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If you are overthinking the idea of spreading your wings & going for that one thing you want, please, go for it. Don't let 'rejection' stop you. Every human being has to deal with loss, failure, & rejection. We should normalize those concepts as apart or the journey.
Quick Story
Quick Story
When I was in college, I failed a 300-level poetry class. The funny thing is, this is the only class I had perfect attendance in. It's a lass that I desperately wanted to pass. I was genuinely interested in the material. The professor was a TOUGH lady from France.
The professor was a published author and world-renown writer; I wanted to impress her with my ability. In my 20-year-old brain, I knew I would one day be a great writer, but I did not earn her respect in that class. However, I did learn some valuable skills and lessons.
I could feel her energy and she didn't like me, at all. It was not personal though. She didn't dislike me as a human, she just didn't care for me as a student. I always slowed the flow of the class because I asked A LOT of questions. I always raised my hand to share. I needed...
....information, and since she was the first author I ever made, I wanted to pick her brain every single day I was in her class. This was also a M-W-F class, so eventually, she grew tired of the 10 questions-per-class-quota that I instilled. She would even look away when my...
...hand went up. But I kept my arm raised, even if I had to lean to the side and hoster my body under my arm until she called on me. I didn't care what the other students thought of my annoyances either. In my mind, I needed to use every opportunity to learn from her.
I always offered feedback on my classmate's poems and asked questions when they shared. I tried to encourage a positive community of support. We had to come up with long-form stories, poetry and we had to use a lot of emotion in our writings. Those skills take time to refine.
When the final grades came out I earned a big fat F. I thought I would have at least earned a C or better, but no it as a failed attempt. I was upset by this since I considered myself to be a 'writer'.
It became personal for me at that point; I had something to prove then.
It became personal for me at that point; I had something to prove then.
In class one day she said, aloud, "Sylvester, your work just doesn't connect, it's not emotionally deep enough to make an impact. My ego was hurt. I thought I was more than good enough, but the truth is, she was right. That version of me was not good enough.
I use those words as motivation, even to this day. I often check my own stories, book, & copy and I'll ask "Am I pulling on the emotions?" Today, I am a bestselling author. I have 8 books and one has 800-positive reviews on Amazon. If I didn't fail, that would not have occurred.
I used the energy from that failure to get serious about learning, studying and practicing.
- I read every day
- I write every day
- I publish essays weekly, or so
- I publish a newsletter every Monday
- I read every day
- I write every day
- I publish essays weekly, or so
- I publish a newsletter every Monday
When my son starts his adventures in life, I will instill in him that practice, studying, and learning are the keys to his success on his journey. You cannot give up because you lost, failed, or took a setback. We, as humans, have the ability to transcend. You are born to win.
I would love to have you join my newsletter. Tonight's newsletter is about boundaries and habits. It will go out to 15,000 people, will you be one? Here's the link to join my email community: https://sylvester-mcnutt-iii.mykajabi.com/monday-mantra-newsletter
If you find yourself Overthinking, take my course. My course will help you build a framework to get out of Overthinking. You can take the course today and have access to all of the content, do this for yourself, here's the link: https://www.sylvestermcnutt.net/how-to-stop-overthinking-course
Overthinking is a made-up concept. We allow fear to stop us from our own greatness and we don't have to. WE can unblock ourselves by believing that the opportunity is more important than the outcome. Focusing on what you can do versus what you can't makes a huge difference.
The next time you find yourself overthinking take a second to breathe, gather your breath and go for it –– whatever 'it' is, just go for it. Give it your best effort based on what you have at that moment, and live with the results. You deserve to be mentally free.
