The Upside of Starting
Just me getting this blog started
Dear reader,
This post isn’t designed to blow your mind. It’s designed to do something smaller - and maybe more useful.
It’s meant to remind you of a painfully obvious truth: to get anything done, you have to start.
That’s it. No productivity app, no secret framework. Just - start.
That’s exactly what I’m doing here: starting.
How Writing Actually Happens
Let’s be honest about how ‘writing an article’ usually looks.
On paper, it’s simple:
Decide on a topic.
Write it.
Publish it.
Sure, some posts are just ‘brain dumps’ (as many you’ll read here).
But if you want to write meaningful stuff it’s often messier.
There’s research. Then more research. Notes. Outlines. Keyword spreadsheets? Structure decisions. Length debates. Editing. And then finally - if you’re lucky - words. And then. Rereading. Rewriting.
We turn a three-step process into a 17-step ritual. Then we wonder why we never finish.
The Hidden Step Zero
The trick? Don’t worry about the finish line. Just take the smallest possible step toward motion.
For writing, that means:
Jot down some notes.
Open a Word file.
Type something - anything.
You can’t write a sentence until there’s a blinking cursor in front of you.
That single action - opening the file - isn’t trivial. It’s a mental switch. You’re telling your brain, it’s writing time.
Maybe AI can help. But writing is not about using AI. It’s about using your brain.
The Psychology of Momentum
Here’s the upside of starting: once you’ve written 100 words, you’ll want to write another 100.
Momentum is contagious. Your thoughts begin to self-organize. You find flow. And if you stop? Great. Because tomorrow, when you return, your brain will already be tuned to the same frequency.
That’s not self-help fluff - it’s neuroscience. The brain rewards continuity. You’re five times (okay, I made that number up) more likely to finish once you’ve begun.
Just start
This works far beyond writing.
Need to edit photos? Open the editor, drag one image in.
Need to make a playlist? Open Spotify, add a single song.
Building a financial model? Duplicate an old sheet, rename it, plug in a few cells.
You’re not just clicking apps - you’re building context. Choosing the tool, naming the file, entering the mindset. Those micro-actions are the launch pad.
Starting is a design decision. It’s how humans hack inertia.
This article is the proof
I literally just started my blog.
Opened the editor and merged all three steps - decide, write, publish - into one.
It became a self-fulfilling prophecy.
First a post.
Then a blog.
Have you started? You’ve already won half the battle.
How about you start being a subscriber? 👆
Iliya