"If you try to comprehend air before breathing it in, you will die" said a wise person (not me) once.
As soon as I read this quote, it gave me pause. You see, I have been known to be a little over-analytical. That sound you can hear now, is the tea-spluttering guffaws of my close friends and family, in response to my colossal understatement.
I will argue that I'm not as bad as I used to be, as I have learnt to recognise analysis paralysis when it sets in, and simply refuse to be held hostage by anything. Even myself!
I completely support the virtues of thoughtfulness, deep consideration and due diligence, but there comes a time when over thinking a thing will bog us down, and we become paralysed by the fear of failure or making a mistake. Many of us experience the nasty little Negative Self-Talk Demons, telling us what we should - or should not - do, in an attempt to keep us confined inside our comfort zones, and from trying too hard.
As time continues to march on (and cross my face it seems), I have also learnt that mistakes are merely evidence that I am attempting something, and that my last mistake made for an excellent teacher. So, if I were to try and comprehend every possible nuance, variable and possibility before taking action of any kind, I would never get anywhere. I'd be stalled, static, not growing and therefore stagnating. Analysis Paralysis 1 vs Karan 0.
A nifty little trick I was taught a while ago, for use when important decisions need to be made is this. Sit quietly, alone, in your own energy and stillness. Use the principles of meditation to focus on your breath, whilst centring yourself in the moment and unplugged from the world. Then, take a few moments to consider your important decision, before asking your subconscious mind for the answer. Don't be tempted to dismiss what comes forward, because more often than not, we already know the answers intuitively, but choke them with busyness, logic and the mistaken belief that only a complicated solution will work. How often have you said "...I don't believe it, the answer was right in front of me!" Sometimes you can't square a circle. Sometimes a circle is a circle.
I will leave you with one last thought on the matter: every day is to be experienced (warts, mistakes, problems and all), and not necessarily understood to the nth degree. Always do your best, but there are lessons, growth and development in your misteaks*. Your only critical error will be not learning from them.
Are you going to consider crossing this threshold (of opportunity and decision), or are you actually going to enter? After all, procrastination is the disease of the poor.
* Yes, I know. Just jesting