7th February 2026
This is a famous quote attributed to Martin Luther King Jr., meaning you don’t need to have the entire plan figured out to start working towards a big goal; focus on the immediate, manageable first action, and subsequent steps will become clearer as you progress, overcoming overwhelm and building momentum through faith and perseverance.
It encourages courage and breaking down daunting tasks into achievable actions, trusting that progress reveals the path forward.
The start of the New Year is the time of the year when we tend to start with new strategies, plans, resolutions.
But many of these are abandoned or lost in the first month or two.
As Plato said around 2500 years ago, “The beginning is the most important part of the work.”
Why it happens is mainly because we make the goal either too easy (we’re hard-wired to want change) or too difficult (the jump is just too big)
And it’s probably this latter one – the destination is just too far and you can’t see how you can get there – that’s responsible for many failures.
The trick here is to break it down into easier steps to make it achievable – you really don’t need to see the whole staircase.
Let me illustrate with a fable.
In a quiet village, there lived a young farmer who spent his days working in the fields at the foot of a towering mountain. Every morning, as he tilled the soil, his eyes drifted upward to its peak. One thought returned again and again: One day, I will climb it. I will watch the sun rise from there.
One day, he finally decided. to begin the trek after sunset so that by dawn, he could stand at the summit. With quiet determination, he picked up his Petromax lamp & started climbing as the light faded from the sky.
A few hours later, darkness wrapped itself tightly around the mountain. The petromax lamp glowed, but not enough. Shadows stretched. The path blurred. Doubt crept in.
Is this light enough? he wondered. Should I go back?
Confused and uneasy, he sat down on a rock, weighing risk against retreat.
That was when he noticed an old man, nearly seventy-five, walking steadily uphill. In his hand was nothing but a small chimney lamp. Its flame was faint, yet the man moved with surprising speed and confidence.
The young farmer stared, stunned. It’s pitch dark… and this old man is climbing faster than me?
He called out, “Uncle, where are you going in such darkness with that tiny lamp?”
The old man smiled without stopping.
“To the hilltop, son.”
The young man was incredulous. Here I am with a powerful lamp, confused and afraid… and he’s climbing with that?
Sensing his disbelief, the old man laughed.
“With this lamp,” he said, lifting it gently, “I can see ten steps ahead. I take those ten steps, and then I see ten more. That’s enough to reach the top by morning.”
He glanced at the young man’s brighter light and added softly,
“You can see fifty steps ahead… yet you’re sitting here doubting the light you already have.”
And with that, the old man continued upward, step by illuminated step, leaving behind a lesson glowing brighter than any lamp.
So, take that first step towards your goals now – don’t wait until you can see everything, till everything is in place & stay blessed forever.