What’s Holding YOU Back?

I hope you’re having a great week! So this past Monday I was reminded (once again) that the hardest part of anything in life is just starting.

Here’s what happened:

Okay, so I don’t tell many people this but I reallllly dislike going to the dentist! My whole life I’ve dreaded sitting in that chair and getting my teeth “operated” on.

Anyway, I’ve had “schedule dentist appointment” on my master to-do list for a few months now. There have been a few stepping stones along the way in terms of  researching group health insurance plans for employers, applying for insurance, finding all new doctors/dentist, waiting for my “waiting period” to end, etc., that have made it a lengthy process.

In fact, this whole applying for new insurance and switching all doctors has been more of a project than a single task. I’m a bit embarrassed to say it’s taken me months to schedule my actual dentist appointment. But better late than never.

Anyway, a few weeks ago I had my initial dental consultation. And when I heard the periodontist recommend a “deep cleaning,” my body language immediately closed up and I found myself experiencing fear (perceived future pain as I describe it).

Which by the way, it’s amazing what you learn about yourself when you pay close attention to your own body language.

For those that don’t know what a deep cleaning is (because I didn’t know either), it’s a 2-hour procedure where they numb your entire mouth and clean both your teeth and under your gums. Yes, under your gums!

Despite the fear, I ended up scheduling the deep cleaning for this past week.

Fast forward to Monday morning (the day of the actual appointment), I can’t tell you how much I was dreading the appointment! If you asked me about it on Monday morning, I would have said, “I’ll do anything to NOT go!”

12:45PM rolls around and I walk into the periodontist’s office ready to face my fear 15 minutes early for my 1PM appointment.

Five minutes later, the hygienist called me back to the room and began prepping for the procedure while I patiently sat in the chair waiting for the periodontist to walk in.

The periodontist walks in, we chit-chat and laugh, and then she promptly gets started with the local anesthesia. At this point, my fists were clenched so tightly as if I was holding on for my life as the needles were going into my gums!

About an hour into the procedure I remember just sitting there with my mouth wide open, the overhead light shining in my eyes, and the sound of the tools scraping against my gums thinking, “this isn’t so bad after all!”

Yes, I said it! In the midst of all of my “fear” leading up to the procedure, there I was lying there with no pain whatsoever!

Looking on the bright side, I was basically just relaxing in a really comfortable chair while two experts were taking excellent care of me, making me healthier! Can I be any luckier?!

And then the reminder popped into my head once again, “the hardest part of anything is just starting. Once you get started, the process gets easier and easier.” And that holds true for everything we do.

So here’s yet another reminder to you; the hardest part is just starting. The fear you might be experiencing isn’t real.

So my question to you is this: what is bothering you inside your head? What are you currently fearing? What is holding you back from progressing?

Whatever that “one” thing is that you are dreading, I challenge you to just take the first step sometime in the next few days. Whether it’s writing things out, making that initial phone call, doing some preliminary research, spending 20 minutes sorting things out, or whatever it might be – just take the first step.

Once you take that first step, you’ll not only realize that it isn’t as bad as you’ve built it up to be inside your head, but you’ll also feel so much better mentally. And when we feel better mentally, we’re more productive because we can think more clearly without the negative feelings clogging up our head.

So that’s my two cents for this week. Just start.