You don’t need to be 100% ready to start

There are many things we can learn by reading, studying, observing others or asking for advice.

And then there are things we can only learn by doing them.

The problem is that many of us would rather feel ready before we start.

We prepare. We think. We anticipate. We look for the right approach. We want to understand what we are doing before we expose ourselves to the possibility of doing it badly.

This makes sense. Especially if you are someone who is used to being competent.

The more experience you have, the more uncomfortable it can be to find yourself in a situation where you don't quite know what you're doing yet: a new role, a difficult conversation, starting a business, speaking in public, delegating more, setting a boundary…

So you prepare.

And preparation is useful.

But at some point, preparation can become a way of postponing the uncomfortable part:

actually doing it.

Prepared doesn't mean experienced

We sometimes interpret difficulty as evidence that we weren't ready.

Perhaps it is simply evidence that we are learning.

There is an important difference between being unprepared and being inexperienced.

You can prepare well and still be inexperienced. And no amount of preparation can completely eliminate that stage.

At some point, the next piece of information you need is on the other side of action.

This is why I find this shift so useful:

Prepare → perform → judge

becomes:

Prepare → try → observe → adjust → try again

In the first sequence, the outcome easily becomes a verdict:

Did I do it well? Was I good enough? Should I have known better?

In the second, it becomes information:

What worked? What didn't? What did I learn? What will I try differently next time?

An imperfect attempt can teach you something that another hour of thinking never could.

This doesn't mean lowering your standards

Some mistakes matter. Preparation matters. Expertise matters. Quality matters.

The point isn't to become careless.

It's to recognise when high standards are helping you produce good work — and when the need to get things right is preventing you from learning.

There are situations where excellence requires precision.

There are also situations where excellence requires experimentation.

Because if you only allow yourself to do things you already know how to do well, your competence can eventually become a very comfortable cage.

What are you really waiting for?

Think of something you would like to do, change or try, but haven't quite started yet.

What are you waiting for before you act?

More information? More confidence? More experience? Someone else's approval? Certainty that it will work?

And then ask yourself:

What genuinely needs to happen before I take the next step, and what am I hoping to feel before I take it?

Those are not necessarily the same thing.

Perhaps you genuinely need more preparation.

But perhaps you are waiting to feel confident before doing the very thing that would help you build confidence.

Or perhaps you are trying to avoid the uncomfortable experience of being a beginner again.

Turn it into an experiment

Instead of asking:

“Am I ready?”

try asking:

“What is the smallest useful experiment I could run?”

Not the perfect next step. Not a commitment to succeed.

Something small enough to try, but real enough to teach you something.

And afterwards:

What happened? What did I learn? What would I try differently next time?

This is one of the things I value most about coaching: creating enough space to notice the assumptions behind our decisions, question the rules we may have unconsciously created for ourselves, and turn reflection into deliberate action.

Because sometimes we don't need another answer.

We need an experience that gives us new information.

And perhaps being ready isn't the condition for taking the first step.

Perhaps taking the first step is part of how we become ready.

✨ I'm Raquel, ICF certified coach and mentor dedicated to helping people build deeper self-awareness, greater mental & emotional wellbeing, and a life aligned with what truly matters.