WEBVTT
00:00:00.719 --> 00:00:03.120
There's a version of you that you've been building toward.
00:00:03.680 --> 00:00:04.480
You know the one.
00:00:04.639 --> 00:00:08.560
It's the one more settled, more certain, or more ready.
00:00:08.800 --> 00:00:20.800
And for many of you listening, you feel like you're chasing this version day by day because somewhere along the way, you decided that person had to show up before you could really start moving.
00:00:21.039 --> 00:00:26.079
Hi, this is Jordana, CEO of the Recon Network and host of the In Brief podcast.
00:00:26.239 --> 00:00:28.480
And today we're talking about readiness.
00:00:28.640 --> 00:00:37.600
Specifically, the way that waiting to feel ready has become a holding pattern that's keeping a lot of you in transition completely stuck.
00:00:40.159 --> 00:00:41.280
This is in brief.
00:00:41.520 --> 00:00:42.799
Let's get to it.
00:00:55.280 --> 00:01:00.240
This waiting on the right time, right place to become who you feel you need to become.
00:01:00.399 --> 00:01:03.439
It feels responsible or more like self-awareness.
00:01:03.679 --> 00:01:12.400
Maybe you're not in the job search or looking to level up in your career, but you tell yourself you're not ready to apply because you need a little bit more experience first.
00:01:12.719 --> 00:01:19.120
Or you know you've got a great idea, but you're not ready to start the business because you don't have the full picture yet.
00:01:19.359 --> 00:01:26.239
Wherever you are, you're not ready to commit to a direction because you haven't figured yourself out completely.
00:01:26.560 --> 00:01:29.200
And all of that, on the surface, sounds reasonable.
00:01:29.359 --> 00:01:33.680
It sounds like someone who's being thoughtful, stepping carefully as they move forward.
00:01:33.920 --> 00:01:39.040
But underneath it, if you're honest, there may be something else, fear.
00:01:39.439 --> 00:01:44.079
And the weighting, for whatever reason you stick to it, is protecting you from it.
00:01:44.319 --> 00:01:54.560
So while the weight itself isn't necessarily a bad thing, the myth that one day you will be fully ready to make this huge shift that you're considering, it's not doing you any favors.
00:01:54.959 --> 00:01:57.200
See, the readiness myth works like this.
00:01:57.439 --> 00:02:01.840
You assume that there's a future version of yourself who has the confidence you currently lack.
00:02:02.079 --> 00:02:10.960
They have processed everything you're still working through, and they have the clarity, the credentials, and the certainty that would make this big start feel safer.
00:02:11.120 --> 00:02:14.000
And you're just waiting for that person to arrive.
00:02:14.319 --> 00:02:17.120
But there's a massive problem with that way of thinking.
00:02:17.360 --> 00:02:19.680
That version of you isn't coming first.
00:02:20.000 --> 00:02:26.400
That version of you is built by doing the thing, not by waiting to feel ready to do it.
00:02:26.719 --> 00:02:33.360
And this is where your nervous system comes back into play because readiness isn't just a mindset, it's a felt sense.
00:02:33.520 --> 00:02:37.599
Your system is scanning constantly for signals that it's safe to move.
00:02:37.680 --> 00:02:41.840
And when you're in the middle of transition, those signals can be hard to find.
00:02:42.080 --> 00:02:45.120
Everything feels uncertain and the future is unclear.
00:02:45.280 --> 00:02:49.360
Those identity markers that used to tell you who you were and where you stood are gone.
00:02:49.599 --> 00:02:51.840
So your system says, no, no, not yet.
00:02:52.080 --> 00:02:53.919
Wait until it's a little bit safer.
00:02:54.080 --> 00:02:55.520
Wait until you know more.
00:02:55.759 --> 00:02:57.360
Wait until you're sure.
00:02:57.599 --> 00:03:00.400
And that response isn't irrational in and of itself.
00:03:00.479 --> 00:03:01.520
It's protective.
00:03:01.759 --> 00:03:05.439
Your system is doing exactly what it's designed to do.
00:03:05.759 --> 00:03:09.759
But it's also working against you in terms of progress.
00:03:09.919 --> 00:03:14.719
And that's because the safety that you're waiting for isn't coming from the outside.
00:03:14.960 --> 00:03:24.479
It can only come from accumulating the evidence that you can handle what's in front of you now, in 10 days, and in 10 years.
00:03:24.719 --> 00:03:28.560
That evidence doesn't just show up like a bus on a transit line.
00:03:28.800 --> 00:03:32.879
The only way to get there is to actually start moving forward.
00:03:33.439 --> 00:03:38.159
The version of you that feels ready isn't somewhere ahead of you waiting on you to get there.
