There are things I'm not good at doing. Like drawing and math. And I absolutely cannot whistle.
But honestly, those aren't things I'm interested in doing so it works out.
For the things I do want, I sometimes struggle with a self imposed notion of "can't."
Once that notion is my head, it's hard to shake. Enter what I call my sheer force of will or mind over matter mode. My mom could tell you that there are plenty of things I have pulled off simply because I decided to.
But honestly, those aren't things I'm interested in doing so it works out.
For the things I do want, I sometimes struggle with a self imposed notion of "can't."
Once that notion is my head, it's hard to shake. Enter what I call my sheer force of will or mind over matter mode. My mom could tell you that there are plenty of things I have pulled off simply because I decided to.
During morning ice last week, I managed to clear my mind of can't.
For a few weeks, I kept chickening out of my favorite jump and feeling this wildly intense and somewhat irrational fear of the jump. I'd done it plenty of times and I know I can do it, but all of a sudden, fear was winning out agin. I've also wiped out plenty of times. Enough to know it hurts, but probably won't kill me.
The trick is to say to yourself "I am going to do this" instead of "don't fall." All your mind hears is "fall" and just about every time, you'll fall or botch the landing or not jump at all.
Jumping around on ice isn't the day to day challenge for everyone, but the takeaway is the same. The self satisfaction of landing the jump was huge, but the bigger satisfaction came from taking back control of my thoughts.
Some of that comes from pushing your body just a little bit harder and feeling pretty proud of what your little legs can do on ice. It's a similar feeling that comes after running a half marathon, or a race longer than three miles. But in skating, I don't have to run so far, for so long.
And the trick works for other challenges too. A difficult work project, tackling a massive to-do list, driving on icy/snow roads in -20 temps.
Of course there are times that safety is a real factor and I don't recommend clearing your mind of can't when it's truly reckless and dangerous. For example, "I can't pet a bear." No. You really can't. Or at least shouldn't.
Since it's somehow already Monday again, here's the latest edition of Five Things.
1. Finally got my Great Falls library card. Kind of stoked about it.
2. Scheduled chicken pick-up. Having a hard and fast deadline always helps me get things done and I'm excited to have the fluffy chicks around the homestead.
3. Emailing the reporter who took over your old job and her responding to say she knows exactly you who are because you have such a great reputation around town, still, four years after you left the state. That's an incredibly good feeling.
4. A general came to town who was at the base where I was said reporter. He was there six or seven years ago and wasn't a general then, but he remembered me. Kind of cool.
5. Pitching the rink event idea to people outside skating circles and they get excited about it and volunteer to help. More to do this week, but I'm feeling good about it!
What are you excited about this week? Are there any situations where you can clear your mind of can't?
For a few weeks, I kept chickening out of my favorite jump and feeling this wildly intense and somewhat irrational fear of the jump. I'd done it plenty of times and I know I can do it, but all of a sudden, fear was winning out agin. I've also wiped out plenty of times. Enough to know it hurts, but probably won't kill me.
The trick is to say to yourself "I am going to do this" instead of "don't fall." All your mind hears is "fall" and just about every time, you'll fall or botch the landing or not jump at all.
Jumping around on ice isn't the day to day challenge for everyone, but the takeaway is the same. The self satisfaction of landing the jump was huge, but the bigger satisfaction came from taking back control of my thoughts.
Some of that comes from pushing your body just a little bit harder and feeling pretty proud of what your little legs can do on ice. It's a similar feeling that comes after running a half marathon, or a race longer than three miles. But in skating, I don't have to run so far, for so long.
And the trick works for other challenges too. A difficult work project, tackling a massive to-do list, driving on icy/snow roads in -20 temps.
Of course there are times that safety is a real factor and I don't recommend clearing your mind of can't when it's truly reckless and dangerous. For example, "I can't pet a bear." No. You really can't. Or at least shouldn't.
Since it's somehow already Monday again, here's the latest edition of Five Things.
1. Finally got my Great Falls library card. Kind of stoked about it.
2. Scheduled chicken pick-up. Having a hard and fast deadline always helps me get things done and I'm excited to have the fluffy chicks around the homestead.
3. Emailing the reporter who took over your old job and her responding to say she knows exactly you who are because you have such a great reputation around town, still, four years after you left the state. That's an incredibly good feeling.
4. A general came to town who was at the base where I was said reporter. He was there six or seven years ago and wasn't a general then, but he remembered me. Kind of cool.
5. Pitching the rink event idea to people outside skating circles and they get excited about it and volunteer to help. More to do this week, but I'm feeling good about it!
What are you excited about this week? Are there any situations where you can clear your mind of can't?
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