Finding motivation: Why starting is the hardest part

There are days when ideas come easily, flowing like a stream that’s been waiting to be let loose.

And then there are days when even opening the laptop feels like lifting a mountain.

The difference between those two moments has always fascinated me.

Why is it so hard to start, even when we deeply want to?

Motivation is often misunderstood as a burst of energy that comes before action. But most of the time, it’s the other way around.

We don’t act because we’re motivated — we become motivated because we act. That small shift in understanding changed a lot for me.

The science behind momentum

There’s a concept called activation energy in physics; the minimum energy required to start a reaction.

In human terms, it’s the tiny push that gets you moving. Once you begin, momentum carries you further with less effort.

The same principle applies to creativity and productivity.

You don’t need to feel ready; you just need to start small enough that your brain doesn’t resist.

• Open the editor.
• Write one sentence.
• Sketch one line.
• Run one line of code.

That’s all it takes to lower the barrier between intention and action.

Researchers call this the “progress principle”, we stay most motivated when we see small, visible progress. It’s not the size of the outcome that drives us, but the visible motion of moving forward.

Reframing motivation

For me, it helped to stop seeing motivation as a prerequisite and start seeing it as a byproduct.

Every time I’ve built something, from a small experiment to a bigger product, I didn’t start because I felt inspired. I started because I was curious.

Curiosity is a lighter, friendlier form of motivation.

It doesn’t demand that you feel ready. It just asks, “What if?”

That simple question can break the perfectionism that keeps most of us frozen at the starting line.

• What if I try this for 10 minutes?

• What if I only finish the first part?

The science supports it too: once the brain enters a state of progress, it releases dopamine, not at the end, but at the moment you begin making measurable progress.

That’s why starting feels hard, but continuing feels easier.

My tiny rule for starting

Over time, I’ve created a small rule for myself:

If something takes less than 2 minutes to start, I start it. No negotiation, no waiting for the right time.

That might mean opening the terminal, writing a title, sketching a layout, just enough to cross the mental barrier.

Most of the time, those two minutes stretch into twenty, then an hour, then flow. But even if they don’t, I’ve done the hardest part, I’ve started.

Showing up each day

When I look back at oneweek.dev, it’s a perfect example of this idea in motion.

The domain had been sitting there for months, waiting for the “right moment” to start, the perfect time that never came. I kept telling myself I’d build it once things slowed down, once I had more energy, once I figured out the structure.

But eventually, I realized that moment wasn’t coming. So I made a simple rule: one update a day. No matter how small, a paragraph, a design tweak, a tiny tool — something had to move.

It’s been 7 days now, and somehow I’m still looking forward to opening it every evening after work. Not because I have to, but because it’s become something I want to do.

That little push to show up each day changed everything, it turned inertia into momentum, and routine into joy. Maybe that’s how it works for me. Finding my rhythm through consistency, not intensity.

It might take time for all the pieces to come together, but this is how progress feels: slow, quiet, and deeply satisfying once it starts rolling.

Find your own version of that rhythm, your own gentle push. It doesn’t have to be perfect, or even planned.

Just start. The rest will meet you halfway.

The takeaway

Motivation isn’t a spark waiting to appear, it’s a flame you build by friction.

It’s the science of movement, the psychology of progress, and the quiet discipline of beginning.

Next time you catch yourself hesitating, don’t wait for the motivation to come. Lower the bar. Make the first move. Let motion take care of the rest.

That’s the science and the art of getting started.