Be brave.

Do you know the feeling of pushing yourself to the edge? You know, the times when you don’t think you’ll make it, you don’t quite believe in yourself, you think you might fail. Those moments when you choose to do it anyway, repeating to yourself “one foot in front of the other” over and over again are the most delicious. I encourage you, no, implore you to find an opportunity to notice the anxious thought, the resistance to intensity and do it anyway. Be brave.

Have you ever felt so proud of yourself you couldn’t stop smiling and you felt the pulse of exhilaration move through your being? If not, there is no better time than now to create it for yourself. When the validating thought, the positive cognition, the welling up of pride comes from within, not only does it provide the chance to savor the sense of accomplishment a bit longer, but it sets you up for future success. When we create opportunity for and give permission to fully feel into being proud of ourselves for making it to the peak of a mountain (sometimes literally!) we take one step further in the direction of recognizing our personal power and bringing closer our sense of internal strength, perseverance and commitment to our own self. It is the ultimate opportunity to strengthen the relationship with self in the most loving way.

Ideas for cultivating opportunities for courageous movement and prideful moments:

When the little voice in the back of your head says to quit, do the thing for 60 more seconds
Have the hard conversation
Say yes, even when you’re afraid you won’t be able to do it (and then prove yourself wrong)
Choose vulnerability
Commit to yourself that you will do one thing today even though you really don’t want to get moving, leave the house or complete the task that feels hard

Blog and photo by: Lauren Robbins, MS, LPCC, LADC, PMH-C