What’s the Worst That Can Happen?

Do you ever stop to think what’s the worst that can happen?

Do you find yourself over 40, over 50, over 60 and beyond and feel you have so much more you still want to accomplish?

How often do you find yourself not doing something because you’re afraid?

Have you ever had a wild and crazy goal that you REALLY want to go after?

Yet, you don’t.

Instead, you sit on the couch and think about what you want to do, what you could do, what you should do.

Maybe you even feel sorry for yourself that you’re too afraid to go after whatever it is that’s still on your bucket list.

This creates a vicious cycle of frustration, self-doubt, and negative talk in your head. This head trash will beat you up because you want something you feel you can’t have because you’re not good enough.

But you are good enough. We all are no matter if you’re in midlife or just entering adulthood.

Why all those negative thoughts then?

Fear is what often stops us. Fear and self-doubt. But what if you could eliminate that fear and self-doubt? What could you achieve? Who could you help? How could you feel?

What if you could accept those negative feelings as healthy emotions and still give yourself permission to move forward?

Wouldn’t the feeling of achieving your dreams far surpass the feeling of failure or even worse the feeling of not trying at all?

I know…it’s freeing to think about.

There are many things I love about getting older. I find my 40’s to be the best decade ever and as I get closer and closer to my 50’s I’m excited about what’s to come.

These feelings about my age come from experience and caring less about what others think. I am more in tune to who I am, and I like who I am (most the time, but that’s another blog post). The one thing I’ve noticed that sucks about getting older (besides wrinkles/menopause/weight gain) is less confidence.

Now I know you’re probably thinking, but you just said like who you are and care less about what others think. Doesn’t that equate confidence?

Yes and no.

It does equate to confidence when it comes to who I am, but with the experience that I so appreciate also comes more knowledge on what can happen, real or imagined, if I fail.

The older you get, the more responsibility you have. Responsibility is often a motivator, but it can also create fear.

There is more at stake as you get older with you and your family. That creates fear.

There’s more of a sense of death (depressing but true). That creates fear.

Those fears are very hard to move past but even so, what’s the worst that can happen?

Really? What’s the worst that can happen?

You fail.

So what.

Yeah, it might hurt your pride, but your head isn’t going to explode. The Earth isn’t going to stop turning. Your family isn’t going to hate you.

I ask again what is the worst thing that can happen?

I had a conversation with my son recently that has really stuck with me. He tends to be a bit of a glass half empty kid, which confounds me. Neither his dad or I am that way, and he has everything going for him.

But he tends to allow bad things, and I mean tiny, insignificant things derail his positive attitude and just wants to give up. I can see it in his body language the minute he loses hope.

I told him it wasn’t about the outcome. That wasn’t the most essential thing in life. That life is about the effort. And if you give 100% effort to something, and you still fall short of your goal it is STILL a WIN, not a failure.

Yes, losing does suck, no one wants to lose, but I wanted him to understand that the pride is in trying something even though there’s a chance of losing. To take the opportunity because while you could lose, there is also a chance you can win and be successful.

It’s easier said than done. I get it. I often have to talk myself into doing things that twenty years ago, I wouldn’t have given a second thought.

So don’t put it off any longer go after what you want.

You can do it. You’ve got this!

What’s the worst you think can happen? Write it in the comments and let it go!