Happy first day of fall, friends! For me, there’s something super symbolic about the seasons shifting. And while I would like to be the person that is good about reflecting on the past and setting goals for the future, lately I’ve spent most of my energy trying to live (survive?) in the present. That being said, my meditation and readings this morning really spoke to me. So I started writing, processing and really working through the idea of change, both in my life and in nature.
The result? This post. Instead of keeping it all to myself I figured why not share what’s on my mind and maybe, just maybe, these words might spark something in you, too.
I don’t think it was a coincidence that on this, the first day of fall, all of my readings and meditations were about change – about honoring and embracing evolution and transformation.
Every equinox, the earth’s natural cycle of change is an invitation to slow down, reflect and pay attention. When summer transitions to fall, the leaves turn, eventually shedding and falling to the ground. Just as the trees do, we too can release any thoughts, ideas and habits that no longer serve us. Release the old, create space for the new.
Personally, I hope to release self doubt. It’s a thought pattern that is comfortable and what I’ve grown used to – the second guessing! the questioning! – but truly does not serve me! So perhaps it’s time to say buh-bye to doubt and step forward with confidence in myself and my decisions.
As someone who has dealt with deep and sometimes debilitating anxiety, and still inherently runs anxious, I’m very familiar with self doubt. Releasing it may be easier said than done, but I think it’s worth a shot!
Here are some things I’m noodling on to get me started:
Practicing self compassion.
I almost wrote self love, but that’s not quite it. For me, showing compassion means being understanding with myself which ties back to self talk. When I’m feeling down, I’m working on catching the negative talk, flipping the script and asking: how can I be more compassionate? A thought like “I hate my skin” can be caught and flipped to “my skin protects me and is healing” or “I didn’t do enough today” becomes “today was what I needed it to be”. Small but significant changes!
Having confidence in myself and my abilities.
For me, the opposite of self doubt is confidence. I’m starting small with this, by setting a daily intention and sticking to it. Sometimes it’s three, but if that feels like too much than I go back to one. It’s amazing how setting an intention and seeing it through shifts my perspective about who I am and what I’m capable of!
Trusting myself (and learning to listen to my gut).
I think the point here is learning to listen to what Glennon Doyle calls the knowing. That inner voice, inner truth, inner everything that is so easily stifled by exterior noise, opinions and social pressures. In Untamed, she writes:
When I find myself in a spiral of doubt, trying to figure out what is right or best by looking outwards for answers and validation, I can pause and create space to think about what is right or best for ME.
Breathing helps a lot here, as does setting aside time to sit with and get familiar with my own thoughts, via meditation, journaling or yoga. In doing so, I’m learning that there is a difference between being mindful, intentional and trusting and being perfect, right and pleasing.
Remembering that there is no failing, just learning.
My friend Claire is really good at this. She doesn’t fear failure because she doesn’t really think about it. If she messes something up, or doesn’t like an outcome, whether it’s with a recipe or a lesson with her kids, she sees it as a learning experience and jumps head first into trying again. It’s one of the things I admire most about her and appreciate about our friendship.
When I find myself wanting to do something “perfectly” I’m hoping to shift the thought pattern to doing something… period. The not so simple act of executing can be so powerful for me. And if things don’t go as planned? Then I can learn and try again.
Now tell me, what are you ready to let go of? What would you like to release?
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