There is a lovely saying that goes, ‘Never regret the things you’ve done, just the things you don’t dare to do’. It gets straight to the point – our fear of stepping outside our comfort zone.
I think it is fine to be scared of trying something different. I don’t have a problem with that. My problem is more when people say, ‘Oh, that’s not for me’. Or, ‘I don’t think you should do that’. Or, ‘look at them making fools of themselves’. You’ll have your own comments as well as those you’ve heard from people around you that’ll stop you in your tracks.
For me, it is about owning my reality in that I can say to others something like, ‘ You were fantastic and it scares the living daylights out of me’, or simply ‘I would be frightened to do that so I admire you even more’.
Isn’t it better to try and fail than not try at all! You will always have that little voice in the back of your head saying, ‘maybe I could have’ or ‘why didn’t I’. Each of you will know what you truly are not prepared to try or do. You’ll know your own limits and the rest is due to your fear of looking foolish, being embarrassed, ashamed, laughed at or staying within society’s norm.
You will always feel fear when you are stretching yourselves, and you can forget about the excitement too. It is about learning to manage your feelings and to use them creatively for your growth. The feeling afterwards when you do move beyond your comfort zone, is priceless and you wonder what all the fuss you made was about.
I know in my work that many women are afraid of change and yet longing for it at the same time. This is where exhaustion can set in so it is time to choose.
If you have no reason to say ‘No’ to an invitation, a risk or anything you may be scared of trying or doing, then just say ‘Yes’ and go for it. I dare you.
Try it out and then you can truly say ‘once was enough’.
