I can bet that we have all said it before: “I will start when I am ready.” At first it sounds reasonable right? And responsible, even, but nope, and here is the truth, you will likely never feel ready. And that brings us to this; the paradox of readiness is this: We wait for confidence before action, not realizing that confidence only comes through action.
And as Alex Hormozi put it in one of his posts on X: “You want to feel ready before you start, but you become ready by starting.”
This single idea flips our approach to growth, dreams, and discipline on its head.
The Illusion of Readiness
Feeling “ready” is comforting; it gives us the illusion of control, as if preparation alone will remove all uncertainty. But readiness, in this sense, is not real, because it is most of the time just fear disguised as prudence, and as perfectionism dressed as patience.
We tell ourselves we are “just waiting for the right time,” when we have more money, more experience, more clarity, but honestly if we look deep down, we know the perfect time never comes just by waiting for it.
There is only now: And readiness is not a state you achieve before you begin; it is a skill you develop because you began.
And I am sure we have heard it and even said to ourselves before and for many all the time: “Someday, I will…” “When I am older, I hope to…” “I am not ready right now, but…” These words sound harmless, and worse it sounds even wise sometimes, but they reveal a dangerous assumption; that we will always have more time. But the Stoics, especially Seneca, warn us against this mistake, because the truth is simple: Life is not later. Life is now!
You know foolishness does not always look like chaos or loud mistakes, in fact I am of the opinion that too often than not it looks like endless preparation, like waiting for the stars to align before we take action.
Continue Reading: Don’t Make the Fool’s Mistake: Always Waiting to Be Ready
Readiness is Built, Not Found
Think back to any skill you have mastered, from riding a bike, to writing, to speaking, to leading, to whatever. You were not ready the first time you tried, but you most definitely learnt through doing the work.
And the same is true for everything that matters in life.
- You do not get ready to lead; you learn leadership by leading.
- You do not get ready to write; you find your voice by writing.
- And you do not get ready to love; you grow in love by loving.
My dearest readers: Readiness is not a door you walk through; it is a path you pave one uncertain step at a time.
Why Waiting Feels Safer, But is NOT
Most times, I guess we wait because waiting feels safe; it feels like it shields us from the embarrassment of failure, from the judgment of others, from the discomfort of imperfection.
But there is an irony to that, by waiting to feel ready, we delay the very experiences that would make us ready. We postpone the growth that only comes through the risk of beginning: Every day you wait for certainty, you trade progress for comfort.
The courage to begin imperfectly is one of life’s rarest virtues; the first step does not have to be big; it just has to be taken.
So start with what you have! Start where you are! Start with your fear, not after it is gone!
Because motion creates momentum, and once you are in motion, readiness follows because you are actively stepping into the light.
The Moment You Begin, You Become
The moment you act, even reluctantly and you continue, something changes within you. You cross the invisible line between wishing and becoming.
You begin to see that readiness was never the main goal; transformation was. You were not meant to wait for readiness; you were meant to grow through obedience, practice, and courage.
So and again my dearest readers, stop asking, “Am I ready?” Instead, ask, “Am I willing?” Because the world does not need your feeling of readiness; it needs your beginning, it needs you to start.
I am sure just like me, you have also heard the mantra “Don’t settle for less” a lot and everywhere. It is in self-help books, social media quotes, and motivational speeches, in fact I also have an article on that. And it is not bad advice, no one should compromise their worth or accept mediocrity when they deserve better.
But here is the catch: While raising the bar for what we expect from others is good, the harder question is whether we are raising the bar for ourselves. In the pursuit of “not settling,” some forget the most important part; that we ourselves can easily become the “less” we warn against.
It is easy to demand loyalty, respect, generosity, and excellence from others, but do we reflect the same qualities? Wanting a faithful partner, for example, means nothing if we do not practice faithfulness ourselves. Expecting excellence at work means little if we cut corners when no one is watching.
Continue Reading: From Demanding Better to Becoming Better: The True Path of Self-Respect
Read Also: The Paradox Of Self-Awareness: The Observer And The Observed
Read Also: The Paradox of Hate and Bitterness
Read Also: It May Feel Hard, But Look How Easy You’ve Had It: Gratitude, Help, and The Grace of Support
Conclusion
Readiness is not a feeling; it is a fruit, born of effort, risk, and persistence.
Do not wait for your confidence to arrive before you start. Start! And confidence will come looking for you. Because in life, just as in faith, purpose, and growth, you do not get ready to start; you get ready by starting.
