If you never try, you'll never know
Setting a goal is scary because we often don't want to mess up or feel stupid, as things didn't work out in the way we imagined. I know this feeling well! When I had the idea for VALA, my sensible brain said "But what if it doesn't work out? Stay in the day job with a regular salary". However, the optimistic part of my brain said "What if it DOES work out? What if you create a gel that people love? What if you look back and think I'm glad I took the chance?". The advice from my family was "You won’t know unless you give it a go... TRY it!".
It sounds odd to be saying this considering I never met him or knew him personally, but when the skateboarder Dylan Rieder passed away from cancer several years ago, it was a bit of a wake up moment for me. It really hit home hard that someone my age with so much in front of him had his life cut short so abruptly. I remember sitting in my flat in London and thinking "I wonder if he achieved everything he wanted to?" and started to reflect on my own life. I was 26 and always had plans to move abroad (one day) and start a business (one day) but the years were flying past and there was never the right time.
Sat on my sofa that day, I thought to myself "Do I want to look back on my life and think 'I wish I'd done that' or smile and say 'Well I'm glad I gave that a go!’”. So I decided to live life with a little more intention and be more present. Six months later I moved to Australia and while out there I had the idea for VALA. Through these experiences I have learned a lot, stepped out of my comfort zone and tried new things.
I've since applied this approach to other areas of my life, including running. My brain still likes to default to the "comfort zone" setting whenever I set a new mileage or time goal because it's easier. It's taken a lot of consistent work to quieten the negative internal chatter and self-doubt that starts before I'm about to do a long run. Now I use affirmations and visualisation to get me to the finish line and have realised the majority of the work is mental.
When I reach each goal, I always look back and think "I'm glad I decided to try". After all, if you never try, you never know!
It sounds odd to be saying this considering I never met him or knew him personally, but when the skateboarder Dylan Rieder passed away from cancer several years ago, it was a bit of a wake up moment for me. It really hit home hard that someone my age with so much in front of him had his life cut short so abruptly. I remember sitting in my flat in London and thinking "I wonder if he achieved everything he wanted to?" and started to reflect on my own life. I was 26 and always had plans to move abroad (one day) and start a business (one day) but the years were flying past and there was never the right time.
Sat on my sofa that day, I thought to myself "Do I want to look back on my life and think 'I wish I'd done that' or smile and say 'Well I'm glad I gave that a go!’”. So I decided to live life with a little more intention and be more present. Six months later I moved to Australia and while out there I had the idea for VALA. Through these experiences I have learned a lot, stepped out of my comfort zone and tried new things.
I've since applied this approach to other areas of my life, including running. My brain still likes to default to the "comfort zone" setting whenever I set a new mileage or time goal because it's easier. It's taken a lot of consistent work to quieten the negative internal chatter and self-doubt that starts before I'm about to do a long run. Now I use affirmations and visualisation to get me to the finish line and have realised the majority of the work is mental.
When I reach each goal, I always look back and think "I'm glad I decided to try". After all, if you never try, you never know!