The way to start on a journey is very  important. In practice though, you often don't have the time - before writing an essay, but you should still be concerned to get as near to the truth of the matter on your topic as possible in the circumstances. So preparations before actually searching are necessary. 
Depending on your topic or discipline, there are some preparations you can make for being able to recognise your need for more information at certain points. There are pitfalls to avoid, considerations and techniques to apply. A few of these can be mentioned in the following modules:

Analysing the topic

Preparing to search