We’ve all been there. You’re sitting in a conference room, or maybe a Zoom call where half the people have their cameras off, and someone finally claps their hands and says, "Alright, let’s get this started." There is a burst of energy. People feel productive. They feel like they’re finally doing something. But honestly? Most of the time, that’s where the trouble actually begins.
Starting is easy. Starting correctly is a nightmare.
In the world of project management and entrepreneurship, we have this obsession with the "Day One" hype. We love the whiteboards and the fresh Trello boards. But according to data from the Project Management Institute (PMI), about 14% of IT projects fail completely, and of the ones that "succeed," a massive chunk still blow past their budgets or miss their deadlines. Why? Because the phrase "let’s get this started" is usually treated as a finish line for planning rather than the beginning of a messy, complex execution phase.
The Momentum Trap
You feel the rush. It's dopamine.
When you say let’s get this started, you're signaling to your brain that the hard work of "deciding" is over. This is a psychological trap. You’ve probably heard of "action bias." It’s that internal itch that makes us want to do anything rather than sit still and think. In business, this looks like coding a feature before you’ve talked to a single customer, or hiring a marketing agency before you even know what your brand voice sounds like.
I remember talking to a founder who spent $50,000 on a product launch because he was "tired of waiting." He just wanted to get it started. Three months later, he realized he was solving a problem that nobody actually had. He had momentum, sure. But he was sprinting toward a cliff.
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The most successful leaders don't just jump. They wait until the tension is almost unbearable. They verify. They poke holes. They make sure that when they finally say the magic words, the trajectory is actually aimed at a target, not just "out there."
How the Pros Actually Get This Started
If you look at how high-stakes teams—think NASA or top-tier surgical units—handle the "start," they don't just wing it. They use something called a "Pre-Mortem."
Gary Klein, a psychologist who pioneered this, suggests that before you start, you should imagine a future where the project has already failed. You sit the team down and say, "Okay, it’s a year from now. The project was a total disaster. What happened?"
Suddenly, everyone stops being a "yes man." They start pointing out the weak spots.
- "The API integration was flaky."
- "We didn't have enough budget for user acquisition."
- "The timeline was a joke."
By doing this before you let’s get this started, you’re essentially building a map of the landmines. It’s not being a pessimist. It’s being a professional. You want to identify the "unknown unknowns." Those are the things that kill companies.
The "First 15 Minutes" Rule
So, you’ve done the planning. You’re ready. Now what?
The first 15 minutes of any initiative are the most critical for setting the "vibe." If you start with a chaotic meeting where nobody knows who is in charge, that’s how the whole project will go. Period.
You need a "Single Source of Truth." Whether that’s a Notion page, a Google Doc, or a physical binder, everyone needs to be looking at the same map. If you have three different people with three different ideas of what "done" looks like, you haven't started. You've just created a localized riot.
Why We Get the Timing Wrong
Sometimes, the best way to get something started is to wait.
Look at the "First-Mover Advantage" myth. We’re told that if we don't start now, we'll lose. But look at history. Friendster started before Facebook. Ask Jeeves started before Google. The "Fast Follower" often wins because they let someone else do the expensive work of "starting" and failing first. They watch the pioneer get the arrows in their back, then they walk over the bridge the pioneer built.
It’s about "Strategic Patience."
If you're feeling pressured to say let’s get this started just because a competitor did something, stop. Breathe. Are you reacting, or are you responding? Reacting is emotional. Responding is tactical.
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The Middle-Slog Reality
Nobody talks about the Tuesday three weeks after the launch. The "new car smell" of the project has worn off. The Slack channel is quiet. This is where most people quit.
This is the "Dip," as Seth Godin calls it. To survive it, your "start" needs to include a plan for the middle. You need "Small Wins." If your only goal is a massive revenue target six months away, you will burn out. You need a win today. You need to be able to say, "Hey, we got the landing page headline right," and actually celebrate it.
Real success isn't a straight line. It’s a series of messy corrections.
Practical Steps to Start Effectively
Don't just shout into the void. If you want to actually move the needle, follow these steps.
- Define the "Kill Switch." Before you begin, decide what conditions would make you stop. If we haven't hit X users by Y date, we pivot. This prevents "Sunk Cost Fallacy" from draining your bank account.
- Audit your "Why." If you're starting because you're bored or scared, you're going to fail. You need a better reason.
- Assign a "Dissent Lead." Pick one person whose entire job is to tell you why your idea is stupid. Seriously.
- Check the "Who." Do you have the right people, or just the people who were available? There is a big difference.
- Write the "Post-Launch" FAQ. What questions will customers have? If you can't answer them now, you aren't ready to ship.
When you finally decide to let’s get this started, do it with clarity. Do it with the understanding that the first plan is probably wrong, and that’s okay. The goal isn't to be right; the goal is to be less wrong every single day until you hit the mark.
Stop overthinking the perfect moment. It doesn't exist. But stop underthinking the foundation. That is where the money is made or lost.
Identify your primary objective. Strip away everything that isn't that objective. Then, and only then, give the signal. Build the prototype. Call the client. Write the first paragraph. Just make sure you're wearing a parachute.