We live in a world driven by data. With advances in technology, we can analyze almost everything. The availability of data, while good, does have a downside. The downside of our newfound data overload is the problem of “paralysis by analysis.” The availability of data has conditioned us to require mountains of information before taking even the slightest step forward. Data is useful, but data should inform action, not impede it. Our newfound addiction to data, combined with the 21st-century fear culture created by the 24-hour news cycle has made taking action of any kind difficult. This modern-day recipe for inaction has convinced many of us that the safest thing to do is hunker down and protect our current “space.” A safe “space” might be a job, a relationship, an unfilled dream, or worst of all a mindset. We convince ourselves that action is more dangerous than inaction, so why take the risk.
I have been passive-aggressively avoiding the final action step of a personal project that I have been working on for a few years. This final step would remove the last protective border and leave me without a legitimate reason for keeping my project safely tucked away in the confines of my own existence. This final step sets in motion the possibility of public feedback and all of the perils that accompany an idea existing in the real world. Inactivity protects the project, but more truthfully, inactivity protects me. It protects me from failure, criticism, and a mirid of other scary unknowns. Indeed, by avoiding this last step and keeping the project to myself, it avoids failure, but at the same time, it also avoids impacting anyone.
Actions move us forward into an unknown territory where things have an equal chance to get worse or to get better. The unknown outcome of an action is risky, while inaction keeps us in the familiar. The familiar space of stagnation makes it easy to know what to expect. We are comfortable with our surroundings. Even if what we expect and our surroundings are less than optimal, at least we are sure of what they are. There is a certain level of relief that comes with knowing what to expect, even if it is bad.
The secret known by people that achieve great things is that the “state” of any new space is irrelevant. In other words, the condition of “better or worse” doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of things. Best case, we act, and the conditions improve. Great. But, if we act, and the conditions are worse, there is still a benefit. Poor conditions make it possible for a person to take more action, and all of this action leads to growth. The new situations, the new pressure, the new threats, the new pain, all of this caused by action makes us stronger. Action is hard. Action is scary. But action precedes growth, and growth is required to have anything great.
So I took the last step and decided to act. I hope you will take action on whatever you may be avoiding or over-analyzing. I am positioned to unleash my passion project into the world early next year, so stay tuned. I am inspired by a quote from Neil Pascrica, who said, “It is easier to act your way into a new way of thinking versus thinking of your way into a new way of acting.”