If you often find yourself worrying about how many people have liked, viewed or commented on your blog post, how to gain more subscribers, how to generate revenue from your blog or how to stand out against all the other amazing blogs out there, then chances are the answer is yes, you are holding your blog back.
Before I get into this post I want to tell you a little story of something that happened to me only this morning that inspired me to write this post. I was actually working on another post for this week and decided to save it for another time and post this one instead.
Early this morning I dropped my car around to the mechanic in the street behind my house for a service and a pink slip (approval for registration with the Motor Registry) because my car registration is due. He wasn't there yet so I left my car and went for my morning walk. When I got home I called him to reconfirm the service I needed. During our conversation he said that there was some rust on my car and that it might need to be fixed before I can register it again.
After getting off the phone I freaked out. A million thoughts were going through my mind. How much does that cost? I can't afford it. Omg I'm not going to be able to register my car! I'm not going to have a car anymore! Shit I won't be able to live without a car! I'm doomed!
And then, as if that wasn't enough, I spun down into self blame. This is all my fault. The world never gives me what I need because I don't believe I deserve it. It's this belief that keeps the Universe from giving me what I need. It's my fault that I believe it and it's my fault therefore that I can't get what I need out of life. I don't want to have this belief but I can't change something that I deep down believe. If I could I wouldn't believe it. OMG I really am doomed!
And then I remembered that none of that was real. I was future tripping something crazy but right now, in this moment, none of that has or is actually happening. What's more, my freaking out about it was not going to change anything, and it likely was keeping me from attracting the outcome that I desire. There was literally nothing I can do to change the outcome in this situation, it was out of my hands now.
I realised that the only thing I could do was choose my reaction.
I could continue to wallow in fear, anxiety and dread, but what is the point of that? It only makes me feel like shit. Or I could accept things as they are and accept that whatever will be will be. The latter feels much better. Whatever happens, I will deal with it when I am faced with it. Right now, I am not faced with it. Right now I am writing a blog post and that is what I am focusing on.
What has this got to do with your blog?
Although this specific scenario has nothing to do with my blog, let alone yours, it is an example of how our egos take over control and pull us into the deep dark depths of fear, anxiety and overwhelm.
I can't tell you the number of times I've found myself future tripping about my blog and business. And I'm sure you'll agree, that all this ever results in is the dismal conclusion that you're shit, you can't do it and you'll never achieve your blog dreams, or as my ego likes to tell me, that you're DOOMED!
When we listen to and act in reaction to this ego nonsense we are actually holding ourselves back with our blogs and in life in general. This is because we act out of fear. We so desperately don't want that worst case scenario that the ego is maliciously whispering in our ear, that we do what we can to avoid it coming true.
The intention behind our actions then becomes one of getting as far away from what we don't want as we can. This is a serious drain on our energy and I'm sure you know as well as I do how quickly the initial motivation and inspiration that lead you to creating your blog disappears.
Everything starts to feel like a struggle and you don't seem to be getting anywhere, or at least anywhere near where you'd like to be.
This is because the Universe doesn't respond to verbal or mental requests, if it did, then we'd all be living the life of our dreams.
The Universe responds to intentions and feelings and gives you more of the same.
If you are operating at the frequency of fear, anxiety, overwhelm, struggle and lack, then that is what you will continue to experience. You won't get the results you desire. Or perhaps you will, but it usually comes with personal costs which hold you back in other areas of your life such as stress, illness or relationship breakdowns.
So ask yourself are you operating your blog from fear? The best way to tell is if you are doing things on your blog only because that is what everyone else is doing.
To help you get to the bottom of your blog fears and start soaring with your blog I have created a worksheet for you. We need to be able to know what is holding us back before we can move beyond it. To put it into an analogy, you wouldn't want to jump over a hurdle blindfolded. You need to see how high the hurdle is so you know how high you need to jump.
The Remedy
As the renowned spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle teaches,
The solution to this lays in the present moment.
When I got present this morning, I realised that none of my fears actually exist. Suddenly the anxiety dropped away and I tapped into this sense of peace where anything feels possible. I realised that all the feelings that I wish to feel (and think I will feel once I get, have, achieve xyz) are already there.
Right now, as I sit here writing this I feel safe, confident, peace, enjoyment, alignment. I don't need a car, financial security, a big online following, Miranda Kerr's body or to be married to JT to feel that I already have it.
So my challenge to you is to:
- Become aware of your thoughts
- Catch yourself, when you can, future tripping and worrying about your blog (or anything else). Worries are always about the future.
- Bring your awareness back to the present moment
- Allow yourself to feel the peace and joy of the present moment. You will start to realise that all you want to feel already exists.
Also download and complete the Fear Busting For Bloggers Worksheet. This will help you identify your fears so that it will be much easier for you to spot them when the rear their head and therefore make it easier for you to bust through them instead of getting swept up by them.
The worksheet is also going to help you feel more energised and empowered by helping you uncover the areas you need to give more attention to in ways that feel inspiring and uplifting to you. No more motivation from fear here!
Even when you know what your fears are, they still feel freaking scary and sometimes it's going to feel near impossible to simply just shift your focus to the present moment. Getting caught in a fearful future trip can be an overwhelming experience and if you can't just simply shift your focus here are some other things you can do:
- Take 3 deep conscious breaths and notice how it feels in your body as you do so
- Focus on how your body feels in this moment. Where do you notice you are holding tension?
- Notice the gaps in your thoughts. They may only be a second at first but when you focus on them they will lengthen.
Before I end this post I also want to add that,
While this is simple, it's not necessarily easy and it won't feel natural at first.
When I am not paying attention my ego still creeps back in. It has crept in a couple of times while writing this post and I could feel the anxiety about my car start to rise again, and then I bring myself back.
According to Eckhart Tolle, the more you practice this, the easier it becomes and eventually presence will become your natural state. I'm taking his word for it as I am not there yet myself and thus can speak with no authority to you about how this journey unfolds. I can tell you that I definitely find it easier to become present now then I used to, so hopefully that continues.
So are you with me in committing to not allowing your fears run the day by coming back to the present moment whenever you catch yourself?
I would love to hear in the comments below of the things that you are now going to do on your blog or in your life, that fear previously held you back from.
