At many times in our lives, we have to face change. Whether it’s moving house, starting a new business or making the decision to leave a job…

For some, processing that change can be more difficult than for others.

But why is that...?

Because deep down, we all have limiting beliefs (or fears) that hold us back from accepting, or even embracing the change and taking action:

Let me give you an example:

I’m currently in a mentorship programme and we have our own private Facebook group. Each member was tasked with going live on Facebook for 21 days straight, to help build our confidence with social media.

What I call my ‘change processor’ kicked in immediately and my inner dialogue sounded something like this…

• “Absolutely no way am I doing this – I would rather stick pins in my eyes

• Oh, others are doing it – maybe it’s not so bad

• I’ll think about it

• Maybe I can do this

• Ok, I’ll do it – but once I’ve scripted out 21 pitch perfect talks - full of value, rehearsed for a month, got my hair done, lost a few pounds for the camera…”

I think you get my drift…

Usually my change processor works extremely quickly, but not this time. And when I took the time to really explore and understand why, the reason was clear…

I was fearful…

Fearful of not being prepared, fearful of not being perfect, fearful of messing up, fearful of looking like a nodding dog, fearful of broadcasting to the world and

… fearful of being judged by my peer group.

After 2 weeks I got so frustrated with myself, I decided to do it that day. "Sink or swim" as the saying goes. And guess what...?

I did it…I swam!

Things that I hadn’t even been fearful of happened. A text came through on the mobile that I was using and then a call. The office phone rang – not once, but three times - within the space of the 4 minute live video!

It was imperfect perfection. When I was faced with the live situation, I had no choice but to deal with and it was such a relief to have completed the first one. It actually felt good!

By the end of 21 days, the transformation was remarkable. Now, don’t get me wrong - there were days I didn’t want to do it. Days I didn’t know what to talk about. And days I worried about showing up in the same clothes. But, I stuck to it religiously for 21 days and it paid off.

I was one of only a few that started and completed the full 21 days and my confidence grew massively. I raised my profile within the group and received lots of constructive and positive feedback.

It was a very quick and steep development curve but, by then end, I actually started to enjoy it.

So, what’s the moral of this story…?

I’m sure you’ve had many changes in your life that you didn’t want to face, accept or deal with. More than likely, it came from a deeper place of fear.

The key is to really dig deep and understand what it is that's holding you back, or that you're fearful of and then ask yourself “what’s the worst that could happen?” It's then about taking one small step at a time. If you fall down, get back up. Who doesn’t love Bambi…? Continuous action, creates momentum.

Think about it – does a nine-month old baby just get up and walk one day?

No, of course it doesn’t. It starts to shuffle along the floor, then crawl and then eventually it takes it’s first step. This process can take months of practice, lots of bruises and many tears. But the beauty of babies is that they have no fear - so they get back up time and time again until they eventually master it… they walk unaided!

So today, I invite you to think about one area of change that you know you want to deal with and that you’re putting off, in either your business, your career of your life. Really think about what it is that’s preventing you from dealing with it. Visualise the goal and the benefits that you’ll get from achieving it and then take one small step forwards...

"With passion, drive and resilience, anyone can achieve anything."

Natalie

www.natalieclare.com