The High Cost of “Not Yet”
Most of us are experts at negotiating with ourselves. We have a goal, a project, or a hard conversation that we know we want to achieve but just haven’t gotten there yet. The outcome we so desperately want seems to just stay stuck in our heads as a fantasy of something that will never be because of a specific reason/justification. Here are some classics:
I have a tough schedule today, tomorrow will be better to start.
Last week was brutal and I just need a break right now.
I can’t start today. It’s just that my goal/outcome seems so far away.
I’m still doing research, but I’ll start when I have more information.
All of these statements are things we say to act like we’re being responsible or diligent. Sometimes this can be called "market research," "strategic waiting," or "getting our ducks in a row." In reality however, these reasons we have are only strategic ways to hide. We are absolutely terrified that if we move now, we might get it wrong. The risks of failure can be so crippling, that we end up doing nothing. We stay still, convinced that the right moment is just over the horizon, tucked away in some future where we have more data, more money, or more confidence.
Professionally delayed
Think about a project you’ve been sitting on at work. Maybe it’s a process overhaul that would save your team ten hours a week, but you haven't pitched it because you want to "wait until the next budget cycle." While you wait, those ten hours are lost every single week. Over six months, that’s 240 hours of collective human effort flushed away because you wanted a cleaner slide deck.
Or think about the leader who’s been carrying a "Plan B" in their pocket for three years. They know the current role is a dead end. They’re tired of the politics, tired of the circular meetings, and tired of pretending they still care about the mission. Every Sunday night, that familiar weight settles in their chest. They tell themselves, "I’ll start the transition once this current project wraps up," or "I’ll make the jump after next quarter."
The quarter comes and goes. The project wraps, but a new "emergency" takes its place.
They stay. But they aren't really there. They’ve gone into a sort of professional hibernation. They stop taking the bold risks that made them successful in the first place. They stop networking because they’re embarrassed to talk about a job they just can’t stand.
The tragedy isn't just the three years of lost salary or a better title. The real cost is that they’ve trained their brain to accept a state of compromise. They’ve spent three years practicing how to be mediocre. By the time they finally decide the "conditions are perfect" to leave, they’ve lost the muscle memory of what it feels like to be decisive or even truly successful. Confidence is eroded and they become become a diminished version of themselves.
Personal Atrophy
This pattern is even more insidious in our personal lives because there is no quarterly review to force our hand. We do it with our health, our hobbies, and our homes.
Consider the person who wants to start a podcast or a creative side project. They spend two years "researching" microphones and "building a content strategy" in a private spreadsheet. In those two years, they could have produced 100 episodes. They would have been terrible at episode one, mediocre at episode twenty, and a seasoned pro by episode one hundred. By waiting for the "perfect" launch, they delayed the entire learning curve. They are still a novice, while the person who started with a cheap phone and a messy idea two years ago is now an authority in their space.
We do it with our families, too. We wait for the "perfect" time to take that trip or have that difficult conversation with a spouse. We wait until work settles down or the kids are a certain age. But work never stays settled, and the kids keep growing. The "not yet" in our personal lives often results in a "never," leaving us with a pile of regrets.
The heavy weight of Stagnation
The internal resistance that says you aren't prepared doesn't go away with time. In fact, the longer you wait, the heavier that resistance becomes. You start to identify with the delay, and the excuse becomes part of your own personal brand. You become the person who is always "about to" do something. Here in the South (for the U.S. readers), we say that we’re “fixin’ to” do something. However you say it, it’s just another way of stating a delay.
I’ve sat in 1-on-1 coaching sessions with brilliant people who have every tool they need to succeed, yet they are paralyzed. They are waiting for the organizational issues to disappear before they speak up. They wait for a "perfect" economic climate to pivot their business model. By the time they finally feel "ready," the opportunity has been seized by someone less qualified but more decisive.
Reclaiming the Power of “Now”
Real motivation or movement doesn’t require a flawless roadmap. In fact, the reason it’s so terrifying to start is because you have to be willing to appear “messy in public.” It is the realization that a B-grade execution (or even C-grade) today is worth infinitely more than an A-grade plan that never begins.
When you choose "not yet," you are choosing to accept your current plight as “just fine.” Is it?! Is your current job that you remain in “just fine?” Is your health “just fine?” If not, then by doing nothing (or just waiting for the perfect moment) you are choosing to let your skills dull, your waste line expand and your momentum evaporate. Every day you wait is a day you aren't learning from the actual experience of doing the work or making an improvement.
If you are waiting for the "perfect" time to reclaim your career, launch that initiative, or change your life, you need to realize that the perfect time was probably six months ago. Sorry, but hindsight is truly 20/20. The second best time is today. Stop calculating the risk of moving or making changes, and start calculating the progress you’re making with small tasks/efforts that you complete today.
