"I don't know enough about business to start my own company yet" my friend confessed to me over a beer. And then the conversation slid on to something else.
Looking back, I wish I hadn't let him off the hook so easily.
I should have asked how he intended to learn the skills he thought he needed by proxy.
Safety is dangerous
If you don't start, there's no risk of failure, and no chance of being proved wrong.
This perceived safety net is your worst enemy right now.
I know because I've been stalling myself.
I've done so much reading about startups that if I had put all of the time into actually starting one, I might have a fledgling business by now.
Instead I've become a window shopper in the mall of entrepreneurship.
I read the tweets and the articles and the books. But I don't follow through with real action.
So I am writing this as much for myself as for you.
There will never be a "good" time
Distractions and excuses will always be lurking in the periphery of your life.
And there will always be another article or book you feel like you have to read before you begin.
But that's the problem.
Because learning by doing — by pushing beyond your comfort zone, by making mistakes — always trumps learning by reading.
No-one really cares what you are doing, or if you fuck up. People are already wrapped up in their own problems, so you shouldn't pay any attention to what they might be thinking. Trust me, they are already returning the compliment.
Ideas, particularly the ones rattling around your skull, are worthless.
Take any step which can propel an idea out from your brain and into the world.
Write a draft. Draw a sketch. Record a memo.
You will never feel ready. But don't let that stop you.
Make a start, today.