00:03:38.240 --> 00:03:42.080
They're being built right now in your day-to-day doing.
00:03:42.319 --> 00:03:47.199
Every time you take a step before you're certain that's solid, you're constructing that person.
00:03:47.360 --> 00:03:52.000
Every time you move before the fear eases, you're proving that you can handle the unknown.
00:03:52.240 --> 00:03:57.520
And that evidence is what eventually quiets the part of you that's been telling you to wait.
00:03:57.759 --> 00:03:59.520
And no, it's not easy.
00:03:59.759 --> 00:04:05.439
Transition is a genuinely disorienting time, especially the military transition.
00:04:05.599 --> 00:04:09.360
You lost a structure that told you exactly what to do and when to do it.
00:04:09.520 --> 00:04:14.479
And in the absence of that structure, the bar for readiness gets set impossibly high.
00:04:14.639 --> 00:04:22.079
And without external cues telling you that you're prepared, you rely on internal ones, which aren't always reliable narrators.
00:04:22.720 --> 00:04:33.360
But just think about the things you've already done that you weren't ready for, a deployment you didn't feel prepared for, or a leadership role you stepped into before you felt qualified.
00:04:33.600 --> 00:04:36.240
You weren't ready for those either, but you did them anyway.
00:04:36.399 --> 00:04:42.399
And at some point, not before the doing, but after, you became the person who had done them.
00:04:42.639 --> 00:04:45.759
That's how it worked then, and that's how it works now.
00:04:46.160 --> 00:04:49.519
So what's actually keeping you stuck isn't the absence of readiness.
00:04:49.680 --> 00:04:55.920
It's the belief that readiness is a prerequisite, or that you have to feel it before you're allowed to act.
00:04:56.160 --> 00:04:59.759
And that belief can do more damage than uncertainty ever could.
00:05:00.079 --> 00:05:03.680
The bigger issue to consider is that waiting has a cost.
00:05:03.920 --> 00:05:05.040
It's not neutral.
00:05:05.199 --> 00:05:13.360
And every month that you spend waiting to feel ready is a month that you're not building the skills that would actually make you ready.
00:05:13.519 --> 00:05:16.720
You're not gaining the experience that would settle your nervous system.
00:05:16.879 --> 00:05:21.040
You're not creating the evidence that would replace doubt with confidence.
00:05:21.279 --> 00:05:31.920
So while waiting feels like preservation, it's actually the riskiest move available to you because the gap between where you are and where you want to be doesn't close on its own.
00:05:32.160 --> 00:05:34.240
So here's a practical question.
00:05:34.480 --> 00:05:39.279
What would you do right now if you decided that feeling ready wasn't the bar?
00:05:39.600 --> 00:05:44.480
Notice I didn't say that fearlessness is what you need or having no doubt.
00:05:44.639 --> 00:05:50.480
But what if you just accepted that you're probably not going to feel ready and you moved anyway?
00:05:50.720 --> 00:05:53.040
What's the first thing that would change?
00:05:53.439 --> 00:05:56.720
For most people in transition, the answer is already there.
00:05:56.959 --> 00:05:58.560
They know what the next step is.
00:05:58.720 --> 00:05:59.680
They've known for a while.
00:05:59.759 --> 00:06:03.439
They're just waiting for something internal to shift before they take it.
00:06:03.680 --> 00:06:05.439
So here's what I want you to try.
00:06:05.680 --> 00:06:12.720
Pick one thing, one specific thing that you've been waiting to feel ready for, and go ahead and jump.
00:06:12.879 --> 00:06:15.600
Take one concrete step toward it this week.
00:06:15.759 --> 00:06:18.639
Not the whole thing and not a commitment that you can't walk back.
00:06:18.800 --> 00:06:22.480
Just one step that's real and moves you forward.
00:06:22.720 --> 00:06:26.000
And then notice what happens in your system when you do that.
00:06:26.240 --> 00:06:34.000
Because more often than not, the action creates the clarity and the doing settles what the waiting never could.
00:06:38.319 --> 00:06:43.759
Leaving the military can feel chaotic, especially when you feel you should have a plan right away.
00:06:43.920 --> 00:06:47.040
But not knowing what's next doesn't mean you're failing.
00:06:47.199 --> 00:06:48.959
It means you're in transition.
00:06:49.199 --> 00:07:05.519
At the Recon Network, we help veterans and military spouses navigate transition by focusing on stability, direction, and alignment before outcomes are expected, so you can map your future without rushing the wrong move or spending years building a life out of sync with your purpose.
00:07:05.759 --> 00:07:07.759
Don't rush your next step.
00:07:07.920 --> 00:07:10.639
Navigate it with intention with Recon.
00:07:11.040 --> 00:07:15.360
Learn more about our programs and services at recon.vet.
