Walking the path of your dreams, hand-in-hand with fear and self-doubt

"You've got to go out on a limb sometimes, because that's where the fruit is." - Will Rogers

I’m writing a comic book. Yes, you read that correctly. 

Seems a bit left field, doesn’t it? Especially on the heels of launching a transformational coaching/energy healing practice (and leaving a “safe” job in the photography business).

But what is life if you are not pursuing your dreams? Why are you here on this planet if not working toward the expression of who you are? If the primary energy of the universe is love, then aren’t you honoring love when you pursue what matters to you?

When I was recuperating from surgery that cured me from cancer, I realized that I wasn’t fully expressing myself … I always had horses in my life (a huge dream for me) and my spiritual practices but what else? What else did my heart yearn for? If my time on this planet is now marked as limited, what was I going to do with it? What legacy was I going to leave?

As I’ve written previously, I spent nearly seven weeks recuperating on a couch, which meant that I had a lot of time to ruminate. One of the things I uncovered was that there was a story buried inside of me. I have always been a reader – I love stories and storytelling and consider it a magical art. But I realized that I also wanted to create a story, to build a world and populate it. To take characters on a transformational journey and share the experience. So I started to transfer the story out of my head and into words. I took comic book writing courses and met a group of people with whom I co-founded an indie anthology, which debuted at New York Comic Con this past October.

The aptly named anthology group I co-founded.

Bully for me! Yes indeed, I have enough grit to follow my dreams.

But …

There are times when I think that I am out of my mind, to lay everything down on the line and try to make these dreams come true, especially in a fairly new industry to me. What if I fail? Does this make me a loser? I don’t report into an office any more, I don’t get a guaranteed paycheck, have had to let go of many things that don’t contribute to my forward movement and am now completely responsible for my own success. I wonder if people must think that I am a ne’er do well, reduced in their esteem because my decision has placed me in a more precarious financial position. In the middle of a recession too! Do you hear my knees knocking?

I love the quote above – because it’s true. To pursue your dreams is to take a risk. The fruit of one’s life requires a stretch. And many times it requires a sacrifice. But no one talks about how absolutely scary it is. When you think about pursuing your dreams, what fears come up for you? What feelings, judgments, criticisms come up for you?

At this moment, I do not have an easy solution for dealing with self-doubt. But I do realize that FEAR and self-doubt will walk the path with you… The next question will be: how do you make them your friends?

More to come.

And please feel free to share your experiences with befriending fear as you pursue your dreams.

Blessings!