Takeaways:

• A lot of our goals and dreams require us to show up authentically despite a fear of being seen.
• It feels vulnerable to be seen trying something we care about because our love is behind our care. So, it can feel like wearing your heart on your sleeve.
• When you show up with pure intentions of helping or offering value, do your best to communicate, and also trust your audience to give you the benefit of the doubt to cover any imperfections.
• There’s no shame in trying to help. When you show up with pure intentions, trust people to see that you’re trying to help. You don’t have to show up perfectly.
• Do what you can. Consider how you can take a baby step outside of your comfort zone to get closer to your goal. Start small and stretch yourself.
• Identify what you’re truly afraid of. Talk yourself through what you’re worried about, what you actually think is going to happen, and see if you can prepare for any likely outcomes.
• Work through your “what ifs”. Instead of assuming the worst, as “what if” the best possible outcome is what you get?

Takeaways:

• I want to encourage you to reframe how it can feel when you’re taking those initial steps and it doesn’t feel how you expected it to feel.

• What if you let yourself be a beginner? It’s normal to not be good at something that you’re just starting to try at. You get better by practicing, not by thinking about it.

• Most people discouraging you from doing the thing you want to do are usually projecting onto you the reasons they’ve held themselves back.

• You might be inspiring the same person who is questioning or criticizing you.

• We can’t count on the reactions of other people to convince us to keep pursuing our dreams. Remember you’re pursuing your dream. Are you really seeking the validation of others, or are you expressing something that’s on your heart.

• Focus on what you can control instead of the results that depend on other people.

• If negative feedback makes you want to give up, you might just need to set aside the feedback for a while until you’ve had some time to practice and gain confidence.

• Remember why you’re doing the thing that lights you up. Focus on what you can control. Seek out, acknowledge, and document the positive. Think about and celebrate how much progress you’ve made.

• What you think of yourself is more important than what anyone else thinks about you.

Takeaways:

• The first step is the hardest, but the second is the second hardest.

• Changing your mindset and deciding to make a change is a huge step.

• It can be so hard when you’ve put a ton of effort into taking the first step and you’re met with negative reactions or no reaction. You have to be the one to give yourself credit for your progress. Clap for yourself!

• When it comes to taking the second step, it often feels like you have to choose whether to give up or take the plunge again. But you’ve already made the decision, now you just have to stick with it.

• Recommit to what you’ve already decided to do. You already did the hard part. You already decided. So, you actually don’t have to decide again.

• Why is it that we don’t feel bad about doing nothing, but feel bad about trying?

• Action is the process. Continuing to take the action is how you get it done. Doing the thing is how you become the thing (author, paintor, CEO, etc.).

• It gets easier because you get stronger and you build momentum.

• You don’t know what you need until you’re in it.

• You need to figure out what resources and support you need to keep going.

• Pay attention to the things that come up and the reasons you want to quit, so that you can address them and put safeguards and weapons in place to overcome those obstacles.