I’m not going to tell you how amazing it is to start over or how freeing it feels do something that makes you nervous and doubt yourself. If you’re looking for that you can stop reading.
But if you’re still with me, let me ask you this:
How are you stopping yourself from moving forward?
Signing up for a barre exercise class felt like doing something for the first time for me. It wasn’t. I did barre for years, before the world stopped turning. But returning to that practice made me a beginner again. And I had all the icky feelings of not feeling like enough, doubting I could even get through a class without passing out, and fearing everyone judging me.
We hate being a beginner. Our habit brains set us up to stay stuck in the fear. Here are two things you can do to move past the fear and start again.
1. Embrace being a beginner, don’t resist it.
I don’t know about you, but I like doing things I’m good at. It’s why I don’t try new things often enough. But when your life gets shaken up, you become a beginner again.
When you embrace the change, you grow. Resist it and your life gets smaller.
Maybe it’s going back to the office or seeing an old group of friends. Maybe it’s exercise, like me.
Whatever is hard for you now will become easier over time.
You may have heard me say that once you start doing the thing that scares you, the fear fades. Let me add this: sometimes it takes a while to fade.
Wherever you are facing a new beginning or getting back to something you love in life, give yourself some grace. It’s normal to be nervous and to doubt yourself. But please, start. Action is the most effective way to eventually moving past the fear.
2. Affirm yourself, don’t doubt yourself.
One of the most common ways we doubt ourselves is to ask the wrong questions. Wrong questions are disempowering. They immediately change our subconscious thought patterns from positive to negative, or vice versa. They are powerful.
Question: Why can’t I lost weight?
Answer: Because you’re a pig.
Question: Why can’t I do things right?
Answer: Because you’re not smart!
Question: Why am I so broke?
Answer: Because you’re a loser.
Ask a bad question and you’ll get a bad answer. This is how our subconscious mind works. Because the conscious mind programs the subconscious. You can take charge.
Good questions lead to productive answers:
What are the top two things I can do to lose weight?
What is a better way to do this?
What are three things I can do to increase my cashflow?
Asking the right question is empowering.
With the right mindset you can do anything.
What are you going to do now?