The simplest thing you can do

I was frozen with anxiety. This was strange because the decision I had to make was not life-changing or binding. I just had to choose a newsletter service. I wasn’t going to pay any money for it – not immediately any way – and switching to some other service would have been fairly easy. But one part of my mind – the dude in charge of the panic button – would tell you a different story. He acted like my life depended on it. As though the decision I took would change my life irreversibly. As though my success as a blogger would depend entirely on whether I got this decision right. 

I was mindful enough to know panic dude had gone off into a spiral. The realisation did not immediately help break the cycle of thought and emotion. But it gave me enough space to ask, “Where is the danger?” This is a question I often ask to break out of anxiety. Because usually – though not always – there is no danger. 

I asked myself what I could do in this moment to move. Just a little bit. Let it be imperfect. Just move.

Here was the answer: Do the simplest thing even if it is a mistake. 

It worked. I signed up for an email service, played around with its settings on WordPress, and my newsletter was ready to get published.

Why did this approach work? First, I allowed myself to make a mistake. In other words, I gave myself the permission to learn by taking action. Second, by committing to doing the simplest thing, I had made things, well, simple.

I am not sure if I have chosen the “best” newsletter service. I am not sure if it will fulfill all my needs in the months to come. I have simply taken action. I am open to learning. Most importantly I am set to ship my work.