How to Succeed Despite the Naysayers.

Do you have a naysaying voice in your head?  A little devil that jumps on your shoulder and whispers in your ear.....

"That's the silliest idea I've ever heard."

"Don't waste your time." or " It'll never work."

I certainly have. It's the same voice that tells me I did not complete a project perfectly. I ate too many cookies, didn't exercise enough, should have preempted my children leaving their cellphones/homework/ PE kit at home and should have written that thank you letter 2 weeks ago.

Perhaps you have real live Debbie-downers  around you who say things like, 

"Why would you want to run a 5K/ climb Machu Pichu/learn to sculpt/open a bakery /change careers/write a blog?  

All these questions remind me of a delightful, beautifully illustrated children's book called Duck On a Bike by David Shannon. It begins.....

One day down on the Farm, Duck got a wild idea. 

'I bet I could ride a bike!' he thought.

At first he rode very slowly. And he wobbled a lot, but it was fun! 

......When cow saw duck...she thought,

 "A Duck on A Bike? That's the silliest thing I've ever seen!"

and when sheep saw duck she thought, 

"He's going to hurt himself if he's not careful." 

and so it goes on with each animal in the farmyard projecting their own neuroses/laziness/ superiority/ interest onto  Duck's  unlikely antics.

 Dog thought it was, "A neat trick." and Mouse wished he could ride a bike like Duck.

It was my son's favorite book when he was 4 because it made him laugh and he understood that Duck had done something daring, risky and unlikely. Eventually through Duck's  enthusiasm all the farm animals  join him on a bike ride and realize they are having fun too. (You'll have to read the book to see how they get hold of all the bikes!)

The duck's risk-taking reminds me about how it felt to begin my blog. 

I started out very slowly and wobbly. 

I hesitated and doubted. 

I panicked, I had run out of things to say. (I still panic!)

But I persevered and just kept writing and risking and publishing.

 Over time I gained confidence, took one hand off the bike handles and even tried some tricks! Those of you who have given me constructive and supportive feedback have helped me keep my balance and advance my skills.

And the farm animal skeptics in my head, still rear their heads every Sunday when I am thinking about my next post. They hang around when the blog goes out to try to prove to me that this time no one will read it and I will finally have to stop writing.  

But Brainstorm is still here and this post you are reading is my 100th post! 

With time and your feedback,  my confidence is building and the naysayers are dropping in volume and numbers. Thank you for being the encouraging, supportive  'farm animals' who have joined me on the bike ride. I look forward to continuing the journey with you by my side! 

Watch this space for my next leap of faith. ( Next, Duck eyes up a tractor ride....!)

What is your own 'Duck' trick? ( What have you or do you want to achieve in spite of the little devil on your shoulder?)

Who is your sternest critic? Is it your internal voice or a colleague or family member?  How do you respond and how do you quiet them? Tell me your story below or leave me a comment.

Have a great week.

Gillyx

Many thanks to you all for your support of  Brainstorm. Please help spread the blog readership by sharing this post or others to your face book page. It's very simple to do. Click on the F icon at the very bottom of this post, write a comment if you like and post the link. 

Thank you! 

 Please email me at gilly@bringingbooksofcomfort.org or leave a comment on this post below. I'd love to have your feedback. 

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