175: What’s Holding You Back from Starting?

If you keep telling yourself you want to start a side hustle, but weeks keep passing with no real movement, there’s a reason. And it’s not a lack of ideas, time, or talent. It’s the silent mindset traps that play out in the background and quietly keep you stuck at the starting line.

After interviewing more than 170 side hustle heroes, I’ve heard the same patterns again and again. Today we break down 7 of the most common thinking mistakes that stop people from ever getting traction:

• Waiting to feel ready
• Overlearning instead of acting
• Staying busy with low-impact tasks
• Underestimating the value of your skills
• Comparing your Day 1 to someone else’s Year 5
• Believing confidence must come first
• Falling into the all-or-nothing time trap

You’ll learn how each one shows up, how to spot it in yourself, and what small, practical shift gets you moving. By the end of this episode, you’ll know exactly which mindset has been holding you back, and the next step that will move your side hustle forward today.

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Need a little (and sometimes big) push to start and stay focused to grow your side hustle? Dive into my online Masterclass: How To Turn Your Thoughts Into Wanted Things.

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What’s Holding You Back from Starting Your Side Hustle?

If you have been telling yourself that you want to start a side hustle but another week goes by with no real progress, there is a reason. And it is not a lack of ideas, money, or time. What is really holding you back is happening in the background of your mind: the small, quiet thoughts that feel true but are not. These mindset traps are easy to miss, and they stop even the most capable people from getting started.

After discussions with well over 170 side hustle heroes, I have seen the same seven patterns again and again. When you understand how these mindset traps work, you can recognize them in yourself, shift them, and finally get moving on the business you keep saying you want to start.

1. Waiting to Feel Ready

Most people believe they will start once they feel ready. But readiness does not appear out of nowhere. It shows up only after you begin.

Think back to learning to drive. At first, everything took conscious effort. Years later, you jump in the car and go. Action creates confidence. It never works the other way around.

If this mindset is holding you back, talk to someone who is already doing what you want to do. Ask questions. Choose a launch date. Then honour that commitment with one small step.

2. Overlearning Instead of Starting

This is what my guest Miriam Schulman called procrast-a-learning. Instead of taking action, you research, take more courses, and watch one more tutorial. Learning feels productive, but it keeps you safely on the sidelines.

Ask yourself: What action am I avoiding? That task, not the next webinar, is what will move your side hustle forward.

For the next seven days, trade thirty minutes of learning for thirty minutes of doing. That single shift can create real momentum.

3. Confusing Motion with Progress

Here is a trap that keeps many people stuck at the starting line. You stay busy choosing color palettes, reorganizing folders, tweaking your website footer, or scrolling for ideas. It feels productive, but none of it gets you closer to earning revenue.

Real progress comes from talking to customers, making offers, and testing ideas. Before you work on your side hustle, ask yourself this question: What is the single action I could take today that would move me closer to earning income?

Do that first.

4. Underestimating the Value of Your Existing Skills

Most people undervalue what comes naturally to them. Because your skills feel normal to you, you assume everyone else can do what you do. They cannot.

Many of the people I have interviewed started by helping friends or co-workers with things they never considered special: organizing photos, bookkeeping, writing, teaching, problem solving. What feels easy to you can feel overwhelming to someone else. That is where your opportunity is.

Look at what people consistently come to you for. That is your clue.

5. Comparing Your Day 1 to Someone Else’s Year 5

You see someone online whose branding looks polished, their systems run smoothly, and they are earning consistent revenue. Then you feel discouraged because your beginning looks messy. Everyone’s beginning looks messy.

I once did an international speaking gig early in my career and was frustrated that I did not deliver like my mentor, Bob Proctor, who had been presenting for 30 years. He reminded me that I was comparing six months to three decades. Duh. So glad he called me out on that. 

Compare backward, to your own progress. That is the metric that matters.

6. Believing You Need Confidence Before Action

Confidence is not a prerequisite. It is a result. You gain confidence by taking action, not by waiting for courage to appear.

Every person I have interviewed who created a successful side venture started with uncertainty. Confidence arrived later after they acted, stumbled, adjusted, and kept going.

Every small action you take strengthens the foundation of your self-belief.

7. The All or Nothing Time Trap

You think you need a free Saturday or a long stretch of uninterrupted time to make progress. But those perfect blocks rarely appear.

Side hustles are built in micro moments. Twenty minutes before work. Fifteen minutes after dinner. Half an hour during lunch. Consistency always beats intensity.

Once you stay connected to your idea daily, you stop losing momentum.

What Is Holding You Back?

If you recognized yourself in any of these mindset traps, that is a good sign. Awareness is the turning point. You do not need to fix everything. Pick one shift from this list and take a single small action today.

Not someday. Not this weekend. Today.

That is how side hustles begin.

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