Self doubt happens.

For a long time it clamped me down. It stuffed my creativity into a small corner of the house that I hid away only for myself. While there’s a beauty in stowing away a part of yourself, it’s not so pretty when it walks you farther from who you want to be.

The more I’ve talked to people about my own self doubt, the more I’ve realized that it happens to everybody.

Isn’t that crazy?
We think we’re not good enough because we compare ourselves to people who are also thinking they’re not good enough. What a whirlwind.

But doubt happens. A wave of uncertainty crashes and all of a sudden you are no longer mind, no longer body, no longer wise and strong and powerful. You are doubt, telling yourself, with certainty, that you are not good enough.
And that mental loop hooks into the brain and cements itself.

I’ve learned that I can’t escape doubt.
I can’t sidestep it.
Doubt will come back.
It’s like an unruly mother-in-law. Hopefully she doesn’t live with you full time, but she is going to make house visits every once in a while.

How you get through the house visits is what matters.

You handle doubt by facing it head on, not letting it fester in the shadows where it can gain control.

People either face doubt or retreat from it.
1. Retreating means you don't live the experience. This inaction leads your mind to fill the gap with worst case scenarios. I’m not good enough, I would have failed, I should keep it to myself.
When you retreat you miss out on opportunities to try, to fail, to learn.

2. When you face it, even with small cautious steps, you gather real evidence. Your nervous system learns. I survived, it wasn’t that bad, I could do a little more. Even imperfect action weakens anxiety.
You start to grow confidence diving into the unknown. No matter what, you grow.

Kobe Bryant may have said it best.
"I have self-doubt. I have insecurity. I have fear of failure. I have nights when I show up at the arena and I'm like... I don't have it. I just want to chill. We all have self-doubt. You don't deny it, but you also don't capitulate (surrender) to it. You embrace it."

Journal Prompt of The Day:
What doubt have you been retreating from?
What would it look like to face it?
What might you learn if you did?

Until next time,

Live your light.