I’ve decided that I am needing some direction with my writing, a topic to draw on. I have been really unhappy with my posts lately. They do not feed my desire to write, to tell a story, so I have decided that I am going to start opening the book Unapologetically You by Dr. Steve Maraboli in the mornings and take a statement/quote from the page I open to and write about that. I haven’t opened the book in what feels like a long time. Its been tucked under the other three books I am working on and my thoughts of opening the book each day for some inspiration or perspective change has fallen to the wayside. Well, I am picking the idea up, again. Let’s see how this goes. 🙂
” Over-analysis is a dream killer. Sometimes you can drown yourself in your own thoughts.” -Dr. Steve Maraboli; Unapologetically You, pg 106
This is something I am way too guilty of. I tend to over-think pretty much everything. I know part of why I do this is a fear of making a mistake. I want to make sure I completely understand something, how something is done, before I attempt even one step forward with it, especially when it comes to doing the work of bringing a dream to fruition. Another reason is I fear seeing the progress I’ve made toward a dream, beginning to believe I’ll actually achieve the dream I’m focused on, then having something go horribly wrong. This tends to derail me in a way little else does.
Intellectually, I understand that this sort of thing is just a set back or something I didn’t account for and all I must do is figure out how to make it through it so I can continue on the path I was on. Its sort of like reaching the boss in a video game: in order to move on with the game, you have to defeat the boss. Its not always easy, sometimes down right discouraging, but, if you stick with it, you eventually defeat the boss, opening new parts of the game for you. Unfortunately, when the challenge is a really big one, one I haven’t accounted for the possibility of, the first attack can leave me bleeding on the floor trying to decide if I should get up and try again or run for my life. This is something I am working on changing. Progress, not perfection. Which brings me to the next quote/statement:
“Let today be the day you are no longer intimidated by the monumental size of the change you want, but instead be empowered by your ability to make that change one step at a time. ” – Dr. Steve Maraboli; Unapologetically You, pg. 108
I think I may need this one tattooed on me somewhere extremely visible so I don’t forget that I do have the ability to make the change, any change, if I approach it the way it should be, “one step at a time,” instead of overwhelming myself, intimidating myself, by only seeing the big picture. Its so easy to focus on only the big picture because it represents what I want, dream of, long for. The rest is the work and that can be riddled with challenges of the heart, mind, emotions, self-worth, self-belief, and self-esteem. I struggle with self-esteem in the first place, so any challenges to it can easily knock me down, if only momentarily.
Sometimes, its hard to make it past those knocked down moments. Most times, I need to feel the feelings of defeat before I can get myself back up, again, and push myself back onto the road that will lead me in the direction I want to go. Maybe I have to re-route myself down a different way toward what I want.
Just because things aren’t going the way I had planned them doesn’t mean the dream or desire is unattainable. Maybe there is construction up ahead with a detour. Ok. Re-routing. If only it were that simple and unemotional of a choice to make. It should be, but I haven’t reached that part in my development, yet. Just one more road I’m working on.
Dragonfly Gypsy USA 