What if…
Those two words are often the inhibitor of all action. They work for any scenario in which you are about to start doing something.
You are ready to leave the house, then stop for the what if: What if it rains? In this case the answer is easy. You take an umbrella and exit the house.
However, the what if game can get easily out of hand. You find an answer, but immediately come up with a new problem. And that goes on until you either don’t find a satisfying answer or the chain of problems and answers becomes so long that starting seems too complicated.
Anticipating problems ahead of time is of course very useful, don’t get me wrong. But I think everyone has those moments when fear of the uncertain or just plain reluctance to give up the convenience of the familiar is the main factor behind our surrender to the what ifs.
We can always come up with possible obstacles and for some an immediate solution is not imaginable at the time. However, before you give up consider two points:
- How likely are they to happen?
- What is the the worst that can happen if you don’t find a solution?
Before we moved to the US over seven years ago we had taken care of a lot of “What ifs”, but upon arrival we met way more new challenges than we had ever imagined. If we had known all these ahead of time, I am sure we would never have started on this adventure. But so we had covered the basics and dealt with the problems as they came. We are still here and learned a lot in the process. Most of all, we gained the confidence that we are able to deal with whatever comes.
Hence the tip of the week:
Have plan B, C and D ready, but don’t let what ifs stop you from doing what you want to do.
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This is Quick Tip No 31