Starting is often the most difficult part of any important task.
Once you begin, momentum usually carries you forward. But before starting, your brain imagines effort, failure, and uncertainty all at once.
That mental load makes the task feel heavier than it actually is.
This is why people delay emails, projects, or decisions they already know how to handle. The discomfort comes before action — not during it.
Your brain is trying to predict outcomes before it has information. To reduce discomfort, it postpones the start.
Ironically, this delay increases anxiety, which makes starting feel even harder the next time.
Understanding this explains why productivity advice that focuses only on “discipline” rarely works.
If you notice this pattern repeating, it’s a sign of the same avoidance loop explained in this deeper breakdown of why you avoid important tasks, where pressure and prediction collide.