"Thou shalt not shilly-shally" is sound advice from a classic book on playing winning chess. It also applies to business, especially when you're starting one. If you're a perfectionist, stuck in the "paralysis of analysis" or any other type of procrastination, get over it! Worrying over details and fearing to make a mistake won't get you anywhere. Do something NOW and fix it later.



As long as what you are doing makes basic sense, isn't illegal or morally wrong, do it now. Develop a habit of taking action as soon as you realize what action you need to take. If you're missing a major piece of a puzzle, don't stop doing the parts you can do now. Even a poorly formed plan of action that's acted upon is better than a perfect plan that sits there, unused.

Learn the value of correcting your course as you go. You may find yourself having to rebuild everything from scratch if you make a major error at the beginning. That simply means you need to do a sufficient amount of research and due diligence next time. This time, tear it down and start over.

If you use common sense and ask for help as you begin your business, you'll find that having to do a "gut renovation" on your virtual real estate (Web site, blog, forum, etc.) won't be necessary. Tweaks, patches and fixes are a normal part of doing business online.

Most importantly, eliminate worry. That's right, worry is unnecessary. If you do your due diligence regarding the basics of your business and stick to a plan and a budget, you can charge ahead fearlessly. Agonizing over each detail and decision will only complicate and slow down your progress. Even if you feel like you don't know what you're doing, in terms of end results, just keep doing what you know until it's finished. Then relax, take a breath, and do the next step.

There's a great method for figuring out what you really need to do first: pick the one thing that makes you most uncomfortable and do that first. Not only will this overwhelm any chance for you to procrastinate, it will build your courage. Anyone who's served in the military learns that repeated, forced acts of courage will make an ordinary person into a warrior. Use this lesson to make yourself into a self-starting business warrior.

Action cures fear. Burn that thought into your mind. Letting fear stop you from taking action is your fault. Mark Twain quipped, "I've had a great many troubles in my life. Fortunately, most of them never happened." Don't allow yourself to "awfulize" what can go wrong with your plans. Instead, go ahead and write down every possible Worst Case Scenario. Then go back and write down a solution, cure, workaround or fix for each of them. You'll find that what appears to be a 10 on the scale of disasters becomes a 2 or 3 with a simple repair.

The point here is to take action first, then take the time to correct it. "Ready, Fire, Aim" is the best advice you can use to build your new business in the shortest time possible. "There's never enough time to do it perfectly the first time - there's always time to do it over."

Finally, if you're the type who's always had a problem with getting started because of the fear of making mistakes, take heart! People just like you have overcome these challenges by learning new habits of acting and doing. Here's a motto for you to write down and read out loud on a daily basis: "Don't worry, be crappy!"