I absolutely love this question and it’s one I think every person should ask themselves…
What would I do if I weren’t afraid?
OR
What would I do if I had 10x the courage?
This topic is near and dear to my heart because not too long ago, I was stuck in a back and forth pros and cons war about whether or not to leave my corporate job and start this business or stick it out…
When I thought about what my life could look like and the work I’d be doing helping women achieve their dreams, I was full of energy! The spark for work I’d lost was back 10x. But then… came the fear.
What would people think? What would they say about me?
These are the same fears that held me back so many times during my life and career. The same voice that told me not to put up my hand to answer a question at school or to speak up and share my ideas in the boardroom.
Yup, my inner critic. My limiting beliefs.
It’s important to understand that this little voice in your head is trying to protect you. Its job is to keep you safe from any harm, including the perceived threat of other people’s opinions.
But here’s the problem – these ‘other people’ aren’t the ones that have to live your life. In fact, they probably aren’t spending a whole lot of time thinking about you at all!
So when you consider that other people don’t really care what you do anyways, you can dare to ask yourself really big questions like:
What would I do if I weren’t afraid of failing? If I weren’t afraid of what other people would say or think?
There were 2 big things that helped me push through this fear. The first, was acknowledging my inner critic, thanking her for trying to help and respectfully letting her know that I’ve got this.
The second was creating a life vision. As I started to really visualize my life outside of my corporate job and get specific about how I would spend my time and how I wanted to live and feel… it became more exciting and harder to resist.
And here’s the thing – some of the people in my life did end up mirroring my fears. They didn’t ‘get’ why an EVP would quit their job to become a coach.
But I’ll tell you this – I have never been happier. I have never felt more like my authentic self in any job I’ve had.
I’ll be so bold as to say,
I believe this is what I’m meant to do on this earth.
Imagine I was still working 10hr days, unhappy and too scared to follow my dream because of other people’s opinions?
If you want to explore creating a life vision, start by getting really in tune with who you are. Who you really are, as your authentic self.
From there, start to brainstorm all of the things you want in your life. Be bold. Aim high. It can be everything from relationships to career to health and wellness. Spend some time really sinking into that vision and imagine what it would feel like for it to be reality. What does your average day or week look like in this vision?
If you’re feeling excited and you want to go further, next ask yourself what the gap is between where you are today, and where you are in your vision. What big goals stand between you and your end game?
And finally, what’s the tiniest step you can take to get the ball rolling in that direction?
I’m talking BABY step…
A final thought I’d like to share with you:
I used to struggle to figure out what my ‘purpose’ in life was. Then, someone said to me,
“What if our life’s purpose is simply to show up as the most authentic version of ourselves?”
Wow. Once I leaned into that, I realized my purpose was right in front of me.
I work with my clients to create the boldest vision of their lives and help them create a plan to get there. Get in touch if you want to learn more.
Until next time friends… ✌️💜
Katy