If you really want to live your one wild and precious life, you have to be bold enough to overcome fear. If you don’t, you’ll never know your strength or your capabilities.
You’ll never actually appreciate and enjoy your life.
When you have a fear of intimacy, success, failure, change or the future, you’re missing out. Only when you face your fears do you discover your purpose, how far you can go, or what you can achieve.
If you want to know your own strength, be willing to make the changes in your life that will turn everything around.
I know you can do this because I did, and you’re no different than me.
Here are some of the things I’ve faced in my past that have shaped the person I am today:
I grew up with nine siblings. I had to fight to get my needs met. My family owned an 88-acre produce farm. My siblings and I spent our childhood working in the fields or at The Farmer’s Market.
I graduated from high school, married and got pregnant.
I was mom to four girls by the time I was 22. My third pregnancy was twins.
I quit smoking, became a vegetarian, and began running.
We took parenting classes and began working on our marriage with a therapist.
I went to college part-time while raising the girls. It took just over nine years to graduate.
I went to graduate school and got a master’s degree in counseling psychology. At the same time, the twins graduated high school.
I worked at a treatment center for two years before I started a private practice.
I wrote my first book and began speaking professionally.
We moved to Arizona, I started The Bold Life, and began helping others to fear less.
I’ve recently started eating a dairy-and gluten-free diet.
I’m still married.
That’s the short story of my life.
The long hours I worked on the family farm throughout my childhood turned out to be a blessing. I knew discipline, hard work and how to sell a truckload of produce in one day. I knew the rewards, as well. I applied those skills to everything.
My courage came from faith, perseverance and a commitment to something larger than myself, my family and our future.
I dug a big hole for myself at a very young age. The odds were stacked against our young family. But my motivation to succeed was stronger than my fear. And succeed I did.
What do you want to do with what poet Mary Oliver calls your one wild and precious life?
What is the mark you want to leave on the world?
Don’t allow doubt and fear to erode your courage. Take your life in your own hands and make it uncommon, adventurous and meaningful. Be willing to start where you are, with what you have.
Question your biggest fears.
Gain clarity about your biggest fear by writing down your answers to the following questions:
· How does this fear keep me stuck?
· How has this fear helped me in the past? How does it serve me today?
· What is the payoff for overcoming this fear?
When you disarm your fear, you’ll increase your sense of worthiness and self-confidence. Don’t allow your fear to go viral and control your life!
My biggest fear?
Not having enough money for retirement. My answer to the first question, “How does this fear keep me stuck?” I fear taking risks around money. I talked my husband out of purchasing a small business last year. Later, we both regretted it. Of course someone else purchased it by then.
My answer to the second question was that we both continue to work long hours both in the past and even now. We don’t have any plans to retire and I really do think that’s a good thing.
My answer to the third question is that we’ve both decided that we are ready to take the risk and buy a small business when another opportunity comes up.
When you answer these questions, you begin the process of overcoming your fear. It’s the movers, shakers and risk takers that will succeed in making their dreams come true.
Get in the arena.
Make a plan and then work your plan. You have to step out of your comfort zone, but the reward is growing your courage muscles each time that you do! You’ll learn how to be comfortable with difficulty, uncertainty and some amount of pain.
Don’t let that scare you. You don’t have to move fast or take big leaps. Just figure out what you’re afraid of, question your fear and discover the payoff for moving forward in spite of it.
Go ahead – show others how courageous you can be. Let them see your bold!
Please help me share the wisdom and love on your favorite social network.
Just $10/month!
Please join us! We’re building our courage muscles and would love to have you!
Love,
Tess
