Mindful Monday: Start

Starting something new is hard.

Changing up a habit can seem impossible. 

Branching out is scary.

However...

Never trying leaves you wondering what if.

Staying the same is boring.

Not changing can leave you with regrets. 

The first step is always the hardest. It requires you to be brave. It requires you to believe in something that you're not even sure is possible. It requires you to accept failure as a possibility. 

Being brave enough to try something new does not mean you're not afraid. Franklin D Roosevelt once said, "Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the assessment that something else is more important than fear." If it's something that you can't stop thinking about, then it's important to you. And if it's important, then it's worth taking the risk.

Here's the best news of all. You don't have to wait to start. You don't have to wait until the calendar flips to a new month. You don't have to wait until the new year begins. And you certainly don't need anyone's permission to start. 

Start the new hobby you've been wanting to try. 

Start working towards a goal that is important to you. 

Give life to an idea that you've been contemplating for a while. 

Take that first step. Be brave enough to suck at something new. And frankly, that's usually the biggest hurdle you have to get over. You have to stop holding yourself to impossibly high standards. You have to give yourself room to fail and understand that it is a part of the process. Just start...you'll thank yourself later!