4 Tips To Outsmart DOUBT
It's pretty easy to find a million reasons why we can't accomplish our goal, go after our dream, or get a project finished. Time management is a constant battle of intention but what if it really isn't about time it's about you doubting yourself? First things first, doubt is normal. If you are the rare person that never doubts yourself please feel free to move on to our previous blog about eating chocolate chip cookies ;) For the rest of us, here are a few tricks for How to Outsmart Doubt!
1. Give it a TRY
I like the word try. In those three little letters it explains that I don't exactly know what I'm doing, maybe I've never tried this before, or maybe I'll try again. The fact is that when we set our minds to TRY something, we're moving forward with the knowledge that we might not like it, we might not be good at it, we might not choose to ever try it again.
It's amazing how much freedom there is in saying, 'I'll try it'. You aren't committing to anything long term. You aren't promising that it will come out perfectly. You are simply saying I'll give it a go.
So if you're faced with a decision and doubting your answer, or doubting yourself - decide to just try in the smallest most harmless way possible. Try out the answer. Test it, and see what you think.
2. Give yourself permission to fail
Are you doubting yourself or your idea because of the possibility that you might FAIL? Yeah, you're not alone. Success is never guaranteed, but do you know what is? You'll never know until you try!
Make the trying easier and tell yourself it's okay if this doesn't work. It's okay if it's a complete flop. It's okay if you don't get the job, or make the team, or become a New York Times best selling author. It's okay if from the outside looking in if the venture is a failure.
Failure is actually your friend. It tells you more than success ever will and when you give yourself permission to fail it takes all of the pressure off. Now, there are a few wisdom factors in this :
if your idea requires an investment of money...make sure it's okay if you fail
if your idea includes other people...make sure they are okay if the idea fails
if it involves a parachute....you are not allowed to fail
But if this involves pride? Just tell yourself, it's OK...I'm OK if I fail at this.
3. Set a timeframe
There are so many unknowns included in every decision we make that sometimes the very best thing we can do is to simply set out towards our idea or goal and give ourselves a certain amount of time. Setting a timeframe gives you parameters to measure success by. Set realistic goals to aim for in 1 week, 2 weeks, a month or 6 months.
When you're testing out new ideas, or trying out new things it isn't always cut a dry. 1 day of working out will only show you how sore your muscles can get, it won't tell you if you're in a system that will work for you. Going to 1 class won't tell you if you enjoy a certain subject, you'll probably need to dive in a little deeper. Are you testing out if you like to garden? Guess what, 1 day won't do it. You might need to commit to one summer.
Trying new things feels awkward at first. Think about your bike. What if after trying to ride it for 1 day you gave up and said I'm no good at this. That'd be crazy! So give yourself that same grace to try things out for longer periods of time. Are you enjoying them more or less now, are you getting better or still not really that great. You might have thought you found the perfect place for you to volunteer or work, and 6 months in you realize you're better suited for something else.
So, give yourself the timeframe so you can make a true evaluation of how you felt at the beginning compared to how you feel now.
4. You can choose later
When we're launching into big unknowns, doubt is allowed. I think doubt is a form of wisdom. It helps us question our motives, our intentions, and our abilities. But doubt left untended can cause you to freeze and not make any decisions either way.
Instead of allowing doubt to stop you from moving in any direction, tell yourself that you don't have to know right now. Give yourself permission to make a decision later! Tell yourself that after you try out your idea for 2 weeks you'll decide. Maybe all you'll decide at that time is that you need more time.
Maybe you need to test out your idea for a few months before you decide to go all in. Maybe you need to try a couple different methods before you choose which one works best for you. Maybe you need to fall down and scrape your knees a couple times before you decide to invest in knee pads.
When we set off into big endeavors or investments it is good to look at all angles, all questions, all possibilities. If we make a decision before we've done our due diligence we'll be short changing ourself on what could be.
So give yourself a pep talk. Commit to trying, testing, and deciding later!
