“Do not wait for great strength before setting out, for immobility will weaken you further. Do not wait to see clearly before starting out; one has to walk toward the light.

“When you take the first step, accomplish that tiny little act, the necessity of which may be apparent only to you, you will be astonished to feel that the effort, rather than exhausting your strength, has doubled it—and that you already see more clearly what you must do next.” Philippe Vernier

There’s so much wisdom tucked into these two short paragraphs! Let’s unpack them and see what might be of use:

“Do not wait for great strength”—We’ve all done this: delayed moving forward with a creative project because we felt everything wasn’t perfect. We didn’t feel strong enough or good enough or ready enough to get started. But remaining stuck just weakens us. Moving creates momentum.

“Do not wait to see clearly”—We don’t always need to know exactly where we’re going to start moving; just the act of pushing forward despite our confusion or uncertainty creates clarity. As long as we “walk toward the light” we are headed in the right direction.

“Take the first step”—Start small; just do one simple act that will move you toward where you want to go. Far from depleting your strength, that one small action will “double” your strength—you’ll feel energized and more focused. Action changes attitudes!

“Do what you must do next”—Once you take that first step forward, the next step will automatically present itself. You’ll see more clearly. All you need to do is take one step after another.

Let’s take it slow, but let’s keep moving. Let’s take it step by step, Let’s “walk toward the light” as we all write on!