Alright this is going to be short but sweet. You want the real recipe for breaking through your BS barriers? Here it is it's really simple:
- MAKE A TOUGH BUT SMART DECISION
- SHOW UP
- SHOW UP
- SHOW UP
It is seriously that simple. Not that EASY, but that simple. There's no magic, it's called perseverance. Here's some examples of when I made a tough decision that I knew was right, then just showed up, with great results.
Fighting for sanity -
I lost my mind in Los Angeles pursuing a career in sound recording. More on that story here . I was to the point where a caffeinated soda would give my mind enough stimulus to send me into a full tail spin of panic. I wasn't sure I wanted to live anymore, it was no life anyway, it was torture. I knew I had mental shit to deal with and I knew I had to get some counseling, so I did. Even though it was painful and felt like really slow results I kept showing up. Week after week after week. Marched my sorry depressed anxious ass into the therapists office and got to work. I ended up conquering my demons and making a pretty nice career out of them. More on that here. The point is I knew there was work to do and I just did it. For that matter I kept doing it and doing it and doing it. I still see a counselor monthly to this day. My life, my mental state, and my relationships are very healthy because I kept showing up.
Breaking out of my comfort zone -
I use to be very scared to speak in public, or speak in large groups. I had a lot of limiting beliefs about myself (bullshit stories I made up about myself). I had a friend recommend a training for breaking out of your comfort zone and he said it was a 4 day intensive, and the first two days I would likely want to leave. Yes, it would suck that bad. He said I would have to do some of the most uncomfortable things I'd ever do but by the end it would be worth it. I trusted him and went. I didn't think about what I could handle or what I would do or if it was for me, I just SHOWED UP. That's all I had to do. Worst case I fail right? So fucking what. I SMASHED my fears in that training and when I got back I was comfortable speaking in front of groups. WOW. Isn't that amazing!? I may have been comfortable but I wasn't good yet. lol That brings me to my next example.
ToastMasters aka Speaking in front of people weekly -
This is a perfect example of the "show up" principle. So when I got back from the crazy comfort zone training I knew I had to maintain the comfort and improve my skills. I was familiar with ToastMasters from stories I had heard. Here's what ToastMasters is, it's simple. Every week you show up with about 20 others and speak in front of them. This is how I was going to get better fast. It didn't sound fun, and it didn't seem easy but I knew I had to go. So I joined and I just kept showing up. Week after week after week, until it was no longer scary, and my skills were much improved. No more "ums, and uhs" , no more staring at the ground, no more awkward introductions. It was getting so much easier. All I had to do was SHOW UP.
To wrap this up. Is there something you want to accomplish that is scary or seems too big to take on right now? Is there some habit or practice you could begin that is a little painful but would get you where you want to go eventually? MAKE THAT COMMITMENT, then just show up. Show up when it's boring, show up when it's hopeless, show up when it seems pointless. Just keep SHOWING UP.
Making a smart but tough decision and then just showing up no matter what is so powerful.
