Determination to Excitement

When I think about doing new and unfamiliar things, even things I want to do, I often think they will involve both discomfort and/or hard work.  I am currently choosing to do a lot of things I have never done before - teaching yoga, sharing my writing, learning to play the harmonium, coaching others, and starting a coaching business.  In the past, my default approach when faced with new challenges and personal growth was to think thoughts that would help me feel persistence and determination. 

“Things worth doing are supposed to feel hard and uncomfortable at the beginning.”  This is a thought that has helped push me forward towards success throughout my life— including becoming a doctor, learning to speak Spanish, and learning to ski to name a few.  As I face new challenges, my brain likes to default to this old familiar thought.  

Last week my coach challenged me to consider a different thought.  Her suggestion was “discomfort is the currency of your dreams.”  This thought inspires her.  For me, it peaks my interest in a different way.  If discomfort leads to my dreams, my brain suddenly is interested in embracing discomfort rather than resisting it.  The thought of my dreams coming true opens my mind up.  Having more fun is one of my current goals. My brain comes up with a new more effective thought specific for me and specific for right now.

“On the other side of discomfort is fun.”   This thought leaves me excited and energized.

For me, because determination and persistence are my strong suit, both thoughts would move me forward on my journey. What I see clearly now though is that they won’t get me there in the same way and they won’t lead me to the same endpoint.  When I think the thought “on the other side of discomfort is fun,” I show up completely differently as a coach, as a yoga teacher, and as a business woman.  I show up excited, seeking fun, and enjoying myself. 

This is the fun of working with a coach.