00:00:00.719 --> 00:00:03.120
There's a version of you that you've been building toward.
00:00:03.680 --> 00:00:04.480
You know the one.
00:00:04.639 --> 00:00:08.560
It's the one more settled, more certain, or more ready.
00:00:08.800 --> 00:00:20.800
And for many of you listening, you feel like you're chasing this version day by day because somewhere along the way, you decided that person had to show up before you could really start moving.
00:00:21.039 --> 00:00:26.079
Hi, this is Jordana, CEO of the Recon Network and host of the In Brief podcast.
00:00:26.239 --> 00:00:28.480
And today we're talking about readiness.
00:00:28.640 --> 00:00:37.600
Specifically, the way that waiting to feel ready has become a holding pattern that's keeping a lot of you in transition completely stuck.
00:00:40.159 --> 00:00:41.280
This is in brief.
00:00:41.520 --> 00:00:42.799
Let's get to it.
00:00:55.280 --> 00:01:00.240
This waiting on the right time, right place to become who you feel you need to become.
00:01:00.399 --> 00:01:03.439
It feels responsible or more like self-awareness.
00:01:03.679 --> 00:01:12.400
Maybe you're not in the job search or looking to level up in your career, but you tell yourself you're not ready to apply because you need a little bit more experience first.
00:01:12.719 --> 00:01:19.120
Or you know you've got a great idea, but you're not ready to start the business because you don't have the full picture yet.
00:01:19.359 --> 00:01:26.239
Wherever you are, you're not ready to commit to a direction because you haven't figured yourself out completely.
00:01:26.560 --> 00:01:29.200
And all of that, on the surface, sounds reasonable.
00:01:29.359 --> 00:01:33.680
It sounds like someone who's being thoughtful, stepping carefully as they move forward.
00:01:33.920 --> 00:01:39.040
But underneath it, if you're honest, there may be something else, fear.
00:01:39.439 --> 00:01:44.079
And the weighting, for whatever reason you stick to it, is protecting you from it.
00:01:44.319 --> 00:01:54.560
So while the weight itself isn't necessarily a bad thing, the myth that one day you will be fully ready to make this huge shift that you're considering, it's not doing you any favors.
00:01:54.959 --> 00:01:57.200
See, the readiness myth works like this.
00:01:57.439 --> 00:02:01.840
You assume that there's a future version of yourself who has the confidence you currently lack.
00:02:02.079 --> 00:02:10.960
They have processed everything you're still working through, and they have the clarity, the credentials, and the certainty that would make this big start feel safer.
00:02:11.120 --> 00:02:14.000
And you're just waiting for that person to arrive.
00:02:14.319 --> 00:02:17.120
But there's a massive problem with that way of thinking.
00:02:17.360 --> 00:02:19.680
That version of you isn't coming first.
00:02:20.000 --> 00:02:26.400
That version of you is built by doing the thing, not by waiting to feel ready to do it.
00:02:26.719 --> 00:02:33.360
And this is where your nervous system comes back into play because readiness isn't just a mindset, it's a felt sense.
00:02:33.520 --> 00:02:37.599
Your system is scanning constantly for signals that it's safe to move.
00:02:37.680 --> 00:02:41.840
And when you're in the middle of transition, those signals can be hard to find.
00:02:42.080 --> 00:02:45.120
Everything feels uncertain and the future is unclear.
00:02:45.280 --> 00:02:49.360
Those identity markers that used to tell you who you were and where you stood are gone.
00:02:49.599 --> 00:02:51.840
So your system says, no, no, not yet.
00:02:52.080 --> 00:02:53.919
Wait until it's a little bit safer.
00:02:54.080 --> 00:02:55.520
Wait until you know more.
00:02:55.759 --> 00:02:57.360
Wait until you're sure.
00:02:57.599 --> 00:03:00.400
And that response isn't irrational in and of itself.
00:03:00.479 --> 00:03:01.520
It's protective.
00:03:01.759 --> 00:03:05.439
Your system is doing exactly what it's designed to do.
00:03:05.759 --> 00:03:09.759
But it's also working against you in terms of progress.
00:03:09.919 --> 00:03:14.719
And that's because the safety that you're waiting for isn't coming from the outside.
00:03:14.960 --> 00:03:24.479
It can only come from accumulating the evidence that you can handle what's in front of you now, in 10 days, and in 10 years.
00:03:24.719 --> 00:03:28.560
That evidence doesn't just show up like a bus on a transit line.
00:03:28.800 --> 00:03:32.879
The only way to get there is to actually start moving forward.
00:03:33.439 --> 00:03:38.159
The version of you that feels ready isn't somewhere ahead of you waiting on you to get there.
00:03:38.240 --> 00:03:42.080
They're being built right now in your day-to-day doing.
