Learn to Embrace Vulnerability, Not Run From It
I started working on this blog in June of 2017. I started thinking and dreaming about this blog in June of 2016. I took an entire year of researching, researching, and more researching on how to start a blog, different blog posts to write, etc. An entire year of just waiting. I was waiting for something or someone to tell me to dive in and start the blog that I had been dreaming about. This whole sitting and waiting thing probably could have gone on for the next three years or even longer but when I got home from college in May, I realized that I needed to push fear out of the way and embrace vulnerability to do what I wanted to do.
Embracing Vulnerability
I'd be lying if I said that I am not completely terrified of the future of Naturally Nicoletta: Will it be a complete bust? What will people think about it? What will people think about me? Am I completely wasting my time? While those are all valid questions and concerns that are completely natural for me to have, I am not going to let them stop me from doing something that I have been constantly dreaming about.Allowing yourself to be vulnerable is one of the most frightening things you can do but it can also be one of the most beneficial things. One of my favorite quotes has always been,
"To share your weakness is to make yourself vulnerable; to make yourself vulnerable is to show your strength." - Criss Jami
Many people view vulnerability as a bad thing, but in my eyes, it pushes you to grow. So many people that I know (I used to be one of them) sit and watch life happen. They continue to wait for the perfect moment, or a sign telling them what to do, they repeatedly make excuses for why they are waiting to do something. Why not just do it now?
The beautiful thing about life is you can make it whatever you want to make it. You have all of the ability to be who you want to be, do what you want to do, eat what you want to eat, etc. The moment that you can overcome the fear and the opinions of others, you are golden. In that moment, you have become that much closer to living the life that you have always dreamed about.While it is always easier said than done, and I'm not saying your dreams will come true over night...the sooner you begin making small steps towards something that you want to do, the sooner you will achieve that thing.
Taking Steps to Reach Your Dreams
I recently purchased a Passion Planner for the new school year and I don't know why I haven't heard about this thing sooner. The Passion Planner brand is known for passion roadmaps: which allow you to map out your goals and how to achieve them. These planners also include end of the month reflections and a beautifully simple design which gives you the opportunity to customize it to what you need. Creating a mind map or even journaling to figure out your goals and the steps to achieve them, can be a great way to take these first steps.You can say you want to achieve something but are you willing to take the steps to get there? It's not easy. Pushing fear, your doubts, and any other obstacles out of the way won't be easy and it may take time. I still struggle with ambiguity and embracing the fear of the unknown, but I know that if I let that control my life, I will wake up one day and realize that I wasted my entire life being held back by myself. What a crazy concept that is.To be completely honest, I am writing this post mostly for myself–to remind myself that fear and vulnerability is OK but not to let it get in the way of what you really want. I hope that you can get something out of this post as well. Even if it doesn't quite resonate with you yet, keep it in the back of your mind. Hopefully one day it will sink in and you will have the power to take control of your life.XONikki