You Have to Start.

“Fear tries to convince you that you can’t do what you were born to do. It makes you want to run from the opportunity to break that cocoon and enter a new stage of responsibility, showing others whom you were really created to be.” 

— Tanänia Reid

    I know how it feels to be where you are; afraid of starting. I know that you are scared because, as I write the second sentence of this blog, I am. Regardless, I have to start. You have to start. We have to start making our dreams happen. Time is valuable, and our timidity is expensive. We have too much within us not to give our all, especially to those who need it.

The Ultimate Catalyst

    The fastest way to get a man to believe is to give him proof of what to believe in. I figure that it would be hard to believe in the wind if nothing ever swayed. Belief in the unseen is born from its physical representation. Therefore, it is impossible for others to believe in the gold within you if it is unseen, bottled up, and tucked away. If you are waiting for others to believe in something within you to start giving them proof of what to believe in, then boy, do I have news for you: You. Will. Wait. For-e-ver. You may believe that the reason you have not started is a lack of support, but it is not. It is for a lack of belief in yourself, for that is the ultimate catalyst. Like grey clouds are proof of rain, you are the proof of your vision as you are its birthing place. Whether or not it rains is up to you.

    Now, one needs faith to believe in what he knows to be true. Truth solidifies faith. Do you know the truth about yourself enough to have faith in yourself? What can you do? What gold is within you? What is your hidden, bottled-up potential? How can you make tangible proof of that? Here are a few tips:

• Sound is physical; tell someone out loud. (You might sound crazy, which is wonderful. "Let us travel past the sky" did, too.)
• Make that call.
• Inquire. 
• Sign up. 
• Post. 
• Practice. 
• Write the vision on paper. 
• Write the first line of the draft. 
• Create. Create what?— Anything. 

    Start working on something small with the intent to develop it. Plant the seed with the intent to germinate it, and be sure to be kept accountable while doing so. You are not beginning just to feel good, end, then forfeit your dream.

    Many want to marvel at your philosophies, to capture your ideas, and to hold your dreams in their hands, but only you can make your intangible thoughts tangible.

— Tanänia Reid

Stalling in Disguise

    Your vision is so bright that you close your eyes when you picture it. It is like a poster stuck to the wall in your mind. On some days, you may longingly stare at it. On others, you merely spare it a glance. If you are like me, at a certain time— ahem 4 AM ahem— you cannot help but excitedly sketch away at what you have yet to create. Unfortunately, after months of having nothing come from my own elaborate sketches of my vision, my eyes began to sore at the sight of them. My dreams became burdensome expectations. Delicate lines and bold colours became smudged by fear and self-doubt. However, I could not just discard my vision. I had a responsibility to you and to myself. And besides, I had already told others that I would start the blog, hadn't I? This internal conflict left me timidly lingering at the starting line for months, replying to whoever asked that I was “preparing” to ‘run’ soon. I had begun to experience what happens when you do not know yourself enough to believe in yourself. Your hesitation becomes procrastination, and your preparation becomes stalling in disguise.

Interrupting Your Imagination

    Stalling is like standing at a crosswalk in public. In your head, the entire world is waiting for you to make a decision. You want to cross but you can’t. Why does no one understand that? Doesn't anyone see how hard you try? No one feels the weight of your legs, or how much you struggle to pick your foot off the ground. No one understands the silent frustration of willing your own limb to move. Why do the waiting not perceive the weight that you are under?

    Truthfully, the weight that no one is seeing is simply self-imposed imaginary pressure. In reality, your unsubstantiated fear has stopped you from doing something you do quite naturally. You are intimidated only by your imagination. 

    Fear lies. It convinces you to perceive your opposition as 'bigger' and yourself as smaller than you really are. The fear of failure is absolutely ridiculous. It tells you you have failed at what you have not yet attempted. Fear says, "Failure is a destination" when it is really a pit stop.

    Fear is False Evidence Appearing Real.

"Fear is not real. The only place that fear can exist is in our thoughts of the future. It is a product of our imagination, causing us to fear things that do not at present and may not ever exist. That is near insanity. Do not misunderstand me. Danger is very real, but fear is a choice.”

— Will Smith

The Power of Perception

    There is power in perception. You react based on what you perceive. Perception is the determinant of how one goes about living. Your perception shapes your reality. However, your mind is so powerful that it enslaves you to false realities about your circumstances, your environment, the world around you, others, and yourself. False realities are broken versions of reality. To walk in freedom, you must first let go of false realities. Then, you must choose to pursue, obtain, hold on to, and walk in the truth. 

    Your self-projection is a reflection of your self-perception. The person you perceive yourself to be is the person you will project for others to see. Whatever you believe about yourself will become your reality. If you believe that you are shy, you will live in that reality. If you believe that you are bold, you will live in that reality. If you believe that you cannot walk, you cannot. If you believe that you can, you can walk across the street, around the city, take a hike then walk home. This is why it is important for you to believe in the truth about yourself. It is what was meant by industrialist Henry Ford when he made this popular statement:

“Whether you think you can’t or you think you can, you’re right.”

— Henry Ford

Step Naturally, Now

    What can you do? What gold is within you? Do you know enough truth about yourself to believe in yourself? You are proof of your potential, which is proof that your vision is possible. You are automatically and permanently enough for your vision. Only you can make your dreams happen, for only you can make your intangible thoughts tangible. Only you can do what you were built to do in the way that you do. Time is valuable, and timidity is expensive. Breathe and step naturally. 

Start clueless.

Start small.

Start now.

"The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step."

— Lao Tzu

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