Have you ever been paralyzed by fear, your own self-doubt or just not had any idea what’s holding you back?

You don’t know what the next step should be, how long it should take, and what the step after that would entail. Instead of simply starting, we think, we overanalyze, we procrastinate.

Where do we start? How do we begin?

The answer is here. Literally.

We start here. Right where we are. Where you are. Why not?

I’m a huge fan of maps — the old-fashioned paper variety. I grew up reading them all day long when my dad would plan our family road trip routes. I liked the birds-eye view of a state or a region, and I liked being aware of other cities, parks and landmarks that were nearby. GPS doesn’t give me that same knowledge so, by design, my car doesn’t have it. But when we’re directionally challenged in a professional sense, in ways of the heart or when it comes to simply shifting out of idle and moving forward again, neither a map nor GPS will help.

They say that life isn’t a dress rehearsal. It doesn’t come with directions, either. Marry the two, and you have a big ol’ demand for the here and now.

It’s hard to make every minute count, but knowing that tomorrow is never guaranteed makes it a bit easier to dial back the complacency and dial up the doing. Do something, do anything.

No step, no change. Even if your step ends up being wrong, you’ll know that course-correction is necessary — something that’s better than doing nothing at all.

For knowing that here is the best place to begin, and for knowing that I don’t have to have all the answers to take the first step — right here, right now — I am thankful.