There are 3 steps to liberating yourself from your weaknesses and fears.
1️⃣ Realize what your weaknesses and fears are
2️⃣ Come to terms with them
3️⃣ Embrace them wholeheartedly
Yes, wholeheartedly. ❤️
Some might say, "well, why to embrace them rather than fight them off?"
Because: weaknesses and fears are NORMAL. We are meant to have them. Our role is to learn how to use them to propel us forward.
We will never be %1000 fearless and I would hope not. I don't want you jumping out of a plane thousands of feet in the air or reaching for a hot stove without first thinking it through really well. I don't want you making a decision that will determine your future without being really sure it's right for you.
(WATCH THE FULL YOUTUBE VIDEO HERE).
Having that bit of anxiety is healthy. It's using it to our advantage that is the trick and the goal here.
Having overcome chronic anxiety myself, there are three steps that allowed me to fully embrace my fears and weaknesses. It took me a lot of time to adopt this view of life. I needed to undergo certain experiences and used trial and error to perfect my outline of how to go about doing this in a way that wouldn't be too overwhelming for me.
Okay, so let's get to it. 👍🏻
1. Realizing and understanding what your fears are, is itself extremely liberating. Define what exactly it is that makes you nervous, holds back from doing what needs to be done and from fulfilling your dreams, and makes you want to perhaps even change your entire direction in life. There was a time when I felt so overwhelmed with my dreams and the things I would have to do to achieve them (put myself out there, risk rejection and negative feedback, etc) that I thought that perhaps it wasn't worth it and I should start looking for something easier.
NOOOO. I quickly came to the realization that I'd rather risk embarrassment doing what I dream of than staying in a safe haven (which isn't really all that safe because that turns into disappointment and resentment) and holding back from my true mission.
Make it very clear and understandable for yourself what these things are.
Write them down.
When starting something, go over this list.
Which leads me to point two.
2. Accept that you feel this way. Yes, you are nervous people might think you're stupid or lame or a horrible singer or artist or whatever. AND THAT'S OKAY. That's not your problem. Your problem is getting over this hump and you're freakin' doing it!! So your problem is solved. You will never control others' opinions and the things people say/do. And that's not your role or responsibility. Your responsibility is to yourself.
Accept that this is the reality at the moment.
Remember, the only way you overcome fear is by doing that which you're afraid of.
The only way I got over my phobia of spiders (couldn't even look at drawings of them) was by exposing myself to them. At 11, I forced myself to go to sleepaway camp. My father, a psychiatrist who was even more desperate than (lol) for me to get over my phobia, would collect insects in empty jars and containers and leave them on our porch so I could use them for exposure therapy😂
Sooo... the best and really only thing you can do is just accept the fact that you experience these emotions and act on these dreams and goals anyway. Hell yeah💪🏼
3. Finally... give all those fears and anxiety-ridding dreams and the failures and the wins and losses that came with them A HUGE HUG. You are so many wonderful things, and it's amazing that you aren't perfect. Life would be boring if you were. People don't find true joy and pride in the things that come easily to them. These are your struggles and you're doing something about them. You are way ahead of the game. Think of all the people who took their dreams to the grave with them. Think of all those who looked back at their lives and wished they had the guts to do all the things they were too scared to do. In the end, we all die. The people whose opinions we fear will be dead. And if you screw up... no one will be alive to tell it anyway.
That's how I like to think about it: if you become super successful, then great, you did it. If not and you feel embarrassed about it, don't worry because no one will remember you anyway right? Either way, you'll be okay. But you'd sure as hell rather take the chance and know you at least tried.
