It can be tempting to continue to do what you’re excellent at – after all, our society generally ties excellence to value. Starting something new, unlearning old behaviors, or developing a new skill can especially be frightening because it’s likely we will not be excellent at it. But it’s easy […]
Category: fear
Leaning Into Selfishness
It’s okay to do things for selfish reasons, especially if it also helps other people out. I donated $50 towards an organization that is raising money for suicide prevention advocacy mainly because it bought me raffle entries for rare vinyl toys that I want. It might not be the most […]
The Perfect Time
We always hear about the perfect time. We fear being too early, but also fear about being too late. Whether we’re talking about when to arrive at a social gathering, when to invest in something, when we should launch something new, or whether or not to jump on a new […]
Are You Ready to RUMMMMBBBBLEEEE?
I used to think that when someone finally gave me a chance, I’d be ready to step onto the big stage. Play with the big dogs. Smash it out of the park with everyone watching. Foolishly, I’d quietly wait to be chosen, to wait until someone could see past the […]
Get Some Sleep
Life can be a lot sometimes. We all have ups and downs, and between global warming, regime changes, and a global pandemic, there’s a lot of carry. So here’s my recommendation: Go get some sleep. That’s it. Make sure you’re well rested, because we’re in life for the long haul, […]
Justification as Self Doubt
When we’re confident in our decisions, actions, or speech, we don’t need to tell ourselves that we did well. We know that everything makes sense and we don’t give it a second thought. When we over explain our decisions, actions, or speech to others, and we have that need to […]
Justification as Self Doubt
When we’re confident in our decisions, actions, or speech, we don’t need to tell ourselves that we did well. We know that everything makes sense and we don’t give it a second thought. When we over explain our decisions, actions, or speech to others, and we have that need to […]
Naming the Monster
It’s said that in old maps, when cartographers would come across uncharted territory, they would write “Here be monsters” or something to that tune, to highlight the fear of the uncertainty and the likelihood that in those days explorers would tend to meet grisly ends. While the likelihood of this […]
Impostor
When I first started coaching people, I felt like a huge impostor. This feeling didn’t go away, especially when the first question I was asked in a group coaching call was “How long have you been a coach?” and the answer was “This is my first time.” Fortunately my co-coach […]
Good Enough
When evaluating work, “Good enough” is an interesting choice, as depending on the context, it could be necessary, an insult, an easy way out, and/or compassionate. Maybe the project is over-budget and past it’s due date. Good enough lets you ship and move on. Maybe the work is under par, […]