Use this one line to stop overthinking your content
What if you could swap overthinking with momentum?
My dad has always told me: “You can’t steer a parked car.”
He said it whenever I got stuck — whether I was stressing about finals, debating a career move, or spiraling about what to do next with my life.
It’s one of those simple sayings that sneaks up on you. Because it’s totally true.
You can’t steer yourself — or your situation — in the right direction if you’re sitting still. No amount of planning, thinking, or perfecting gets you closer to your goal until you move.
Once you take action (even if it’s the wrong one), you suddenly have something to steer. Something to learn from. Something to build on.
And that applies perfectly to marketing.
You can’t think your way to results
I see this all the time:
You want to grow on LinkedIn… so you spend hours brainstorming post ideas and scrolling other people’s content for inspiration.
You want to monetize your newsletter… but you keep “waiting until” you have more subscribers.
You want to write a great piece… but you’re stuck staring at your blank doc, looking at other writers’ work, and spiraling into despair.
That stuff can be a valuable part of the process. But it won’t get you anywhere until you start moving.
Post the thing.
Test the ad.
Send the pitch.
Write the messy draft.
Because progress doesn’t come from planning — it comes from momentum (as sloppy and imperfect as it may be).
Action steps (aka how to start your engine)
If you’ve been stuck in planning mode, here are a few questions to get you rolling:
What’s one small action I can take this week to test something new?
(One post, one email, one pitch — that’s all it takes.)
What’s one thing I’ve been overthinking that I could just… do?
(Hint: The thing that makes you most uncomfortable is usually the one worth doing.)
What would “imperfect action” look like right now?
(Because waiting for perfection keeps the car in park.)
Take one, do it this week — and see what changes once the wheels start turning.
This article was originally shared in my embarrassing, brutally-honest newsletter: Sloppy Copy.
If you want to get totally-transparent copywriting lessons like this every week, pop in your email to join the party. 👇
