What’s the number one barrier to you achieving your dreams?

You might say money, resources, or time. Maybe even knowledge or people.

And surely those can all be factors, but they’re certainly not the biggest hurdle you have to jump.

Whether you realize it or not, the number one barrier to you achieving your dreams is simply starting.

In our minds, the easiest part of the process, picking up the guitar, Googling ‘How to…’, or hitting the ‘post’ button, becomes the hardest thing for us to do.

This is because we know that starting means actually committing and that committing means we have to follow through, whether or not we experience success.

If you’re stuck, unable to start the journey to achieving your dreams, here are four mental shifts needed in order to make your ‘One Day’ into ‘Day One’.

#1 The Path Forward Is a Step, Not a Leap

When people quit their jobs to pursue their passions full-time, it’s often described as taking a ‘leap of faith’. This implies that you have to have the ability to jump far in order to make the decision to pursue your dreams.

Having the mindset that it takes the ability to leap in order to pursue your dreams is holding you back.

You only need to know how to take a single step forward. No leaping needed.

It may feel like you have to take really big leaps forward, like investing in the proper equipment, having two hours per day to work on your craft, or knowing the right people in the space you’re in.

In reality, the weight of commitment is what makes pursuing our dreams hard.

Dreams don’t start with a leap of faith; they start with a single vision.

In the same way, pursuing your dreams doesn’t require a leap of faith. It requires one small step forward.

#2 ‘One Day’ May Never Come

Realize that the more you push something off to ‘One Day’, the less likely it is to happen.

Know that ‘tomorrow’ rarely comes.

Every day that you willingly decide not to pursue your dreams, slowly but surely, depletes your ability to actually pursue them, until one day it is but a memory instead of a reality.

Not to mention the fact that tomorrow is literally not guaranteed.

Putting your dreams off until tomorrow takes for granted the blessing of today.

Don’t ever forget how lucky and fortunate you are to be alive in this very moment.

Do your life justice by pursuing your dreams today rather than tomorrow.

#3 Let Go of Your Dreams

Ask yourself: Do you really want to do this?

If the answer isn’t an enthusiastic yes, then it’s a no.

If the answer is no, then you need to let go.

Too many people hold on to unrealized dreams.

I get it. Even if you no longer want to pursue that dream, letting go of it feels like the death of hope, the end of what could have been.

But if you continue to hold on to the dreams that you don’t actually want, you’re unable to grab onto the dreams you do want.

So make room for your real dreams. The ones that fire you up and keep you obsessed. The ones you lie awake at night thinking about.

#4 Just Freaking Do It!

No article or book you read is ever going to replace the value of just freaking doing it.

You just have to take one step. It doesn’t matter how ‘big’ or ‘small’ that step is, just do it!

I wrote and published my first article within the span of three hours of joining Medium. There was little to no thought behind it.

I honestly didn’t even realize it was a dream of mine to write online. I was just a really sad person, looking for purpose.

I experienced freedom after hitting the ‘publish’ button. I was free to create, to write what I wanted, and to build something bigger than myself.

There is nothing more valuable than just freaking doing it.

Push through any fear you have. Push through any doubt playing through your mind.

You deserve this.

Real Talk

Going from ‘One Day’ to ‘Day One’ is more of a mental shift than anything else.

You’re going to hear a lot of chatter both internally, from yourself, and externally, from others.

Quieting the chatter and taking a single step forward is the best and most efficient way to turn ‘One Day’ into ‘Day One’.

And then continuing to take steps forward is the best and most effective way of turning your dreams into a reality.

If you’re ready to take a step towards your dreams TODAY, read a post I wrote about three things you can do TODAY to make your dreams come true:)

I believe in you. Believe in yourself, too, by turning your ‘One Day’ into ‘Day One’…today!!