I Waited 20 Years to Start—Don't Make the Same Mistake

I had my first real business idea when I was 22. It was a good idea—not revolutionary, but solid. I could see exactly how to build it, who would buy it, and why it would work.

Instead of starting, I decided to wait. I wanted more experience. More money saved. More industry connections. More confidence in my abilities.

I finally built that business when I was 42. It worked exactly as I had imagined 20 years earlier. But here's the devastating part: it would have worked just as well when I was 22. All that waiting didn't make me more prepared—it just made me older. Those 20 years cost me more than just a single opportunity; they cost me the compound growth that only comes from starting earlier.

The Perfect Timing Myth

The most seductive lie we tell ourselves is that there's a "right time" to make a big move. We'll start when we have enough money, when the kids are older, when we get that next promotion. But perfect timing is a fantasy that keeps capable people waiting indefinitely.

There will never be a time when all conditions align. The "right time" to start is always now, with whatever resources you currently have. The process of navigating a major professional change is always challenging, which is why it's so important to have strategies for Overcoming Change Anxiety.

The Compound Cost of Delay

What I didn't understand at 22 was that professional delay has compound costs that get exponentially more expensive over time.

• Financial Cost: Starting earlier provides more years for your successes to grow and compound.
• Experience Cost: Every project you lead teaches you something that makes the next one easier. Starting earlier means more reps, more lessons, and better judgment later in your career. The person who starts their first initiative at 25 has a massive advantage over the one who starts at 45.
• Confidence Cost: Successfully building something from nothing creates unshakeable confidence. You can't get that from a book; you get it from doing. Waiting to feel confident before starting is a trap, because you'll never develop the evidence-based confidence that only comes from taking action.

The Psychology of Perpetual Preparation

Why do smart people wait so long? It's often a fear of inadequacy or judgment disguised as strategic patience. We get stuck in a loop of endless preparation, a state of analysis paralysis, because it feels safer than acting.

But the cure for this isn't more planning; it's imperfect action. You don't become ready to lead a project by thinking about it. You become ready by leading it and figuring things out as you go.

If you're over 30 and feel like you've waited too long, you haven't. You have something younger professionals don't: perspective and wisdom. Use your age as an advantage, not an excuse. The perfect time to start was 20 years ago. The second-best time is now.

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Stop waiting for conditions that will never be perfect. The 6-week FSTEP program is designed to help you break the cycle of waiting and start building now.

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