I remember a moment that still comes to mind whenever I hear “let’s schedule a follow-up.”
We had a one-hour meeting.
At the end, we summarized what we discussed… and the summary was exactly the meeting agenda. Nothing new emerged, no decision was made, so we booked another meeting two days later.
Second meeting. Same topic. Same points.
This time, we did something different at the end. We validated that everyone understood the topic in the same way. That felt productive, so we scheduled yet another meeting two days later.
Three meetings.
Nothing changed except the dates on our calendars.
What we lacked wasn’t alignment, intelligence, or effort.
We lacked action.
This experience reminded me of a concept from Atomic Habits, where the difference between motion and action is clearly described. Motion is when we prepare, discuss, analyze, and plan. Action is when we actually do something that changes the state of things.
Motion often feels safer. It gives us the comfort of being busy without the risk of being wrong. Action, on the other hand, introduces exposure. It forces a decision, a test, or a commitment, even when the full roadmap is not yet clear.
In real work environments, especially structured ones, analysis can quietly turn into a trap. We wait for more data, more clarity, more alignment. Weeks pass, meetings multiply, and the situation remains exactly where it started. Not because people are incapable, but because no one takes the first imperfect step.
Action does not mean recklessness. It does not mean skipping thinking or preparation. It means recognizing when additional analysis no longer adds value and choosing to move anyway. A small prototype. A draft. A decision with a review checkpoint. A clear owner for the next step.
Progress often starts before certainty.
Momentum is built after movement, not before it.
If there is one takeaway from this page, it is this: when plans feel stuck, action is usually missing. And sometimes, the most valuable contribution you can make is to gently shift the conversation from “let’s discuss” to “let’s try.”
That shift, even if small, is often what unlocks everything that comes next.