A match is a great tool for starting a fire, and a fire is something we all want burning inside us. So when we find ourselves frozen in place, whether it’s fear, doubting ourselves, or just feeling stuck, the simple solution is to get some matches. But matches alone won’t fix it.

Matches are your knowledge, skills, and beliefs. They can ignite a roaring blaze inside you. But like other tools, they’re really just taking up space in your house if you aren’t using them. Tools need to be used to be effective.

Matches need something to ignite the end before they can light a fire. There has to be action, specifically friction, to cause a spark. It takes movement and grit for your match to light your fire. It takes a bias towards action.

“The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.”

Walt Disney

I always seem to stumble when I am designing a boardgame. The ideas come fast and furious, and I have at least six different games laid out in my notebook. Rules, pieces, gameplay… everything. But I get stuck and the game only lives in my notebook. Unlit logs begging for a fire.

I need to strike my match with some action. I can make myself accountable by sharing my idea with others, or scheduling a playtest date with some friends before the first prototype is built.

By making my action external, I get out of my own way and I’m more likely to follow through since others are anticipating my progress. This is the kind of friction I set up to light my matches.

How do you move from idea to action? From match to lit fire? How do you create productive friction? Let me know in the comments!