"Start before the perfect moment arrives Many people wait to pursue a goal until conditions are ideal — the kids are grown, caregiving duties end, the right time materializes — but Shankar is direct: "No action is too small. You can start right now. You do not need to wait until the kids leave the nest. You do not need to wait until you are no longer a caregiver." The logic is that waiting for perfect conditions is itself a choice that locks in the expected self you were hoping to escape. Even a single tiny action — signing up for a class, writing one paragraph, making one phone call — closes the gap between the person you are and the person you are trying to become, and does so without requiring any change in external circumstances. Source: Maya Shankar, The Mel Robbins Podcast, Life Takes a Turn"