Taking the First Step

They say a journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.

But what if it is the first step that is the hardest?

The first step to beginning a whole new adventure? A new job? A new project?

I experienced this type of resistance recently. And by resistance, I mean à la lizard brain/Seth Godin/Linchpin style.

It is  “…the voice in the back of our head telling us to back off, be careful, go slow, compromise.”

In my case, I had recently joined a community for women entrepreneurs and there was a contest for a girls-getaway (men do golf, women do girls-getaways) for an opportunity to meet entrepreneurs and business owners from all over the States for networking and mentoring.

First sign of resistance: Why sign up? It’s not like I’m going to get chosen.   [Major lizard brain in effect]

I managed to work through that resistance by applying on a whim anyways but somewhere in the back of my mind still thinking that I was just trying for the sake of trying.  Read: But not really trying for fear of being letdown. Not really wanting it, in the case of being rejected it wouldn’t hurt as bad. The lizard brain is our ‘protector’, right?

And then…a few weeks go by and I pretty much forgot about it and..

I got an email saying I was one of ten chosen to participate in a weekend of mentoring and networking in Atlanta, Georgia.

All I had to do was show up.

More resistance. Sure I was excited but then at the back of my mind, I started to think, “Would I like it? Would it be worth going all that way?”

Finances were not an issue since I had air miles to cover the flight and all other expenses would be covered.

I just had to show up.

I’m not sure what I was really afraid of or maybe it was a sign of really committing to being on this path of taking charge of my life and creating my own work. Maybe I was afraid of going because I would actually like it. Ironic how this lizard brain works.

The lizard brain likes comfort and abhors change. It holds you back when you need to move forward. The key is awareness and pushing through. Sometimes it’s just small steps on a bigger path.

I pushed through and went. And it was amazing.

Lizard Brain: 0  Sandy: 1

How do you deal with your ‘lizard’ brain?

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