June 2, 2024 • 10 mins
Ever found yourself paralyzed at the starting line of your own ambitions? Join me, Jamie, as we tackle the mental hurdles that keep us from chasing our dreams in today's episode, with insights from Brianna West's illuminating work. I'll open up about my own dance with procrastination and how embracing the philosophy of 'starting before you're ready' can lead to unexpected triumphs. Through my marathon training anecdotes, we'll discover the true value of committing to our goals, despite the fear of failure looming over us like a persistent shadow.
Rise and shine with a dose of morning motivation that could be the game-changer for your passion projects. I'll reveal how a mere 10 minutes a day can build the momentum you need to achieve what once seemed unreachable. It's not just about showing up; it's about being present and forgiving ourselves for the occasional stumble. So, let's break free from the chains of perfection and instead, celebrate each step forward. And remember, the journey we embark on today could be the story we tell tomorrow.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey, welcome back to Go Ask Sawyer.
This is Jamie, your host of GoAsk Sawyer and our new series
called 10 Minute Thoughts.
On this week's episode, we talkabout starting, just starting.
I went for a walk today and Iwas talking to Gunnar and we
were just discussing how sooften we have these grand ideas.
(00:22):
Right, we get this idea in ourhead, this want in our heart try
something different, to trysomething new and yet it goes
nowhere other than that idea,because we either think we can't
, we think we shouldn't, we havepeople around us who maybe
think it's silly, or somehowtalk us out of it and at the end
(00:43):
of the day, if something is putin you an idea, anything of
that sort it is meant for you.
I really, truly believe that theamount I've been reading in
books, the amount I've beenreading in the Bible, when
something is put in you, it isput in you for a purpose, it is
put, the idea is put there for areason.
Normally it's so that you do itor have some idea around it or
(01:06):
somehow help get it off theground.
And so often I feel like wetalk ourselves out of these
ideas because they just seem toobig.
And today on our walk, I wasreally thinking.
I kept telling myself if youdon't start, you'll never start.
If you don't start, you'llnever start.
If you don't start, you'llnever start, and it just seemed
like such a okay, jamie, I getit, I get it, but do I really?
(01:27):
I've talked in these last fewepisodes just about different
things in my life that I'mtrying to change or trying to do
, or just different things thatI've been thinking about.
But at the end of the day, Ican think all I want, and until
I start doing it whether it'swriting, recording podcasts,
finding a new job, redevelopinghabits around food and exercise
(01:49):
I'm never going to be able tostart it.
But I feel like we always gointo like, okay, I'll do it
Monday, I'll start my dietMonday, I'll start writing
Monday, I'll go to the gymMonday, I'll start eating better
Monday.
This will be my last weekend ofcraziness.
But then Monday comes and goesand nothing has changed.
And then a week goes by, andanother week goes by and, before
(02:09):
you know it, a month has goneby and nothing has changed in
your life and you're still maybefrustrated and you're still
thinking of this idea and youmay even think to yourself oh,
if I would have just started amonth ago.
Now it's too late, but at theend of the day it's just really
not.
And I'm a big person of I can'toverly plan.
(02:29):
If I start to overly plan andmake a whole thing, I'll usually
talk myself out of it.
I just need to jump, which isanother reason I feel like
sometimes I get myself introuble because I don't think
through things, but I just needto jump.
I just need to do it before I'mready.
And so often I feel like a lotof us are able to talk ourself
(02:50):
out of the task at hand.
I know I'm at least able totalk myself out of the task at
hand.
I'll have a whole Saturday andkeep telling myself I'll do the
laundry later, I'll startcleaning later, you know, I'll
just record that podcasttomorrow.
I know I was going to write forlike a half an hour today, but
I can do that tomorrow.
Yeah, I have three hours.
I probably could go for a quickyou know run or I could go to
(03:12):
the gym, but I'll do thattomorrow.
I push so much stuff off thatit's just a big waste of time.
And then you always look backand think, man, I could have
just started.
What is that saying aboutworking out?
You never.
The only regret you ever haveis the workout you didn't do,
and I feel like you could applythat to anything.
The only time we truly regretsomething worthwhile is when we
(03:36):
didn't start it or try it.
Even those of us who maybe haveattempted to do a 5k and we did
it and maybe we never run againafter that, we would be more
full of regret if we said wewere going to do it and never
did.
For those of us who havelaunched an idea, even if it
didn't come all the way through,we at least started it.
The regret usually lies in thethings that we don't even try
(03:59):
for, the questions we do noteven ask.
So today I ask, I want you toask yourself what is something
that I want to start that I justhaven't started yet, and why
I'm reading this book or theMountain?
Is you Brianna West?
I believe I quoted her in one ofmy past podcasts and this is a
self-sabotaging reason here thefear of failure, and I feel like
(04:22):
we don't show up for ourselvesby starting things because we
are scared we're going to fail.
But she says there's adifference between failing
because you're trying somethingnew and daring and failing
because you are not showing upand doing the work and being
responsible for your actions.
So the fear of failing is oftensomething that holds people
(04:42):
back from putting in the workthey would need to become truly
great at something.