00:03:42.319 --> 00:03:47.199
Every time you take a step before you're certain that's solid, you're constructing that person.
00:03:47.360 --> 00:03:52.000
Every time you move before the fear eases, you're proving that you can handle the unknown.
00:03:52.240 --> 00:03:57.520
And that evidence is what eventually quiets the part of you that's been telling you to wait.
00:03:57.759 --> 00:03:59.520
And no, it's not easy.
00:03:59.759 --> 00:04:05.439
Transition is a genuinely disorienting time, especially the military transition.
00:04:05.599 --> 00:04:09.360
You lost a structure that told you exactly what to do and when to do it.
00:04:09.520 --> 00:04:14.479
And in the absence of that structure, the bar for readiness gets set impossibly high.
00:04:14.639 --> 00:04:22.079
And without external cues telling you that you're prepared, you rely on internal ones, which aren't always reliable narrators.
00:04:22.720 --> 00:04:33.360
But just think about the things you've already done that you weren't ready for, a deployment you didn't feel prepared for, or a leadership role you stepped into before you felt qualified.
00:04:33.600 --> 00:04:36.240
You weren't ready for those either, but you did them anyway.
00:04:36.399 --> 00:04:42.399
And at some point, not before the doing, but after, you became the person who had done them.
00:04:42.639 --> 00:04:45.759
That's how it worked then, and that's how it works now.
00:04:46.160 --> 00:04:49.519
So what's actually keeping you stuck isn't the absence of readiness.
00:04:49.680 --> 00:04:55.920
It's the belief that readiness is a prerequisite, or that you have to feel it before you're allowed to act.
00:04:56.160 --> 00:04:59.759
And that belief can do more damage than uncertainty ever could.
00:05:00.079 --> 00:05:03.680
The bigger issue to consider is that waiting has a cost.
00:05:03.920 --> 00:05:05.040
It's not neutral.
00:05:05.199 --> 00:05:13.360
And every month that you spend waiting to feel ready is a month that you're not building the skills that would actually make you ready.
00:05:13.519 --> 00:05:16.720
You're not gaining the experience that would settle your nervous system.
00:05:16.879 --> 00:05:21.040
You're not creating the evidence that would replace doubt with confidence.
00:05:21.279 --> 00:05:31.920
So while waiting feels like preservation, it's actually the riskiest move available to you because the gap between where you are and where you want to be doesn't close on its own.
00:05:32.160 --> 00:05:34.240
So here's a practical question.
00:05:34.480 --> 00:05:39.279
What would you do right now if you decided that feeling ready wasn't the bar?
00:05:39.600 --> 00:05:44.480
Notice I didn't say that fearlessness is what you need or having no doubt.
00:05:44.639 --> 00:05:50.480
But what if you just accepted that you're probably not going to feel ready and you moved anyway?
00:05:50.720 --> 00:05:53.040
What's the first thing that would change?
00:05:53.439 --> 00:05:56.720
For most people in transition, the answer is already there.
00:05:56.959 --> 00:05:58.560
They know what the next step is.
00:05:58.720 --> 00:05:59.680
They've known for a while.
00:05:59.759 --> 00:06:03.439
They're just waiting for something internal to shift before they take it.
00:06:03.680 --> 00:06:05.439
So here's what I want you to try.
00:06:05.680 --> 00:06:12.720
Pick one thing, one specific thing that you've been waiting to feel ready for, and go ahead and jump.
00:06:12.879 --> 00:06:15.600
Take one concrete step toward it this week.
00:06:15.759 --> 00:06:18.639
Not the whole thing and not a commitment that you can't walk back.
00:06:18.800 --> 00:06:22.480
Just one step that's real and moves you forward.
00:06:22.720 --> 00:06:26.000
And then notice what happens in your system when you do that.
00:06:26.240 --> 00:06:34.000
Because more often than not, the action creates the clarity and the doing settles what the waiting never could.
00:06:38.319 --> 00:06:43.759
Leaving the military can feel chaotic, especially when you feel you should have a plan right away.
00:06:43.920 --> 00:06:47.040
But not knowing what's next doesn't mean you're failing.
00:06:47.199 --> 00:06:48.959
It means you're in transition.
00:06:49.199 --> 00:07:05.519
At the Recon Network, we help veterans and military spouses navigate transition by focusing on stability, direction, and alignment before outcomes are expected, so you can map your future without rushing the wrong move or spending years building a life out of sync with your purpose.
00:07:05.759 --> 00:07:07.759
Don't rush your next step.
00:07:07.920 --> 00:07:10.639
Navigate it with intention with Recon.
00:07:11.040 --> 00:07:15.360
Learn more about our programs and services at recon.vet.
