Five frogs on a log

Do you remember the old nursery rhyme about five frogs who are sitting on a log?  There is an old riddle about five frogs too.  I've seen the riddle with various numbers of frogs (sometimes 3 frogs, sometimes 6 frogs) - it really doesn't matter too much.  The riddle goes like this:

Five frogs are sitting on a log.  Four decide to jump off.  How many are left?

What's the answer?  If you answered one, you are in great company.  But unfortunately, that's not the answer!  The answer is actually five.  There's a difference between "deciding" and "doing" - the frogs may have decided to jump off the log, but they haven't yet actually jumped off.

Okay, I know.  You are all probably rolling your eyes right now.  But the very subtle difference - some would use the phrase "we're splitting hairs here" - is actually quite important.  There is a very important difference between deciding and doing.  

The American politician Frank Clark once said, "What great accomplishments we'd have in the world if everybody had done what they intended to do."  There is a related concept, called the Law of Diminishing Intent that says, "The longer you wait to do something, the greater the odds that you will never actually do it."  

Procrastination is one of the most common derailers to success.  Getting started is one of the most difficult things for all of us to do, whether it's a personal goal or a professional one.  We have to overcome a lot of inertia to get started on a project or task, and the easier option is often to just delay or procrastinate.  

Carpe diem or Just Do It - whatever motivates you to get started, the important thing is to get started.  There's an important difference between deciding and doing.  Sometimes, we just need to get started doing.