But it can also take another,more inside form.
Once we have establishedsomething new in our lives, this
fear can come up as an instantworry that we're missing
something.
And so I think, when I thinkabout these quotes and like what
(05:03):
she's saying about failing, youknow, I've run a few marathons
in my life and I think the firstfour I didn't really train for
like it was a very half-assedtraining.
I wouldn't really push myself.
I'd go out and do most of theruns and then that way, when I
didn't get the goal time that Iwanted, I could blame it on.
Oh well, yeah, I didn't trainvery well.
(05:23):
That's me not showing up formyself.
The most recent marathon I ranand then the ultra marathon I
ran after that I put in the timeI showed up for myself.
In rain, in snow, I was goingthrough a breakup.
When I was sad, when I justdidn't want to, when I was
exhausted, I put in the work andI showed up for myself.
(05:45):
And I think those are the tworuns I'm the most proud of,
because I really showed up.
It might not have been thefastest and no, I mean, I didn't
fail Anytime you cross thefinish line I do not believe is
a fail.
Even if you don't cross thefinish line when you show up, I
don't see it as a fail.
But how often do we let fearget in the way Because it's like
, oh well, if I don't do this toperfection, I'm failing.
(06:07):
But really the fail comes fromwhen we don't show up for
ourselves.
So when we decide we want towrite that book, we sit down
every day for 10 to 15 minutesand we just write and we just
write, which is great.
I think that's a great way tostart any new task.
Is that 10 to 15 minutes?
It's short.
But then all of a sudden westop pushing ourselves, we stop
(06:30):
paying attention to what we'rewriting.
We're just kind of putting itout there, putting it out there,
putting it out there, but thenall of a sudden it just becomes
action.
There's nothing behind it.
That's when we're not showingup for ourselves.
When I did this podcast, when Ifirst started thinking about
this podcast, I got this idea.
I knew I was on the brink ofsomething.
I felt it in my gut and Ididn't know what it was and I
(06:50):
just started writing aboutthings I want to talk to people
about, because it seemed likewhat I was getting from people
is they enjoyed talking to me,they enjoyed listening to me.
I had done a lot of work onmyself and I continue to do a
lot of work on myself and peopleseem to really enjoy having
these conversations and Ithought what about a podcast?
I love listening to them.
So I started making outlines, Istarted creating YouTube,
(07:13):
different things, I talked todifferent people that did
podcasts and I kind of createdthis whole scenario in my mind
and then I just thought I needto just start and then I
launched my first podcast, myvery first episode of my
intentions, and it's not edited.
I wouldn't say it's the worstone, but it's not edited.
I didn't really think itthrough, I didn't really have an
(07:33):
outline, but I just needed tojump and I just needed to start
and I was so proud of myself andhere I am sitting we'll say
three seasons later, becausethat's how I'm structuring this
doing 10 minute thoughts and Iam so thankful I showed up for
myself in that moment bystarting, starting before I was
ready starting even though I wasscared what people were going
(07:54):
to say, jamie.
You actually have nothing tosay, jamie.
No one wants to hear what youhave to say.
You're a horrible editor.
You don't even know how to do apodcast.
But here's the thing.
Personally, I know one otherperson doing a podcast and
that's it.
And I think it's pretty specialwhen you, when you get
something in your heart and youfigure out a way to make it
happen and you just jump.
(08:16):
Recently I noticed I've beenfalling into old patterns with
myself.
I've talked about that again ona lot of the podcasts.
So these last two weeks I'vedecided to get up 15 minutes
early every day to take a longwalk with Gunnar because I love
the mornings.
I realize I really do love themornings as much as I love
sleeping in.
These realize I really do lovethe mornings as much as I love
sleeping in.
These spring mornings we havehere in Wisconsin have just been
(08:38):
absolutely glorious.
So I used to set my alarm forfive o'clock and it would go off
until six, 6.10 in the morningand I would be like, well, if I
can't get up early, I can't getup early, so I just won't do
anything at all.
So I thought, what if it's just545?
I have sweatpants.
Next to my bed, I have mytennis shoes Sometimes it's just
Crocs I know it's not good formy feet, I don't care.
Sports bra and a sweatshirt.
I just get up, I throw thatstuff on, I grab the leash, I
(09:02):
walk outside and I go.
And I have to tell you I havelooked so forward these last two
weeks to getting up with mybuddy.
I have conversations with him,I have conversations with God.
I set intentions.
Sometimes I just look at thesky and think this is so cool.
I get to start my morning thisway and then I usually even have
an extra five to 10 minutes inthe morning that I'm able to sit
(09:24):
down at my desk and journal,even if it's two minutes, with
my coffee.
I really love mornings.
But I got to tell you I juststarted.
Instead of saying like, okay,I'll do it Monday, I'll do it
this day, I'll do it this day, Ijust started.
I got the idea in my head.
I set my alarm and I was likeno matter what, I'm going to get
up, even if I'm half asleep,and that has helped switch this
(09:44):
mindset in me into like, okay,what's next?
