You will never be ready. If you wait until you feel ready to be a parent, or change careers, or take up swordsmanship (I had to sneak that in somewhere), or attend your first event, or write your first book, then you will never do it. In any area worth considering, you become ready by doing it. Of course you should prepare: do the research, do the training, acquire the equipment for whatever the challenge may be, but very often none of that actually makes you feel ready.

You become ready by showing up, and doing your best. This is true in every area. These days, I think I’m a reasonably competent parent. The fact that my kids would often disagree just proves the point. But when that first squalling little scrap of perfection entered the world? We weren’t ready, but we didn’t care, because we wanted it too much to wait.

I certainly wasn’t ready to open a school of swordsmanship in 2001. Looking back, I think my skills and experience became adequate in about 2006. But if I hadn’t done it anyway, then I would never have developed those skills or experience.

I wasn’t ready to write a book when I started trying in 2000. My first book came out in 2004, ready or not.

I wasn’t ready to hand my school over to the students when I did that in 2015.

I wonder what else I’m not ready for that I should be doing anyway?

Just a thought.