A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step. This sentiment gets to the heart of self-improvement because you have to start somewhere in order to forge your path.
I like this metaphor because it’s applicable to so many areas of life, and has such rich imagery.
As toddlers, our first steps are monitored and supported. Our parents helped lift and coax us forward. Our legs wobbled. We weren’t confident in ourselves. We were afraid of falling.
We fell, a lot. Skinned knees and dirty trousers. We cried. Tears ran down our faces as we erupted into vicious sorrow.
We cursed the ground and refused to stay down. Our legs were held high as we stepped once again. No longer were we held down like Atlas. We began to skip, gallop, leap, sprint.
Walking is a human experience. Nearly everyone alive has learned to stride across locations. We’ve all tasted the bitter earth and savored the glory of movement.
Take a moment to think about the fact that Olympians and ultramarathoners at one point couldn’t walk unassisted.
As children, we learn not to focus on comparison between the world’s best and those starting out. The fact that Hussain Bolt can sprint doesn’t preclude you from walking. Instead, we instinctively begin to realize that we can aspire to move faster, to travel farther, to journey into the unknown.
There are going to be times ahead that will make you question whether you can achieve your goals. Times when you feel hopelessly inept. It’s not always clear where we’re going and we get lost often.
As we zoom out, it becomes apparent that our journey had to start somewhere, and that somewhere had to be a first step. Moving from zero to one.
You’ll come to realize that this is going to be a long, whimsical, and unexpected journey, and boy am I excited to see where you go.
Isadore Johnson's Website 