A Cliché Follow Your Dreams Post

Hey everyone! I know it’s been a while since my initial post, and there are a lot of reasons for that: Zoom, Emily in Paris, and mainly fear! When the whole ~having a blog~ idea first popped into my head, I was terrified, the unknown of simply just: what I would say, who would listen and more importantly, if anyone would even care talked me out of a good thing for nearly two years. To be honest, I’m not even quite sure that I've found the answers to those questions yet, but that’s a discussion for another time, perhaps in the book I’m gonna write one day (in which I’ll also be explaining why Taylor Swift is the best artist of the century - don’t fight me on this.) Anyways, I think this pattern defines nearly every aspect of our lives. We’re all guilty of it; shrinking ourselves to take up less space, turning our screams into whispers and taking the path more traveled. We let fear dictate our life. Why? Because actually caring about things is scary, it means you have something to lose. The fear of failure, getting hurt, disappointing people, whatever your reason may be - this fear takes the wheel time after time. It’s the silent killer of dreams, relationships, and opportunities. Over the years, as I’ve gotten to know myself better, I’ve noticed that I sometimes tend to refrain from investing my full effort into something that actually matters to me in order to preserve my pride in case I fail. For example, bombing a test I didn’t study for doesn’t upset me like it does when I studied (side note: if you’re a college admissions counselor reading this, I always study!! It was just an example I swear!!) Anyways, to put it in the simplest terms, the fear of looking stupid was holding me back from doing things that were not only beneficial, but made me happy! Eventually I just had to ask myself when would it end? When would I start to prioritize myself and create the life I want? Starting out with the small stuff; posting the picture, wearing the outfit, talking to that stranger. I quickly discovered how much power there is in vulnerability. I now know that the brightest futures belong to those who aren’t afraid of uncertainty, losing money, or letting go of past identities, they just dive into the deep end. I know that it's easier said than done. The list of risks is endless, but isn’t that the exciting part? Let’s put “failure” in a better light. Don’t think in black and white, your choices aren't to fail or succeed, instead they are to succeed or learn. With that being said, I urge you to join the risk-takers! Go after that dream that dances around in your head before bed. You know the one. The one that you’re going to start when you’re “out of your small town”, when you “have more money”, or when you “finally have time”. Those excuses sound best to the person who’s making them, trust me - I know from personal experience! To conclude this month’s ramble, I’m leaving you with the question that changed a lot for me more than any motivational blog post/speech ever could (sorry Dad), “Which scares you more? The thought of staying where you are now or the thought of going where you want to go?”