Attack of the what if’s

Did you ever have an attack of the ‘what-if’s? For example: what if no one buys my book, what if my product bombs, what if I make a fool of myself, what if my business fails, what if I’m not good enough? Everyone has these worries – even Harry Potter before his first Quidditch game! But what if people do buy…and what if the product sells well? What if your business succeeds? What if you are perfectly suited to what you’re trying to achieve? What if you don’t make a fool of yourself?

For that matter, what if you do make a fool of yourself? Hey, it’s not a fairytale, sometimes sales tank, results stink, failures pile up like roadkill…is that a reason not to try? What if the worst you imagine does happen…but it doesn’t matter, because you had a go.

Even though you might fail, even though no one might buy, even though the product may sit on the shelf. Because whatever the result is, it’s better than wondering ‘what if’? What if I had written that book? What if I had created that product? What if I’d been wildly successful? What if by writing that book, creating that product, taking that chance, I’d have learned something amazing that changed my life?

Maybe the book would have just helped one person? Maybe the product would have been something you could gift to a friend in trouble? Maybe the chance you took would have made you stronger and more prepared to take the next chance?

Don’t think for a moment that I don’t have attacks of the what-if’s.

I do. I did before I started my (sort of) first book. I did while I was writing that book. I did when I finished it, I did when I released it, I did at every stage – probably once a month or more over the course of a year. Same with the e-workshop I created.

Same with the stuff I’m working on now. But I also know what it’s like to not to take the chance, not to try, not to risk, not to take the leap of faith. And it hurts way more than every single ‘failure’ I’ve had (and there’s been a few). Failure is fleeting. You fail, you hurt, you learn and you move on (and often what you learn is immensely valuable to help you succeed next time).

But the longing and regret of ‘what if’ are not fleeting. They last…well, until you find the courage to take that risk. And while sometimes failure and its hurt linger, they don’t linger as long as those things still undone, risks not taken, books not written, resources not created, ideas never tested. For example, I have a friend who’s in dire straits at the moment, and I have a book inside me that I know would be really helpful to her. Only I haven’t written in yet.

You’ll find moments where those ideas you haven’t acted on could have done something good, could have changed your life (even if only a little bit)…if only they weren’t just in your head! So get them out of your head and into the world.

Can I guarantee you success? No. Sadly not. I can guarantee that if you try, you won’t wonder ‘what if’ anymore (for me, an excellent reason to do anything). And I can guarantee that even if it doesn’t meet your expectations, there will be other compensations, other gifts from taking the risk and taking the action.

I’ve been there. I wrote an ebook before anyone knew what an ebook was. I sold about 80. But was it a waste of my time? Hell no. I learned so much about writing, marketing, sales, my creative process, ebooks, technology, failure, my ability to deal with failure, feeling like I wasted my time, realising if one person read it and was helped by it, I hadn’t wasted any time.

And realising that creation or action is never a ‘waste’ – it might not meet your expectations (especially if your expectations are super-high), but the process of creation or decisive action alone is worth it. Once something is created and done, it can’t be taken away from you, you always have it…and it can always come back and surprise you with its gifts. Every time you try, and take a risk, and create and take action, you strengthen those muscles…and who knows what adventures you might go on when you just ignore those pesky ‘what-if’s.

Stop holding on to your creative dreams and let them fly.

Stop holding yourself back from taking that risk. Go for it, whatever what-if’s might be attacking you.

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