Stop Waiting for the Perfect Idea

Why clarity comes after motion—not before.

What if I told you the biggest thing standing between you and progress isn't your idea—it's your obsession with finding the perfect one?

Last week, the fog was real. I kept bouncing between browser tabs, tools, and notes, trying to decide which project to pursue.

It wasn’t that I didn’t have ideas. It was that I had too many.

And that’s when I remembered my Netflix moment—the day I spent 45 minutes trying to pick a show and still ended up rewatching something old.

Sometimes, it’s not the work that’s hard. It’s the choice.

You Don’t Need the Right Idea to Start. You Just Need One.

The belief that keeps us circling

We’re told that picking the right idea is the most important step in starting anything. That message is baked into startup culture, online business courses, and even well-meaning advice from friends.

"Don't waste your time." "Pick a niche before you start." "Make sure it's profitable first."

But here's the truth: all that pressure to be strategic, smart, and certain? It doesn't help. It slows you down. It turns possibility into panic.

Because instead of exploring and experimenting, you’re trying to future-proof every decision before you even begin.

The fear of choosing wrong becomes bigger than the excitement of starting.

And when that happens, it’s not clarity you’re after—it’s permission. You don’t need a genius idea. You need a green light to move.

That’s the shift that changes everything.

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That Netflix scroll moment

I wasn’t in the mood to think. I just wanted to rest. But even relaxing became complicated.

Netflix was open, the couch was calling, and yet I sat there—scrolling, previewing, hesitating. For 45 minutes.

Because I didn’t want to waste my time. Because I wanted to make the best choice.

That moment hit me in the gut—I caught myself turning a simple yes-or-no into this dramatic high-stakes poker game where the jackpot was millions. That same energy shows up in business, especially when we’re trying to pick our “big idea.”

It’s not laziness. It’s not procrastination. It’s fear masquerading as caution.

We don’t need more time—we need permission to stop perfecting and start.

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The Permission-First Framework

Here’s what I’ve seen work—not because it’s clever, but because it’s realistic when your brain is foggy and your heart is unsure:

1. Pick an idea that feels light.
Not light, as in flaky. Light, as in I could easily do this over and over. Think about the idea you’d be willing to explore on a slow day. That’s usually a sign that holds some energy for you.

2. Drop the outcome obsession.
You can’t know what will work until you try it. So shift your focus: Instead of thinking in can’t and won't, think about the lessons you will learn if you fall on your face.

3. Cross off the idea that drains you.
Sometimes, you look at your ideas and feel like you’ve been body-slammed with fatigue. Even if it’s profitable and trendy - you feel the pull of weight dragging you straight down. You know this point is to pull back and save your energy.

4. Decide with a deadline.
Give yourself 24 hours. Not a month. Not a week. A short time period so that you won’t beat the dead horse. A small window forces you to listen to your gut instead of endlessly analyzing every angle.

5. Let curiosity lead.
Ask yourself: which of these ideas am I genuinely interested in right now? Not for life. Not for strategy. Just now. Curiosity is a true north compass—especially when confidence is wobbly.

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What if we've been putting blind faith in knowing all the answers?

We praise the quick-thinkers. We give kudos to those who speak without hesitation. We're drawn to the person with the bold vision scribbled on a napkin.

But most people I’ve worked with didn’t get clear until they were already in motion. Doing so taught them what worked and what didn’t, giving them data to trust their own process.

And more often than not, their original idea morphed into something even bigger and better.

The point isn’t to have certainty. The point is to get going.

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Try this today:

Write down the three ideas you’re currently circling.

Now cross one off.

Then, choose the one that feels lightest or most interesting.

Give it one week of honest effort. Just one.

At the end of that week, you’ll know more than you do now. And that clarity will be earned, not imagined.

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Taking the next step

There’s no shame in being stuck. And there’s no shame in asking for help to get unstuck.

If you want support figuring out your next step, I created Clarity On Call just for that.

It’s a simple way to bring your ideas, get clear on what matters, and walk away in one direction that feels like you.

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Taking it one step at a time with you,
Lee