Let’s talk about self-doubt, shall we?

My self-doubt flared up big on Monday. Like reeeeally big. I have some bold ideas about where I’d like to take myself and InnerVoice Studio over the next year or so that feel very exciting to me.

My inner saboteur, however, was like…HAAAARD. PASS. ABSOLUTELY. F&%*ING. NOT. THANKYOUANDGOODDAYMAAM.

And honestly, it’s totally ok.

I’ve learned to appreciate that the voice inside of me that says things like ‘you can’t’, or ‘what if…’, or ‘you’re not good enough’, or ‘nobody wants that’, is actually a dear sweet friend who just so genuinely and deeply loves me and wants to keep me tucked in and safe.

Of course, it doesn’t feel like that when the messages first come in. It feels like the world is compressing down and in on you and like you’re walking through mud in heavy boots.

But, when you have the right tools and skills, you can weather those hard days and keep yourself on the path.

On Monday, I deployed at least 7 different mindset skills and self-care tools just to keep myself from giving in to the negative messages and to help coax my confidence back to its rightful place. At least 4 of them, were things my self-doubt told me not to do, but history has shown me that when I do them, things work out.

So I decided to trust.

Even when my self-doubt was waaaaay high sending red alerts in every direction, I still knew that I could trust my practices, my curiosity, and my self-compassion to hold myself through the experience.

Writing that last sentence somehow reminds me of Dorothy and her slippers. If you can trust yourself enough to hold yourself through your moments of self-doubt, then you’ve had the power all along. 👠

At some point around 3:00 am on Tuesday, I thought to myself: What if instead of being afraid, I just become so f&*$ing powerful and strong that I’m impervious to everything?

And then I sighed a breath of relief because I remembered that I already am.

And so are you. <= Read that again.

You’ve literally had the power all along.

Whatever is holding you back from speaking your truth in the world…that little voice that says ‘stay small’…it’s not the boss of you. It’s just an awkward little helper that needs to be retrained for its job.

If you can learn to befriend it rather than run from it, you can open up to a whole new beautiful way of interacting with the world around you.

When you courageously and mindfully show up in this new way of being, authentic self-expression feels much safer, and communication is more productive and connecting.

The more you practice, the safer you feel, and the more intuitive and easy it becomes.

Simple? Yes. Easy? Mmmmm…I confess that it takes quite a bit of strategic effort. I can tell you from experience though, that it’s always always worth it.

I don’t have a particular punchline for all of this except to say that if your self-doubt flares up sometimes, you are totally normal, and you can start to retake command at any moment by taking a breath and getting curious about what your fear wants to tell you.

I’m sharing this message today because, experience has taught me that if I was in my big feels, then someone else probably was/is, too. If nothing else, I hope this message helps you feel less alone and maybe, just maybe, a little hopeful that you can start to make a change in how you think about fear and confidence in your own life.

I got you.

You got this.