Imaginibbles

What holds you back? I mean, what really holds you back? Think about it for a minute.

We all have that inner voice that is ready and willing to give us all the reasons why we shouldn’t, can’t or are unable to do something. It’s the voice that whispers in our ear why we will fail or worse get laughed at.

I call mine Noman. Everyone say, “hi Noman!”

He can feel 10 feet tall with dark ominous shadows behind him or almost invisible like a secret puppet master. He starts at a whisper and elevates into a shout. Just as I am about to step into the spotlight he starts gently pulling me behind the curtains. We all have him. Sometimes he stops us from saying something we want to say and other times he keeps us from going after something we know in our hearts to be great.

Does yours have a name? If not, feel free to call him Noman too. I find it helps to give him a name.

Believe it or not, I‘ve learned to accept Noman. Even better, I’ve learned to use Noman to my advantage. I no longer let Noman make a decision for me, conscious or subconscious. I now make sure Noman and all his reasons are front and center. Once I do that Noman goes in the trash and so do all his excuses. Oohhh, it feels great to throw him away! With power I crumple him up and like a 7-foot basketball player he gets a one-handed dunk into the trash can. Swoosh, Noman 0, Tamara 1.
Don’t let your Noman get in the way of life. Trust, one of the building blocks, is about believing in you and not letting your fears hold you back. In order to do that we have to own our Noman yet not let Noman own us. No need to ignore him to accomplish that. In fact, I’m saying the opposite. Acknowledge him completely but let him own all the lame fears, excuses and reasons. At the end of the day those are Noman’s issues!
The next time you find yourself holding back (and you know when you are doing that) follow this simple exercise:
1) Print out Noman or draw one of your own
2) Write down all of Noman’s fears, excuses, reasons and bad ideas
3) With gusto, crumple him up
4) And like you mean it, throw him and his lame fears and excuses in the trash
5) Done! You no longer need to hold back. Go forth with courage and belief.

Remember you own that b*&#*!

Dream big. Dream often. Say no thanks to Noman!