Who Are You Not To?

Have you ever been inspired to do something? Discovered something you found enjoyable and wanted to pursue further? Found a new hobby you wanted to try out, a club sports team you wanted to join, a career path you felt called to embark on? Now tell me this, after the initial excitement wore off, did a voice creep into your head. A voice saying something along the lines of “I don’t have the time to do something for pleasure” or “sure, that worked out for that person but it would never work out for me,” or worse yet the doubtful and self-deprecating “who am I to do that thing?”

            That voice is a learned belief. It’s a voice that you have allowed to play in your head over and over again until you believed it to be true. Until the negativity became a default pattern, wired into your subconscious. The good thing about our ability to believe a negative thought, is our ability to rewire this belief. We can practice a new thought over and over again until that thought becomes our new belief. So next time the negative self-talk and limiting beliefs pop into your mind, stop them in their tracks. Replace them with a positive belief that excites you and aids you instead of harms you. Don’t let your own negativity prevent you from doing something you want to do. Train your subconscious mind to believe thoughts that propel you forward, not keep you stuck in the same place. Believe the factual information that you can, in fact, do anything you put your mind to.

            Next time you discover something you want to pursue; I propose this question: who are you not to pursue it? You have one life to live. One lifetime to get everything you want out of your time here in this body, your time here on this earth. Do not let time and opportunities be wasted just because there is a voice in your head trying to bully you, trying to make you doubt yourself. Next time your learned beliefs try to tell you that you don’t have the guts or work ethic to start your own business, tell it you’re the strongest MF in the game. Next time your beliefs tell you that you don’t have the smarts to go back to school, tell them that you’ll out work anyone around you. Next time your self-talk tries to tell you that you don’t have the time to participate in an activity that brings you joy; tell it you have time for what you choose to be a priority.

            We’ve been led to believe that we should step in line. Follow the status quo. Play it safe. Follow the path we’re on, avoid pivots. Even if it makes us unhappy. Our minds try to make us stay in the same places and do the same things because the familiar is safer than the unknown. But there is growth in the discomfort. We can achieve things beyond our wildest dreams if we only believed in ourselves. Next time your inner critic tries to tell you how dare you do that thing, tell it how dare I not.