For years, that was the case with breaking the four-minute mile. Experts believed the human body simply wasn’t built for it. The idea was dismissed as unrealistic, even dangerous. And then, on May 6th, 1954, Roger Bannister broke the four-minute barrier. What’s even more interesting is what happened next. Forty-six days later, the new “impossible” record was broken again. Nothing about the human body changed in those six weeks. What changed was belief. Once the barrier was proven to be breakable, others followed. The impossible didn’t disappear; it just lost its power.

That brings me to the quote I’ve been reflecting on as 2025 comes to an end: “It always seems impossible until it is done.” When I first decided to write my first book, it felt impossible, not because I lacked ideas, but because I had never done it before. That fear was real. There were days I opened my manuscript and stared at the screen, writing absolutely nothing. Doubt has a way of freezing you in place, and I let it do that more than once. At some point, I realized the fear wasn’t about writing a book; it was about the size of the goal. “Write a book” is overwhelming. So I stopped thinking about the book and started thinking smaller. Chapters. Then word counts. Then, the daily word counts. I focused on showing up, even when progress felt laughably small. I didn’t magically become fearless. I just learned to work alongside the fear. If you’ve listened to Episode 92 of The Books By Josh Audio Immersion, you’ve heard me talk about this shift. Breaking things down didn’t make the work easy; it made it doable. And over time, doable turned into done. I don’t have hundreds of books written, but as I write this, I have a handful. That once-impossible goal became something real simply because I kept taking small steps.

I know most people reading this aren’t trying to write a book. So how does this quote apply to everyone else? Most of us have dreams or ideas we want to pursue, but we hesitate because we’re afraid to start. I’ve been there too. I was afraid to tell people about my side projects because they felt embarrassing. Who was I to think I could be a content creator? Who was going to read my posts or listen to my voice? Those fears slowed me down far more than failure ever did. I don’t want that to happen to you. Starting something new, whether it’s a side hustle, a creative project, or a personal goal, often feels uncomfortable. That’s normal. Especially today, when we’re constantly comparing ourselves to people who are years ahead of us. The truth is, it’s okay to start something you love and try to make money from it. It’s okay to be inexperienced. Most of the time, what feels “impossible” is just fear of failing publicly. And failure is unavoidable at the beginning. I didn’t swim the first time I tried. When I learned to ride a bike, I hit a fire hydrant. That’s not failure, that’s learning. Progress comes from reps, not perfection.

Maybe your goal isn’t creative at all. Maybe you want financial freedom, and that feels just as impossible. I remember when I was younger and joined a network marketing company because the idea of passive income resonated with me. Like many people, I’d been influenced by mainstream narratives that financial independence wasn’t realistic for everyday people. I’m not financially free today, and I’m not a certified financial professional, but I’ve learned that building wealth is possible. I started small. I read finance books. I learned about investing. It was overwhelming at first, but it was also manageable. Today, my portfolio generates a bit of passive income. It’s not enough to retire on, but it’s enough to cover a couple of bills each month. I don’t even use it; I reinvest it because I want to keep building. That goal once felt impossible, too. Now it’s simply in progress.

There’s an animated film from 1986 called An American Tail, and it features a song called Never Say Never. It’s a simple message, but a powerful one. The word “never” has a way of shutting doors before we even try to open them. We’ve all heard phrases like never been done before, never going to work, " and " never going to happen. But “never” is often just another word for not yet. We were told humans would never walk on the moon, and we did. We were told we weren’t meant to fly, and we figured that out too. We were told the four-minute mile couldn’t be broken, until it was. So why should you believe your goals are impossible? We carry devices in our pockets that are exponentially more powerful than the computers used to send humans to the moon. The barriers we face today are rarely about capability; they’re about belief, consistency, and time. If something feels impossible right now, it might just be because you haven’t done it yet, and that’s okay.

A Small Invitation

If this reflection resonated with you and you enjoy thoughtful conversations about writing, creativity, personal growth, and figuring things out as we go, I explore ideas like this more deeply on my podcast, The Books By Josh Audio Immersion. No pressure, just an open invitation if you prefer listening over reading. Wherever you are right now, take the next small step. That’s how impossible things get done.