Courage to change your life

Dear you,

I know what it feels like, to stand at the precipice of Big Life Change, and to desire the courage to change your life . I’ve been there, before. Many times. The courage to change your life is not for the faint of heart.

I understand the swirling confusion about what to do next, the wondering if it’ll be worth the effort, the questioning if you can “really” do it.

I know what it feels like to decide to make a change, and take steps in that direction, and then to think, “Holy shit! What am I doing? Am I crazy?”

I know what it feels like, to start doing things differently and feel the responses of others–and they are judging the shit out of you, which has you start judging the shit out of yourself.

I say that “I know” because mostly, when I was in those places, I wanted to know that I wasn’t alone. I wanted someone else to say, “I know what that’s like.”

The courage to change your life starts with understanding–really understanding–that the old way of doing things isn’t working, anymore. You have to get to a place where you really own that it just doesn’t work to keep doing things, the way you have been.

So if you’re at that place, right now, knowing that things aren’t working and that it’s time to change, I salute you.

And now, I challenge you.

I challenge you to start confronting every limiting belief system and self-conception that you “can’t.”

I challenge you to start connecting with other people who will support you as you walk through all of this.

I challenge you to do just one little thing differently, starting with the one little thing that would bring you the most joy (as opposed to starting with the really hard thing that would feel like a total drag).

I challenge you to be consistent about your change.

Your life wasn’t meant to be lived from the cheap seats. Scott Berkun says, “You can’t get big dreams, at discount prices.”

The courage to change your life isn’t going to come to you, in one fell swoop, and then you’ll be ready to go.

The courage to change your life is cultivated, one piece at a time.

So ask yourself: What do you need to do, right now? What do you need to get off of the internet, and take care of, right now, so that you’re taking one tiny-big step towards shifting something? Quit pretending not to know what that thing is. You know what it is that you deeply desire for your life. Say it, out loud.

You might feel giddy and excited. You might feel sick to your stomach.

But remember this day. Remember what it felt like, to acknowledge that you know what you want, and you know what needs to be done. Remember what it feels like, to make just one move in that direction.

That’s the courage to change your life.