Don’t Count Yourself Out
Give yourself a fighting chance.
Have you ever thought to yourself, “I would love to learn how to _____ or become a _ but there’s no point because I wouldn’t be good at it”? Why do we do this to ourselves? Why do we count ourselves out before we can even get started? I feel like it’s self-doubt, but it’s also from other people’s projections. If you’ve ever been told you couldn’t do something in your life, you know exactly what I’m talking about.
You go to someone excited about something you’re interested in, and they say, “You’re not skilled enough to do that” or even “That’s not going to work; stick to what you know." After hearing it so much, after a while, you start to believe it. You lose interest, doubt yourself, and maybe even give up on a dream.
Personally, I feel like anything can be learned and anything can be perfected if you want it bad enough. Think about the first time you rode a bike. I bet you were excited but terrified, weren’t you? You imagined yourself cruising on your new stylish bike, even though you didn’t even know the first steps to getting the wheels to turn. After practicing getting on and off the bike, you finally start pushing those pedals and find yourself starting to slowly move forward without falling over. You’re shaky at first as you try to grip the handle bars, but you’re just so excited to be moving forward. As you ride, you feel a sense of success and accomplishment.
The chill wind against your face feels like a reward for perseverance until you realize you’re headed towards a steep hill. You start to think, “Oh no! I’m not good enough to go down the hill!” You try to squeeze the brakes, but it’s too late. Gravity is taking control, and you are flying down the hill. When you get to the bottom, you’re going so fast that you can’t stop. You crash and tumble into the bushes at the bottom of the hill that you so desperately tried to avoid. For a second, you lie on the ground, feeling absolutely defeated. “How are things going so well but ending so badly?” That’s the point. The limitations you have are only the ones that you’ve placed on yourself.
New things might be hard, even painful. That doesn’t mean that it’s over, though. Do you let the pain take over and never ride a bike again? Or do you get back up, scrape the dirt off, and keep trying until you get better? I think you know the best answer. You need to get right back up and keep going. Take this approach with anything you do in life. If you have the mindset that everything you want in life is attainable, then it will be. Trust in yourself to try again, and again, fail, and then try again. Keep trying and working until you become the person that you want to be.
This is an issue that so many small business owners face. That fear of messing up. That doubt makes us question everything we do. Those painful moments that make us want to give up and go back to our 9–5. You have to decide that all the trials and tribulations are worth it. Don’t let social media or anyone in your life tell you that your dreams are too difficult to accomplish.
I’ve been binge watching MasterChef on Hulu. If you don’t know, MasterChef is an extremely competitive cooking show where 15-20 of the top home cooks across the country battle each other, presenting the best dish to a panel of judges that consists of world-renowned chefs, including the incredible Chef Gordon Ramsay. The winner gets $250,000, the trophy, and exclusive 1-on-1 training with each judge at their restaurants. Each week, the challenges become more and more difficult for the contestants. My favorite episodes are the first few episodes of the season when you are getting to know the home cooks, and the last few episodes leading up to the finale when you can truly see the growth and improvement of each cook as they transform into a professional chef.
At first, I thought, “These challenges are way too difficult for an average home cook." Then I realized that MasterChef was exactly like life for the average person. In the sense that if they didn’t face those challenges and push themselves to the limit, they wouldn't have succeeded. Of course, there were days when they were tired, didn’t feel like competing, or missed their family and wanted to go home. There were even days when they didn’t perform their best and ended up in the bottom two. For them, it felt as though they didn’t have a choice but to keep going because they remembered the end goal. There were contestants who quit their job, sold their house, and. even quit school. All at the chance of becoming a MasterChef. They took a crazy big chance on themselves.
There are people who have created huge opportunities for themselves just by appearing on the show. What if they listened to those people who said their cooking wasn’t good enough? What if they listened to their parents, who said they needed to stay in school and put their dreams on hold? How long would they have stayed in their boring cycle of life, wishing they would have just took the chance? I stay up at night sometimes thinking about all the opportunities I’ve missed out on because I gave up before I even gave them a chance. Don’t count yourself out on anything. Don’t give up on yourself. Believe that even if you aren’t the best at something, you have the strength to learn to become better. One of my favorite sayings is, "You miss all the shots you don’t take." I love it because it is so true. If you don’t take the chance on something you love, you’ve already failed. I believe God gave us talent and gifts for a reason; it’s just up to us to. discover them and share them with the world. I hope reading this inspired you to push yourself in the right direction and start that business or project that has always made you nervous. Don’t count yourself out. If you like food or competition shows, I highly recommend watching MasterChef. If you already watched it, comment below with your favorite season, episode, or contestant. Or just comment about something new you are excited about.