to History-Maker
Some of the greatest people shared the same feelings we experience in our daily lives.
You probably know Moses, right? The guy who literally parted the Red Sea to help Israel out of Egyptian rule. This same guy was begging God to choose someone else for the mission because he didn’t feel ready, qualified, or worthy enough due to his speech insecurities.
“Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egpyt?”1
“Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.”2
“Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.”3
Just like all of us, he was stuck before starting due to his fear of failure, causing him to overthink the process, and obsessing over what–ifs.
“What if they do not believe me or listen to me (…)?”4
The key to Moses’s success wasn’t that he was confident or ready from the start, but that he had faith in something greater than himself to begin despite it. His “readiness” didn’t come from endless preparation, but through faith and action.
Many of us are prone to overwhelming ourselves daily, paralyzing ourselves, trying to figure out how every single part of our lives will unfold before we begin. But the thing is, was it ever ours to figure out in the first place?
Just like it wasn’t Moses’s job to figure out how he was going lead the Israelites out of slavery, maybe you don’t need to try figure out everything off the bat either (not that you can).
Faith Fuels Action
The reason Moses was able to eventually move forward wasn’t because his insecurities suddenly vanished into thin air. It was because he had the faith to trust that God is greater than his insecurities and fears.
Perhaps this leads to a bigger question on the nature of fear itself.
What if the key to achieving your goals wasn’t to do with making fear disappear, but having faith in something greater than your fears?
The most important part is what happens after the faith. Moses didn’t just sit still. He began taking action.
At first, faith in himself, and faith in his own skills wasn’t enough. It led to a spiral of doubt, overthinking, and anxiety. However, when he shifted his faith towards God and his abilities, he was able to lead one of the most prominent historical events in the world.
It’s the moment you don’t have enough faith that you are unable to progress, which was the case for me. The reason I was unable to start this blog for 3 years was because no matter how hard I tried, faith in myself and my own ability wasn’t enough.
My breakthrough came when I realized that it wasn’t my job to develop the perfect writing skills, experience, and ability before running this blog. My job was to simply start. To start with the faith that God will take care of the rest.
The truth is this: God didn’t call you to be fully prepared with everything figured out, he called you to have the faith that he will get you through it even if you can’t see how.
“God doesn’t call the qualified. He qualifies the called”
Try thinking about one thing you’ve been delaying because you didn’t feel ready or adequate enough.
If you gathered up a mustard seed of faith and started today, where could you be a year from now? And if you didn’t, what could you potentially lose?