A person I know is having his first book published. This is a big deal, and he was so excited... until he wasn't. He realized he now had to promote his new book, but didn't know where to start. This is common with a lot of projects. The possibilities are daunting, or our lack of knowledge is overwhelming. Either way, it kills the excitement of our new endeavor and stops us in our tracks. My advice? The easier we make something to do the more likely we will start—and starting is the key to finishing. So I told him, begin by letting everyone you know, know about the book. You never know who knows who and these are people who want to see you succeed so they'll do what they can to help. This gets the ball rolling and once it does it picks up steam. Think big, but start small. Big is hard, small is easy. Big is overwhelming, small is doable. Big is usually the result of a series of small steps (and small wins) so starting small doesn't mean we stay small. It just means we start small and build from there. This is not the fastest way to do things and if we have an opportunity to go big right away we should. But if we're paralyzed by fear and procrastinating, small and steady is the way to go.
