We all have a different story. No two people on this earth have the same exact shared experiences, or thoughts about them. It is just not possible. However, we all know what it is like to experience fear, to worry about what people will think of us, or to have our past threaten to dictate our future. None of us move through life completely unencumbered by something slowing us down or holding us back. And yet,
People do incredible things.
You do incredible things. You have done incredible things. You have overcome obstacles, both big and small in your life. You are a survivor. Only my fear is that you don’t realize it. So much so that there are things holding you back right now, that you believe will always hold you. Things you feel you have no power over.
That is why we are talking about these things that hold us back this month. And why I am sharing tools and lessons I’ve learned every Thursday, that may help you too. Today I share two resources that are helping me think differently about the things that have or are still holding me back—because I believe we can and will overcome.
Love
Have you ever been in the middle of doing something hard, and all you heard in your brain was “this isn’t going to work,” “I’m no good at this,” or “I am going to fail?” As I shared Monday, sometimes the biggest thing holding us back is what we know—but it can also be what we think we know. If our brain is telling us we won’t succeed, we probably won’t.
That is why I loved hearing marketing guru, Seth Godin share on this podcast, how for years he listened to cassette tapes of motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar, over and over. He explains he had to change the “tapes” playing in his head to get himself on a more motivated and hopeful path. When we’re doing something hard or even scary, it is natural for our thoughts to go to fearful places. But in these times, we have a choice to embrace them or borrow the healthy mindset of someone we can trust, until it becomes our own.
What optimistic and wise friend, speaker or podcast host can you listen to more?
What does it look like for you to change the tapes in your head?
Learn
As we’ve been talking about things that hold us back, I’ve been wanting to share a Youtube video from photographer, Sean Tucker, entitled The Things We Can’t Control. In just over fifteen minutes, Sean unpacks a lesson from the Stoics, helping us differentiate between the things in our lives we can control, the things we can influence, and the things we have no control over at all.
What most of us struggle with, as Sean explains, is that we think we have more control over things in our life than we actually do—and this gives us anxiety. In some situations it keeps us from moving forward when things don’t go as planned. And in others, it negatively effects important relationships. This is worth fifteen minutes of your time.
Do you know the difference between what you can control and what you can’t?
Lead
“I always did something I was not ready to do. I think that’s how you grow. When there’s that moment of ‘Wow, I’m not really sure I can do this,’ and you push through those moments, that’s when you have a breakthrough.”
—Marissa Mayer, former President & CEO of Yahoo
Is not feeling ready holding you back from doing something you want to do?
What does it look like for you to push through?
Are you in the midst of making a hard decision? Contemplating a big life change? If so, you may be interested in my FREE Making Changes Checklist that I give to all my email friends. Want your free copy? subscribe here.
