I’ve always been someone who likes to be super prepared in whatever I do. This probably started back in grade school with studying and writing papers. I don’t think I’ve ever “winged” a test in my life, and I always make an outline before writing any paper (in fact I still do that sometimes with this blog). I’ll also take the time to anticipate all the possible outcomes pertaining to a particular situation, just so that I’m prepared. Yes, I’m the girl who packs 2 weeks worth of clothes to go away for 3 days, just in case the weather changes drastically. I love to sit down and schedule my week, make check lists, and play with time management strategies (yes, I know I’m weird). Basically I am the most comfortable when I feel prepared and ready.

Now this quality, as anal retentive as it sounds, has been really beneficial when it comes to business and managing  my life. Being prepared makes you more organized, more efficient, and produces a lot less anxiety. However, this perfectionist side that has to plan everything can also hold me back in life. If you wait until you feel completely prepared for something you may never start. Sometimes you just need to dive in and figure it out as you go.

Since I am getting ready to open my acupuncture practice this June I have been looking for different opportunities to market and network in my town. So I’ve jumped on the chance to participate in a few events where I can set up a table and advertise my practice. Now those that are seasoned at participating in events like this have an elaborate table display, tons of marketing materials, and usually some free stuff to give away to attract people to their table. I however do not have all of that yet. I’ve got a table cloth and table runner, business cards and brochures that I’ve made on vistaprint, and that’s about it. I’m clearly not prepared to stand out in a event. In fact for a while I even questioned whether I should participate. I was worried that no one would come to my table and that I would look stupid and unprofessional compared to everyone else there. I thought I am not ready to do an event yet, I need to wait until I am more prepared. But I knew that all those worrisome thoughts were just excuses. They were just my ego’s way of holding me back and keeping me in my comfort zone. So I did the events anyway. And yes my table did not stand out amongst the crowd, but people came to it anyway. Even though I wasn’t prepared or felt ready to do an event I still met a lot of potential patients and a lot of new business contacts. Doing this event exposed my practice to a whole new group of people and I learned a lot about what I want to do for future events.

If I had waited until I felt completely ready I never would have gone back to school, started this blog, I never would have sat for my boards, or even be opening my own practice. By no means do I feel totally prepared to run my own business. I know that I am going to make mistakes, that I’ll feel confused and overwhelmed at times, but I also know that I’ll figure it out.

Where in your life can you start before you’re ready? Maybe it’s a brilliant business concept that you’ve been sitting on for a year. Or that exercise routine that you are going to start right after the next birthday, holiday, vacation, etc… What are your excuses for not starting? Excuses really just stem from fear, and starting before you are ready can feel really scary. Anytime you are stepping out of your comfort zone you’ll feel afraid and anxious guaranteed. But that’s how you learn and that’s how you grow.

Preparation is important and necessary to a certain extent. You need a healthy amount of it if you are going to be successful in anything you do. The key is to know when you are stuck in the preparing zone and when you need to just dive in. I challenge you to step out of your comfort zone this week. Pick a project that you’ve been “preparing” for and just start it. Just do one action, take the first step, and trust that you will figure it out as you go.