Are you intentional about your life?
Do you often find yourself worrying about things going wrong or not going to plan?
Does your mind jump to action by imagining a bunch of scenarios where you spectacularly fail or something goes wrong?
You're not alone.
A few weeks ago I shared with you the incredible and exciting news that I had been invited to give a talk at TEDx Brighton.
I was elated but also pretty terrified.
I felt proud but also had some big imposter syndrome vibes
My mind wanted to present me with a colourful array of things that could go wrong, ways I would mess up, ridiculous random stuff that 'might' happen and kept telling me they must have made a mistake.
Then I remembered a brilliant mantra that my best friend Michelle Moreno uses every day in her content, her emails and her general ethos of life.
'Imagine if it all went right'
6 simple words that have the power to stop fear and open a door to curiosity and possibility.
What we forget or choose to ignore, is that if we have the ability to imagine things going wrong (and we can be super skilled at conjuring up the details!) we can absolutely imagine things going right.
Unfortunately, the ancient reptilian part of our brain is wired naturally to assume danger first and we adopt what's called a negative bias as a form of protection. If we are challenged to move out of our comfort zone this part of our brain usually grabs the reigns immediately and sets to work painting the picture of doom before we get a chance to think clearly and rationally.
But we have the power to train a new narrative
With practice and intention, you can begin to loosen the grip of this reaction and turn the volume down on the negative and fearful dialogue that thinks its keeping you safe but actually keeps you stuck.
The night before TEDx Brighton I sat in my hotel room feeling anxious and wondering if I would get any sleep and then I remembered Michelle's words.
Imagine if it all went right....
I grabbed my notebook and wrote it at the top and then wrote out how I imagined the next day going right.
I wrote in detail about how I wanted to feel when I woke up, what I would do in the morning to prepare, what thoughts I wanted to have, how I wanted the day to flow and of course how I wanted the talk to go, including how I would feel just before, during and after,
I brought the whole day to life through my imagination and allowed myself to trust in the possibility of it all.
The next day I woke and stayed true to those intentions I had mapped out the night before. I had imagined it all going right and realised that I could make it happen with intention and self-belief.
Of course I was nervous but I also felt a quiet reassurance that I would be OK and that I could trust in myself and you know what??
I nailed it
I stepped out onto that stage and didn't feel an inch of imposter syndrome because I had drowned that voice out with an alternative one. One that was full of belief, trust, compassion, curiosity and gratitude.
It was an absolutely incredible day and I cant wait to share the talk with you once it is up online (hopefully in a few weeks time!)
Here's me, Little Tans, standing on the HUGE stage at Brighton Dome giving my talk to over 1300 people!!
It was EPIC
So the next time you are facing something challenging and start painting the doom picture see if you can remember Michelle's words and imagine if it all goes right!