be bold.
I am participating in #Trust30, an online initiative and 30-day writing challenge that encourages you to look within and trust yourself.
Prompt #7: Our arts, our occupations, our marriages, our religion, we have not chosen, but society has chosen for us. We are parlour soldiers. We shun the rugged battle of fate, where strength is born. – Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Next to Resistance, rational thought is the artist or entrepreneurs worst enemy. Bad things happen when we employ rational thought, because rational thought comes from the ego. Instead, we want to work from the Self, that is, from instinct and intuition, from the unconscious.
A child has no trouble believing the unbelievable, nor does the genius or the madman. Its only you and I, with our big brains and our tiny hearts, who doubt and overthink and hesitate.” - Steven Pressfield, Do the Work
The idea of “being realistic” holds all of us back. From starting a business or quitting a job to dating someone who may not be our type or moving to a new place – getting “real” often means putting your dreams on hold.
Today, let’s take a step away from rational thought and dare to be bold. What’s one thing you’ve always wanted to accomplish but have been afraid to pursue? Write it down. Also write down the obstacles in your way of reaching your goal. Finally, write down a tangible plan to overcome each obstacle.
The only thing left is to, you know, actually go make it happen. What are you waiting for?
(Prompt by Matt Cheuvront)
——
Perhaps I have been realistic at some point in my life. I imagine I must have been? But irrational boldness has been more the norm for quite some time; I have been living change like the French Revolution–not like evolution, slow and steady, but like lightning. I married a man I had known for two weeks. I flew to Europe with five dollars in my wallet. I gave birth without drugs. I have been known to swallow my chewing gum, ignoring all those warnings of my organs being stuck together.
I listen to my heart more than my wallet. This leads to rash decisions that are driven by intuition and love.
I love rashness. And I love.
Boldness is full of magic.
What magic is next? Writing children's books. Asking Richard Powers to dinner. Making an animated film with Peter Reynolds. Having a cup of Jet Fuel at the Blue Moon in Hastings, Nebraska, with Johnny Depp. Creating a symphony project. Sky-diving with my daughter, Emma. There is nothing holding me back.
