I think that I have always had some pretty good ideas. I like to think of myself as a decently smart person who is capable of some great things. For a long time, I was satisficed with just having these ideas. I thought that they were enough.
“I’m still pretty young,” I thought to myself. “I have plenty of time to fully flesh out these ideas.”
But I am a little bit older now, nineteen years old to be exact. And I have now come to realize that my ideas don’t mean shit. They are one-hundred percent worthless. They mean nothing and have zero value.
I can have the best idea for an article or a cool website design. Or I can have a great idea about a risk that I could take to improve my social life. But it doesn’t mean anything unless I actually take action.
And for many years, I struggled to take action (I still do to this day and probably always will). Part of the reason was fear. In many cases, I was simply too scared to take action. Part of the reason was I just lacked discipline.
And while I still struggle with taking action, I do feel that it is something that I have gotten better at.
Here is the truth: Taking action is hard. It requires a commitment to yourself. It requires a commitment to self-improvement.
Sitting down and writing for two hours while you could be doing different things takes commitment. But in the end, the short-term discomfort is worth it because you got a step closer to where you want to be.
Waking up a couple hours early and hitting the gym in the morning takes discipline. But you don’t get any closer to reaching your fitness goals while hitting snooze on your alarm clock.
Approaching an attractive stranger and trying to spark up a conversation with them takes courage, and it is scary as hell. But once again, the short term pain is well worth it. The momentary discomfort quickly fades and turns into a sense of accomplishment.
In all of these scenarios, we realize that what we are about to do is uncomfortable. It may hurt. It may result in embarrassment or failure. But even in failure, pain, and embarrassment, we must realize that taking a step forward is never a waste of time. Maybe you didn’t get the exact result that you were hoping for, but this is okay!
You would have to be a prodigy to succeed on your first try! As soon as you recognize that there is learning on the other side of failure, you can become unbeatable. You can become immune to the fear of failure.
Higher you vs. lower you
I can almost guarantee that at some point in your life you got really excited about something. Maybe you were finally going to write that novel or start that new project. I know that in my life, I have had hundreds of moments where I thought that I was going to do something but didn’t.
For whatever reason, I just couldn’t get myself to take action.
Now, I know why.
In my moments where I am able to think of great ideas or risks that I could take, my higher self is in control. But as soon as it is time to take action, my lower self takes over. Whenever you tell yourself, “I’m too tired, I’ll do it tomorrow.” Or, “I don’t really feel like doing it today, next time I will, though.” This is your lower level self talking.
How could you forget how excited you were to get to work! You were going to work hard until you made it. You were gonna take risks and get out of your comfort zone.
With most people, their lower level self is shooting one hundred percent. They fall into self-doubt. They aren’t disciplined. They don’t commit to themselves. Because of this, they don’t ever reach their full potential.
Before vs. after
Anxiety is a real thing and it should be treated with seriousness. But, I think that too many people are coddled today when it comes to anxiety. Sure, it exists. Sure, it can suck. But the only place that anxiety really exists is inside your own mind.
Many people fail to realize this. They are unable to recognize that anxiety is just something that is made up by your own mind. That’s it. In reality, it doesn’t even exist.
In high school, I was pretty shy and socially anxious. Whenever I was required to go up and talk to the class or give a presentation, I dreaded it for days. It was something that I was constantly worried about. I could feel nervousness in the pit of my stomach every time before I went up to present some sort of project.
But as soon as I got up in front of the class and starting speaking, my nervousness vanished. And once I was done presenting my project, I felt pretty good about myself.
You see, many people let their anxiety beat them because they fail to realize the great gift that comes after doing something scary.
Before walking up and trying to start a conversation with an attractive stranger you would like to talk to, you are nervous. You might even try to convince yourself that you don’t really want to do it. You might look for ways out.
But, if you can follow through and actually overcome your fear, chances are you will feel pretty good about yourself. You will feel proud of yourself for stepping outside your comfort zone and trying something. You will be happy with yourself for taking a risk. And even if what you are trying to accomplish fails, you will still be glad that you tried.
Let me tell you, this feeling is priceless. The feeling of looking your fears in the eye and saying, “not today,” is unmatched.
So next time you think about letting anxiety or fear beat you, take a step back.
Realize that the feeling a nervousness or anxiety before doing something that scares you is a price well worth paying for the feeling that you get after.
A promise I am making to myself — and one you should make too
My only goal in life is to reach my full potential. To leave absolutely nothing on the table. To control what I can control and to control it really well. To make certain that I am able to live without significant regrets.
This isn’t an easy goal to achieve, though. If fact, it can be extremely difficult.
But, in order to live your best life, you must realize that struggle will be involved. You will have to take risks. You will need to get uncomfortable. Hard work will be a necessity.
So, with that being said, this is my promise to myself: From now on, I will not let my lower self win. I will push my comfort zone. I will take risks. I will fail, and then learn. I will work really hard. I will do everything that is in my control to become the best possible version of myself in all aspects of life.
Because at the end of the day, that is all that matters. Life isn’t a race against others. It’s a race against yourself.
So, as I make this promise to myself, I suggest that you make one too. Make a promise to yourself to become the best possible version of you.