I Wish I Could Do That—But I Haven’t Let It Hold Me Back

Let it hold me back from what?—“From what I can do.“

I can’t snap with my left hand, but I haven’t let it hold me back.”

– Amy Blaschka

I found that on Amy’s “About” page on amyblaschka.com

Amy’s quote resonated because I can’t left-hand-snap either. On a really good day I can make a near inaudible wispy sound and that’s about it. (I do hope this revelation will not come between us).

What about you, can you snap with both hands?

Most all of us have something we’ve always wanted to do. A desire bigger than snapping our fingers with both hands.

The majority of us also have something holding us back from pursuing that something. What’s the something keeping you from another something you’ve always wanted to do? (Did you get that?)

A place deep inside so protected we may have forgotten it’s even there.

C’mon… Don’t deny it… We’ve got you on camera…

The thing is, our lizard brains have it sequestered. It’s tucked away in a safe place.

There’s this process we all go through as we learn to accept the improbabilities from the possibilities of our world. 

• Improbabilities such as not having the genetic makeup to become an ultramarathoner. 
• Possibilities in being willing to put yourself out there and take a real shot… even if all you have right now is an hour or two on the weekends.
• Possible… if we just go for it.

But the line between the possible and the impossible is incredibly thin.

So thin, the tendency is to allow the not so likely to cloud the entirely possible from our view.

We’ve all been told that anything is possible at one time or another. Then, in abrupt contrast, we’ve also been told to be realistic for about ten-thousand reasons.

That alone could explain why we’ve been conditioned to favor a safer route.

It’s understandable, but if we want something bad enough why don’t we just work through it?

What holds most of us back?

I just read a half-dozen or so articles and found many of the same reasons kept showing up.

1. Good old Procrastination. We humans must love the idea of postponing our dreams.

• Waiting… for that bolt of lightning, that flash of inspiration, for the right time, for circumstances to change.

• Overthinking, which leads to – Doubt. The easiest task in the world is to think of why not.

• Which leads to Fear. Hardwired into our being simply to keep us alive. Yet there’s no sabre-tooth tiger waiting to pounce.

• Shiny objects, Distraction, and getting ready. Anything that takes you eye off the goal serves to hold you back.

• Environment. A place to do our thing that’s set-up to do that thing. Nothing special, just a place, a starting point.

• Expectations… that conditions or the situation should be different.

This list is far from complete.

Have you ever explored what’s holding you back from taking on that dream or desire and giving it a real shot?

Remember… We’ve all been told that anything is possible, and we’ve also been told to be realistic and be happy where we are.

The thing is this… you get to pick. Choose to be safe and nothing changes. Choose to try that something and who knows?

Sure, it might not work out. It might also lead to something else you’ve never thought of before.

You just never know…

Be untucked.

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Copyright © 2019 Jeff Meister