The Dock Never Gets Warmer: Stop Waiting Until You Feel Ready

In this blog we unpack why waiting until you feel ready keeps you stuck, why readiness is often a story we tell ourselves to stay safe, and why the person you are becoming is built through the imperfect actions you take today.

-Rebecca Misek

You're standing at the edge of a cold lake. Your toes are curled over the dock. You keep telling yourself you'll jump when you feel ready.

You've been standing there for four years.

I say that because I've coached enough high achievers, people running real companies, leading real teams, to know something that still catches people off guard the first time they hear it.

Readiness is a myth.

It's something we made up so we could feel better about staying safe.

We tell ourselves it's about certainty.

I just need to know I'm walking away from pain and toward pleasure. I need to feel safe before I move.

But here's the fact.

Nobody feels ready.

Not the achievers I coach.

Not me.

You're not going to feel ready, and that's actually the whole fun of the adventure.

You think, gosh, am I even going to make it to the peak of this trail?

And then when you do, something in you says, yes. I made it.

Readiness doesn't come first.

It catches up with you somewhere down the trail.

The Formula Most of Us Have Backwards

Most people think it works like this.

If I take enough training. If I get enough certifications. If I fix this part of me, and that part of me, and this part over here, then I'll finally be ready to start.

Listen to me on this one.

You don't become the kind of person who lives their mission and then start.

You become that person by starting.

Nothing has developed me more than actually trying to lead. Actually building this company.

I started Arrow's Edge Coaching in 2020.

My thyroid was in a massively low state. I felt like I was walking through mud every day. I had gained weight. I was just coming off being a COVID long-hauler. I was sick.

But I felt inspired, like it was time to contribute.

So I started.

Was I ready to run a business?

No.

Did I feel ready?

No.

Every small action is a vote for a new identity.

The Queen of Preparation

I had a client once, and I still think about her.

Let's call her the Queen of Preparation.

Another certification.

Another coach.

Another round of getting ready.

One day I asked her a simple question.

What would you do this week if you were already the person you're preparing to become?

She got quiet.

And that question changed everything for her, because she stopped being someone preparing for a mission and became someone living one.

That dock you're standing on never gets warmer, and it never gets less cold. At some point, you just have to jump in.

Four Questions Worth Sitting With

What have you been getting ready to do? How long have you been getting ready?

What would you do this week if you were already the person you're preparing to become?

What's the smallest, ugliest action you could take in the next 48 hours toward your mission?

When has taking messy action created a confidence you couldn't have thought your way into?

That last one is the one that tends to surprise people, once they actually sit with it.

Take the Imperfect Step

This week, I want to urge you to take one imperfect action toward your life's work.

Small.

Maybe even ugly.

But done.

Send the message. Make the offer. Have the conversation. Post the thing.

If this stirred something up for you, send me a message.