I Doubt, You Doubt, We All Doubt

But, we don’t have to let it keep us down

Your faith can move mountains and your doubt can create them. — Anonymous

The Good Weeks

Some weeks are good weeks. Everything doesn’t have to go as planned, but everything is ok. My mind still stays planted in my purpose, and progress is made. In the good weeks, my strategies and self-strength skills step up to stave off any doubt that tries to stop my success.

This is when everything is good and calm, my mind, body, and heart are all aligned. Anything is possible.

Not all weeks are good weeks.

Monday

I look myself straight in the eye. All I need is a slight thought that leads toward self-acceptance. Then a flood of praises will flow to embrace me and pull me out of this funk. How did I get to this unproductive place? At least I finally know how to snap out of it. Self-love will save the day.

Not today, Kara.

I can’t even focus on the mirror. The urge to look away, to run away is too strong to resist. I guess I will skip this exercise today. Maybe I can feed on the overflow of self-love from the good days last week. Apparently, I am not even going to have any self-acceptance this morning, self-love isn’t going to save me today.

This isn’t the end of the world. It is just the end of this moment. Each moment is an opportunity to shift my perspective and feel more positive and productive. Blah. Blah. Just get on with the day. See what happens. Hope it doesn’t suck too bad.

Tuesday

Hey! You actually did pretty well yesterday, but I am Doubt, and I’m running the show today. I know we have met. We have worked together in the past. Today I’m taking over in a most powerful way that you have never experienced before. By the end of the day, I will have you questioning why you are even alive.

Wednesday

Wow. Yesterday was tough. Doubt almost won. But, today is a new day.

I found the antidote. If doubt shows up, I will accept doubt as a normal part of my life, not as the boss of my life. I will have doubts. Doubts will not keep me down. I will lean on the passage I read last night:

Questioning helps us see that there is just nothing we can do to change some things about life. Sometimes referred to as locus of control, when we see what we can change versus what we can’t, we have more power to improve our lives. - Luke Rowley, 4-Minute Summary (Doubt: A Hisotry)

And this quote I found:

Doubt can only be removed by action.― Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

I will take action against doubt.

For some things, I will see doubt as a light to show me what I can’t change. I don’t need to worry about those things.

For other things, I will see doubt as a question, not a fact.

I will ask: So what? What if that did happen, could it be ok?

I will ask: What if? What if something else happened?

Then, I can choose. Doubt is not the authority or my reality. It is just a light or a question. Both can help me. Thank you doubt.

Thursday

That was such a weird dream. Seeing my grandpa, my grandma, and my friend in their afterlife. For a minute, I thought I was gone too. I can’t believe I wasn’t freaked out. I seemed fine with my passing, I was there enjoying the day and their company.

Well, obviously, I haven’t passed on to the afterlife. I am still right here. I wonder how today will go?

If I get weirded out by last night’s dream, I will remember what Socrates said.

Death may be the greatest of all human blessings. — Socrates

I am ok knowing death may be a burden, or it may be a blessing. There is no way to know. The topic is truly not worth my worry.

Friday

Mirror, mirror on the wall, we made it through another week without a fall.

It was a rough start, but I am so proud of you for pushing when you needed to push and for going with the flow sometimes too.

I know you thought all of this mirror work and strategies weren’t really for you. It is fine to keep this little toolbox tucked away for when it’s needed. The practices have come in handy and this new place is much better. Keep practicing. Keep practicing. Don’t go back to the bad days.

Today’s going to be a kick-ass day!

Don’t forget to finish writing the words lifted from The Four Agreements in the new notebook for work. The transition back to the office will be eased by staying positive and focused on service. I like the idea of the white notebook as a symbol of peace. Good call.

Offer Uplifting Words (Be Impeccable with Words) Driven by Service (Nothing Personal) Focus on Facts and What CAN be Done (No Assumptions) Be Productive, Quality (Always Do Your Best)

Saturday

Whew. Made it through. I can’t believe how easy it is for me to get back on track. Having these Saturday self-study sessions has been good. Adding perspective and more tools to the toolbox definitely builds strength.

Today, I want to think about what is going on with some of my projects and even with some of my self-strength strategies, like exercise, mirror work, and HeartMath. My feet and my brain know the steps that help me stay on track, but something is holding my heart back from going all in and fully adopting these habits. Even when I do break through the doubt, and my heart is on board, when I almost get to the habit stage, there is still something pushing against my progress. My steps are still slow and stiff. It’s still a struggle.

Scroll, scroll, hmmm…this might be just what I need. Huh. Check it out. I threw a question out into the universe and the universe threw me an answer. Thank you, Jane Elliott PhD.

Authors Note

I embellished some internal dialog in this piece. I would guess that everyone has had some iteration of these thoughts as they work through doubt and self-resistance on the path to intentional and purposeful living.

I cannot teach anybody anything. I can only make them think.― Socrates

Find things that make you think. We each have our own path. We will each need our own toolbox. As we gather our tools we will find less resistance on the path. Peace is present when we are living in our purpose.

Thanks for reading! I hope everyone fills their toolbox with whatever they need to live in a way that fulfills them each day!

Thanks to Diana C. for this week’s thought-provoking prompts and for allowing space for us to respond in whatever way our creativity takes us.

When people with questions get together, they can positively influence each other. Relating to one another and working through their skepticism helped them see that they weren’t alone. Happy, productive lives were said to result from reviewing the teachings of other like-minded individuals. — Luke Rowley, 4-Minute Summary Doubt: A History: The Great Doubters and Their Legacy of Innovation from Socrates and Jesus to Thomas Jefferson and Emily Dickinson

I touched on each of these prompts:

Monday: a place to go when you need love. Tuesday: Personify one of your insecurities. Wednesday: prescription for doubt. Thursday: paradisal beyond the cloudscape. Friday: talk, move and love with purpose. Saturday: your feet want to walk a certain path, but your heart insists on walking another.