I love spring and the unspoken promise of a fresh start. New growth reemerges in a cascade of beautiful colors with aromatic scents that paint a hopeful picture. Personally, the seeds I planted last year are beginning to bloom, and they are lovely.

I often quote, the only time I look back is to see how far I have come. And so is the case this week. A year ago, I navigated under many conditions and harvested impossible seeds. I was letting the voices in my head take root… the chatter that went something like this…

• I am not a writer. No one is interested in my stories, my life experiences...
• Social media is a black hole. It is a platform for people desperate for attention and validation… look at me, look at what I have, look at the incredible vacations I take, look how amazing I look, look at my fancy toys…no thanks, I am out, wanted nothing to do with this…
• I am not a public speaker. I am not an attention-seeking person. I don’t want to be on stage…
• I am not a graphic designer. I don’t know the first thing about starting a blog, design, content…
• Podcast.. like record myself? noooo wayyyy…
• I am not this, that, or the other...

These are the words I allowed to live rent-free in my head. Do you know why? Because I feared criticism and rejection. After all, opinions from others are not always kind and supportive. I was also terrified of failing. It is much easier to swim in a sea of “I can’t.” It turns out that fear was dictating my steps, keeping me in the dark, and holding my dreams hostage.

Fast-forward and today looks vastly different. Today, I evicted all the negative chatter in my head, excavated my entire garden, pulled out all the weeds, and started fresh. I prepped new soil and began planting seeds of ‘Why not me?’ 

Have I stumbled? Absolutely! Do weeds creep up every so often? Yes! But you know what? Even though my garden is far from flawless, it is perfectly imperfect to me. It is my starting point; it is my beginning. It is me listening to my inner voice, my gut, the one that tells me to keep going, keep illuminating, keep growing, and stay on my path. This voice directs and empowers me to eliminate fear from the equation. This is me growing my garden. I like this voice.  

You know what I say to fear now…FUCK FEAR!

Xo-Mic