Time to Stretch: I'd love to be....but.

"You can only grow if you feel awkward and uncomfortable when you try something new.” ~Brian Tracy

Have you ever heard yourself saying far too often, "I'd love to be, but...."?

About six months ago, I realized I was having a lot of thoughts like this, and that they followed a similar pattern. There was something I wanted to get better at, some way in which I wanted to grow. But to do so, I’d have to subject myself to something that made me feel afraid or uncomfortable. So I’d stay stuck and a little scared, and tell myself I’d deal with it another time.

We all have things we avoid because they make us feel uncomfortable.

Sometimes, this discomfort is there for good reason: it’s warning us of potential danger. I often have to remember this when I'm practicing Yoga (smile). But a lot of the time, I think the discomfort we feel doesn’t signal any real danger. We just don't want any weird looks.

And while I was in a Yoga pose called 'Warrior Two," I realized I was really stretching, and uncomfortable.

It’s a simple truth that if you want to get better at something, you’re going to have to go through a period where you’re not so good at it, which might mean feeling uncomfortable. You have to stretch yourself. That's when I realized that if I could get better at telling when my discomfort was blown out of proportion and overcome it, I could do so much more, be so much more as a person. So I decided I’d start deliberately making myself do things that made me uncomfortable, and write about them to better understand my experiences and share them with others.

So this week, I'm going to share with you what I've learned from my stretching - and the ensuing discomfort.

Maybe I'll encourage you to stretch a little.

And stop saying "I'd love to, but..."

Cheers.