How many times have I said these 5 little words; “I could never do that?” I have said those 5 little words more times than I care to remember. How about you? All to often, it is easier to put up fences than to risk embarrassment, easier to not even try than to risk failure.
In college a few of my closest friends became vegetarians. My response? “I could never do that”. A short time after, I took the plunge and stopped eating meat for almost 20 years.
Then a year and a half ago, I decided to do the Whole30 and thought to myself, I may need to eat meat in order to complete the 30 days. “I could never do that” was my initial reaction. Well, I now eat all kinds of meat and am enjoying the added protein, flavors and options for delicious meals.
After graduating from college, 2 of my friends took a year or so to work and then decided to go to graduate school. My response? “I could never do that”. Less than 10 years later I had received a Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy and my earning potential improved dramatically.
When the thought “I could never do that” crosses my mind; it is quite likely something I should seriously consider doing. I am beginning to learn that I have that negative thought when I am scared and my sub-conscious is tossing massive boulders in my way to prevent me from even considering making a change.
Change is scary and involves stepping outside of our comfort zone. Change demands that we get off of the couch.
It is only through change that we grow as individuals. It is only through change that we become better versions of ourselves.
It is all too easy to let fear prevent us from changing, from evolving, from growing. When I look back over my life, it is with great relief that I am not the same person I was when I graduated high school.
Don’t get me wrong, I was a good person in my younger years but I was afraid of my own shadow. I had 2 loving parents and 8 siblings. For the most part, I didn’t join groups, clubs or sports teams. I had friends but mainly my family was my social and my support system. I was uncomfortable talking to strangers, had my guard up at all times and rarely felt comfortable outside of my own home.
I cringe when I think what my life would have been like had I let fear prevent me from changing and growing and evolving. I changed a lot from age 16 to 21 but also from age 40 to 50. I hope I never stop changing!
When you hear yourself utter these 5 little words “I could never do that”; stop yourself. Take a deep breath and say something different. Try one of these!
“Let me think about that”
“I would love to try”
“Tell me more about that”
“What would it take?”
Don’t let fear get in the way of living the best life you can dream for yourself. Life is short and we only get 1 shot at it. Tear down some fences by kicking fear out of your way!
Lake Girl
