• What is the doorstep mile?
• Start small, start now. Just start!
• Build momentum with small wins
• Battling uncertainty: what you don’t know yet
• Catalyst days: when everything just clicks
• Consistency creates progress

There’s a common saying among runners: “the hardest mile is the doorstep mile.” It’s that first step out of the door that’s often the most challenging. Once you cross that threshold, the rest of the journey doesn’t seem quite as daunting. This idea resonates beyond running; it’s a perfect metaphor for starting anything significant in life. Over the past year, as I’ve prepared to leave full-time employment and pursue my business ideas, this concept has become my reality. The hardest part? Simply getting started.

For months, I grappled with the decision to leave behind the security and structure of my job. I had ideas and ambitions, but making the leap from thinking to doing felt overwhelming. Every time I sat down to plan or work on my projects, I found myself paralysed by the sheer scale of what I was trying to achieve. It felt like standing at the starting line of a marathon without knowing how to take the first step. Read more about my decision to leave full time work: Why I Left Full-Time Work – And Why you Might Too.

Start Small, Start Now. Just Start! 

Starting a new project can feel paralysing. You know you need to take that first step, but doubts creep in. You question whether you’re capable, whether it’s worth it, and what happens if you fail. I’ve experienced this myself while planning my business ventures. For weeks, I jotted down notes and did research, but it felt like I was making no real progress.

This struggle is completely normal. The doorstep mile is about overcoming inertia. Once you begin, the weight starts to lift, and the momentum builds. In my experience, the hardest part of any journey isn’t solving problems or coming up with ideas—it’s simply starting.

Top Tip: Build Momentum with Small Wins

One effective way to overcome this inertia is to begin with small, achievable tasks that give you an immediate sense of accomplishment. Research shows that even simple activities, like making your bed or tidying your room, can boost your mood and motivation by triggering a release of dopamine. These small wins set the stage for larger tasks by creating momentum. It’s a way of telling yourself, “I’ve already accomplished something today.”

When a task feels overwhelming, break it down into bite-sized actions. Instead of focusing on the daunting end goal, start with what you can do right now. This technique, known as “activation energy”, involves lowering the barriers to entry. Whether it’s organising your workspace or outlining your project, small steps can spark bigger strides forward.

Battling Uncertainty: What You Don’t Know Yet

One of the toughest parts of starting something new is realising just how much you don’t know – especially when you don’t even know what you need to know. It’s the feeling of stepping into uncharted territory without a clear map. I’ve experienced this many times, stalling before I even began.

When I first started planning my business, I quickly discovered gaps in my knowledge. I didn’t know the skills I needed, the tools I should use, or even the core concepts I was meant to understand. It was overwhelming. I spent months reading business books, convinced I had to prepare fully before taking any action. But eventually, I realised that the only way to truly consolidate knowledge was to dive in. You learn by doing, and only by starting do the real gaps in your understanding reveal themselves.

Top Tip: Overcome Uncertainty with Action

To overcome the uncertainty of not knowing what you need to know, adopt a mindset of continuous learning. Break your project down into smaller, manageable tasks – called the “next action” principle. Instead of trying to master everything at once, focus on the very next step. Research shows that taking small, actionable steps reduces anxiety and leads to progress.

Another strategy is “just-in-time learning”, where you seek out knowledge only when you need it for the task at hand. Studies suggest that learning in context, when information is immediately useful, improves retention and understanding. Lastly, embrace a growth mindset, as championed by psychologist Carol Dweck. Acknowledge that challenges and failures are part of the process, and every skill you acquire brings you closer to your goal.

Catalyst Days: When Everything Clicks

In my journey so far, I’ve noticed a pattern: real progress often feels invisible until it suddenly accelerates. Whether it’s this journal or my business projects, I’ve had stretches where it felt like I was spinning my wheels. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, a single day – or even just an hour – would ignite a burst of productivity that transformed everything. For example, it took me several months to perfect the idea for this journal, and several attempts to build the website, until one day it eventually all fell into place, and the posts started flowing effortlessly.

I call these “catalyst days” —the moments where everything clicks. You might spend weeks or even months laying the groundwork, feeling like you’re getting nowhere, only to have one day where all the pieces come together. It’s easy to look at these catalyst days and think that the previous efforts were wasted, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Those slow days were essential, building the foundation for that breakthrough.

Consistency Creates Progress

Once you’ve overcome the initial inertia and got the ball rolling, momentum starts to build naturally. The more you do, the easier it becomes to keep doing.

The key is consistency. Not every day will be a breakthrough, but each step forward brings you closer to that moment when everything falls into place. The friction you felt at the start begins to ease, and what once seemed impossible starts to feel routine.

Take-Home Message: Stop Overthinking, Start Doing

If you’re like me and find the idea of starting a daunting one, remember the doorstep mile. The beginning is always the hardest, but once you take that first step, the rest of the journey becomes far more manageable. And don’t be discouraged if progress feels slow at first. The biggest breakthroughs often come on catalyst days, after long periods of perceived stagnation.

Looking back over past few months, I’ve realised the hardest part hasn’t been the work itself – it was overcoming the fear of starting. Once I took that first step, momentum took over, and now I can see the progress, even if it didn’t happen all at once. Keep moving forward, even when it feels like nothing is happening. Eventually, you’ll look back and realise just how far you’ve come.