Don't Wait for the Perfect Moment

I used to think I needed the perfect stationery, the perfect setup, the perfect timing, and honestly the perfect vibe to begin anything in life because I always believed that if the beginning didn't look pretty, then the whole journey would collapse like expired cream puffs.

But today at twenty three years old, I can finally admit that the thing that held me back wasn't the lack of tools or time but the way I convinced myself that I wasn't ready, and this realisation hits in a way that feels like someone pressed rewind on my whole teenage era and showed me how many moments I wasted by simply waiting.

I never started because I kept waiting for a version of myself that didn't exist yet and this is the type of regret that arrives quietly but stays loudly in your heart.

This blog post is the story of that regret and the lesson that finally freed me from it.

The Dream That Never Began

There was a time when I was so obsessed with anime journaling videos that I watched them like a k-drama marathon and every flip through or aesthetic hand movement somehow convinced me that journaling only counted if it looked magical enough to summon angels.

I wanted that look and that vibe, or at least I thought I needed it, so my brain immediately decided that if I couldn't make my journal look like a Pinterest board ready to win awards, then I simply shouldn't start at all because why start if it was not picture perfect right.

But the reality was brutal because I didn't have the money for fancy stationery, my phone camera quality was so low it probably counted as vintage, and everything I owned looked like the budget version of someone else’s creative life.

So I created a rule for myself that was so harmless and so innocent that I didn't even realise it was ruining everything which was this idea that I would start when I finally had everything I needed.

Years passed and suddenly the girl who used to dream about journaling grew into someone who realised she had no journal to look back on because she spent all those years waiting.

Perfectionism was disguised as preparation and I walked straight into the trap without even checking the price tag.

When You Wait Too Long, the Moment Leaves Without You

One day I opened the drawer where I kept all my cute journaling supplies and it honestly felt like opening a time capsule filled with unrealised dreams and expired potential.

The notebook I bought for my first ever journal was still untouched like it was waiting for a queen who never arrived and the stickers I saved for a special moment remained trapped in their packaging like prisoners and the pens I bought as a treat for finally starting had dried out because they waited too long for me.

That moment hit me so hard because I realised my things were never waiting for the perfect moment, I was the one waiting and I never showed up.

I didn't just lose creative opportunities but I lost memories, small details of my younger self, chances to grow, and the confidence that only comes when you actually allow yourself to begin something messy and imperfect.

The deepest regret was realising that I was already good enough to start and I simply never allowed myself to believe it.

The Real Problem: The Story I Told Myself

When I look back now, the mistakes were so clear that I sometimes feel like my younger self deserved a friendly slap on the shoulder and a reminder that life doesn't wait for people who insist on waiting for perfect conditions.

Mistake 1: I Romanticized the Start

I imagined beginnings should look aesthetic and magical when in reality most beginnings look like chaos with a bit of extra confidence sprinkled on top and that is completely fine.

Had I allowed myself to embrace ugly first attempts, I would've started earlier and grown faster because nobody becomes skilled without going through the awkward potato phase first.

Aesthetic can come later but beginnings must come now or they never come at all.

Mistake 2: I Believed Equipment Creates Skill

I genuinely believed better stationery or better tools would automatically give me creativity superpowers but the truth is skill grows when you start not when you shop.

There are people who make beautiful art with a basic pencil and a cheap notebook while I spent months researching pens instead of touching a single page.

Time moves quietly while you wait for the perfect tool and by the time you realise it, the excitement has already left the chat.

Mistake 3: I Waited for the Perfect Time

I planned to start after exams or after holidays or after life miraculously became calm but life honestly never becomes perfectly calm because something always happens whether it's a family event or sudden rain or your cat suddenly deciding to create chaos.

Waiting felt safe but it also silently stole years from me and I didn't even notice until I looked back.

The perfect time doesn't exist and thinking it does is one of the biggest traps you can fall into.

What This Regret Taught Me

Now that I am older, the truth feels so obvious that I almost want to apologise to my younger self for not seeing it earlier.

Readiness isn't something you wait for but something you build by starting with whatever you have.

I learned that you don't need perfect pens or perfect ideas or perfect circumstances or perfect self confidence because these things grow inside the process not before the process.

The fear of imperfection will cost you more than imperfection itself and this is a lesson that stays with you once you finally understand it.

So How Do You Stop Waiting and Finally Start

If you're reading this and you feel like you're standing at the same starting line I stood at for years, I want to share what helped me so you don't make the same detour I did.

1. Start With the Smallest Possible Version

Start with one sentence or one doodle or one messy page because that small start is stronger than any big plan you're too scared to begin.

Small beginnings create momentum and momentum creates confidence and confidence creates consistency.

2. Stop Saving Things for Later

Use the cute stationery, the nice notebook, the favourite pen because items become meaningful when you use them not when you protect them like museum exhibits.

One of the saddest regrets is realising your favourite things were never used because you kept waiting for a moment that never arrived.

3. Do Less Planning and More Practising

Planning gives you a false sense of progress but practice gives you real progress and no amount of Google searching can replace the growth that comes from messy attempts.

4. Welcome Imperfection Instead of Fighting It

Your first attempts are allowed to be ugly and chaotic because what matters is that they exist and they help you grow which is far more valuable than a perfect blank page.

5. Create for Yourself First

I waited so long because I wanted everything to look good on camera even though I didn't even have an audience yet which is honestly so funny and so tragic at the same time.

If you would still start even if nobody sees it then that's the hobby or project you should begin today.

A Small Promise I Made to Myself

Now every time I buy a notebook or pen, I ask myself whether I'll use it today and if the answer is yes, I open it immediately because I refuse to let my dreams dry out like the pens I wasted.

Unused dreams rot just like unused pens and I promised myself I would never let that happen again.

If You Are Reading This, Here Is the Part You Need to Hear

Whatever your dream is whether it's journaling or filming or drawing or writing or learning something new, you need to ask yourself what you're waiting for and whether that reason is actually just fear pretending to be logic.

One day you'll look back and realise that the most painful regrets aren't the things you failed at but the things you never gave yourself permission to start.

The Truth I Wish I Learned Earlier

Perfection grows because you start not the other way around and confidence appears after action not before it and time definitely doesn't wait for you to feel ready.

The moment you choose to start is the moment your life finally opens and everything slowly begins to align again.

Your Turn to Begin

Pick one thing you've been postponing and start today even if it looks imperfect because imperfection is a beginning not a 
failure.

You don't need perfect tools or perfect conditions or perfect confidence because you only need the willingness to begin and that willingness is already inside you.