„You don't have to be good. You don't have to be ready. You don't have to know exactly what you're doing. You just have to start”

A little while ago, I was lying in bed, unable to sleep because I felt overwhelmed by everything I have to do, everything I want to do, and everything I feel like I should already be doing as a girl in her twenties. 
I guess spending too much time watching self-improvement videos on TikTok didn't exactly help. Instead of feeling motivated, I somehow ended up spiraling even more.
So there I was, staring at the ceiling in the dark, thinking about how little I had achieved, how far behind I felt, and how everyone else seemed to be moving through life so much faster than me.

Eventually, I picked up my phone again.Yes, I know. Not ideal. But instead of opening the apps that had made me spiral in the first place, I went to my online safe space (well, right behind this blog, obviously ;)) Pinterest.
I scrolled through outfit inspiration, jewellery combinations, dream vacation destinations, and photos of apartments that I definitely cannot afford right now. Then I stumbled across a quote that immediately made me stop scrolling:

"Finish last" will always be better than "did not finish" and will always trump "did not start."

For some reason, that simple sentence put everything into perspective.

I've always had huge respect for anyone who runs a marathon. Of course, it's incredibly impressive when someone finishes all 42 kilometres in a time they're proud of. But I've always admired another group of runners just as much—maybe even more.
The ones who have to fight for every single step.The ones who cross the finish line walking, limping, exhausted, and maybe even accompanied by the sweeper car.
But they finish. They started. They probably doubted themselves somewhere around kilometre twenty. They probably looked around and thought everyone else was doing better than them. They probably considered quitting. And yet they kept going. And they finished. 
And at the end, something interesting happens. The person who crosses the finish line first receives a medal. But so does the person who crosses it last. The medal isn't handed out only to the fastest runners, the most talented athletes, or the people who made it look effortless. It's given to everyone who started, kept going when it got hard, and finished. In fact, I would argue that some of the loudest cheers of the entire day are reserved for the final runners crossing the finish line. By then, most spectators know exactly how much determination it took to get there. People clap, shout, ring bells, and celebrate them just as enthusiastically as the runners at the front of the race. Not because they were the fastest. Because they didn't give up. Because they finished.

 

Honestly, those thoughts sound familiar to me. 
I have them whenever I join a new group of people and everyone seems more outgoing, more interesting, and somehow effortlessly confident.
I have them when I try a new hobby and everyone else seems to understand it immediately while I'm still figuring out the basics. When I first started playing tennis, it felt like everyone else's shots landed perfectly while every ball I hit ended up caught by the net.
And I definitely have them when I publish a new blog post. Sometimes I imagine people reading my writing and thinking it's not good enough. I imagine other people being better writers, better designers, better website editors, and generally more qualified to do what I'm trying to do.

But then I think back to that quote: At least I started.
The funny thing is that people who are genuinely good at something never laugh at beginners. They remember exactly what it felt like to be one. They remember the awkward first attempts. The mistakes. The failures. The uncertainty.
The people who judge from the sidelines are often the ones who never started in the first place. And that's the important difference. Not talent. Not confidence. Not perfection. Starting.

This blog is actually one of those things for me. When I published my first post, I was convinced hardly anyone would care. Now, every post feels a little less scary than the one before.

So if there's something you've been wanting to do—whether it's starting a blog, joining a sports club, learning a language, applying for a job, or trying something completely outside your comfort zone—do it badly first.
You don't have to be good. You don't have to be ready. You don't have to know exactly what you're doing. You just have to start.
Because finishing last will always beat not finishing. And not finishing will always beat never starting at all.