There is a blind man who started coming to my 6:30am BJJ class.

THERE IS A BLIND MAN COMING TO A 6:30AM CLASS.

This blew me away. The amount of bravery it takes to try something new is not trivial. The friction to take the first step is always there. You need to overcome Newton’s first law: an object at rest will stay at rest unless acted upon by an outside force. That outside force, in the case of trying something new – is your own mind.

Now imagine navigating Baltimore City, to a dingy warehouse, without sight at 6:30 in the morning to go wrestle with strangers.

This guy is new, he has a lot to learn, but he started and that is the first step to getting better at anything.

An extreme example is inspirational, but that friction before the first step is something we have all felt. Whether its something like trying a new sport or picking up the phone to make a call your nervous about for work.

When I was in high school I delivered pizza after class my senior year. I remember sitting in the parking lot of the pizza joint nervous to go in there and ask for the job, but taking that step gave me some momentum…I asked for a job, they said yes, soon I was slinging pies every night. Every time I’m nervous to start something new I think of that and how the waiting was the most nerve racking part – once I got started it was easy from there.

So much friction can be overcome once you take that first step.

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