So what is the story that'ssitting on your heart?
What's the story sitting inyour head?
What is something that you'rethinking I'm scared to fail at?
What is something that you justneed to start?
(10:04):
You need 10 minutes a day tojust start this, and if you miss
a day, that's fine, do it thenext.
You miss two days, that's fine,do it the third.
How are you showing up foryourself by just starting?
How are you taking 10 minutesto start something?
So you can start something?
Thanks for sticking with me.
Have a beautiful day.
This has been your 10 MinuteThoughts.
Bye.
Hey, welcome back to Go Ask Sawyer.
This is Jamie, your host of GoAsk Sawyer and our new series
called 10 Minute Thoughts.
On this week's episode, we talkabout starting, just starting.
I went for a walk today and Iwas talking to Gunnar and we
were just discussing how sooften we have these grand ideas.
(00:22):
Right, we get this idea in ourhead, this want in our heart try
something different, to trysomething new and yet it goes
nowhere other than that idea,because we either think we can't
, we think we shouldn't, we havepeople around us who maybe
think it's silly, or somehowtalk us out of it and at the end
(00:43):
of the day, if something is putin you an idea, anything of
that sort it is meant for you.
I really, truly believe that theamount I've been reading in
books, the amount I've beenreading in the Bible, when
something is put in you, it isput in you for a purpose, it is
put, the idea is put there for areason.
Normally it's so that you do itor have some idea around it or
(01:06):
somehow help get it off theground.
And so often I feel like wetalk ourselves out of these
ideas because they just seem toobig.
And today on our walk, I wasreally thinking.
I kept telling myself if youdon't start, you'll never start.
If you don't start, you'llnever start.
If you don't start, you'llnever start, and it just seemed
like such a okay, jamie, I getit, I get it, but do I really?
(01:27):
I've talked in these last fewepisodes just about different
things in my life that I'mtrying to change or trying to do
, or just different things thatI've been thinking about.
But at the end of the day, Ican think all I want, and until
I start doing it whether it'swriting, recording podcasts,
finding a new job, redevelopinghabits around food and exercise
(01:49):
I'm never going to be able tostart it.
But I feel like we always gointo like, okay, I'll do it
Monday, I'll start my dietMonday, I'll start writing
Monday, I'll go to the gymMonday, I'll start eating better
Monday.
This will be my last weekend ofcraziness.
But then Monday comes and goesand nothing has changed.
And then a week goes by, andanother week goes by and, before
(02:09):
you know it, a month has goneby and nothing has changed in
your life and you're still maybefrustrated and you're still
thinking of this idea and youmay even think to yourself oh,
if I would have just started amonth ago.
Now it's too late, but at theend of the day it's just really
not.
And I'm a big person of I can'toverly plan.
(02:29):
If I start to overly plan andmake a whole thing, I'll usually
talk myself out of it.
I just need to jump, which isanother reason I feel like
sometimes I get myself introuble because I don't think
through things, but I just needto jump.
I just need to do it before I'mready.
And so often I feel like a lotof us are able to talk ourself
(02:50):
out of the task at hand.
I know I'm at least able totalk myself out of the task at
hand.
I'll have a whole Saturday andkeep telling myself I'll do the
laundry later, I'll startcleaning later, you know, I'll
just record that podcasttomorrow.
I know I was going to write forlike a half an hour today, but
I can do that tomorrow.
Yeah, I have three hours.
I probably could go for a quickyou know run or I could go to
(03:12):
the gym, but I'll do thattomorrow.
I push so much stuff off thatit's just a big waste of time.
And then you always look backand think, man, I could have
just started.
What is that saying aboutworking out?
You never.
The only regret you ever haveis the workout you didn't do,
and I feel like you could applythat to anything.
The only time we truly regretsomething worthwhile is when we
(03:36):
didn't start it or try it.
Even those of us who maybe haveattempted to do a 5k and we did
it and maybe we never run againafter that, we would be more
full of regret if we said wewere going to do it and never
did.
For those of us who havelaunched an idea, even if it
didn't come all the way through,we at least started it.
The regret usually lies in thethings that we don't even try
(03:59):
for, the questions we do noteven ask.
So today I ask, I want you toask yourself what is something
that I want to start that I justhaven't started yet, and why
I'm reading this book or theMountain?
Is you Brianna West?
I believe I quoted her in one ofmy past podcasts and this is a
self-sabotaging reason here thefear of failure, and I feel like
(04:22):
we don't show up for ourselvesby starting things because we
are scared we're going to fail.
But she says there's adifference between failing
because you're trying somethingnew and daring and failing
because you are not showing upand doing the work and being
responsible for your actions.
So the fear of failing is oftensomething that holds people
(04:42):
back from putting in the workthey would need to become truly
great at something.
But it can also take another,more inside form.
Once we have establishedsomething new in our lives, this
fear can come up as an instantworry that we're missing
something.
And so I think, when I thinkabout these quotes and like what
(05:03):
she's saying about failing, youknow, I've run a few marathons
in my life and I think the firstfour I didn't really train for
like it was a very half-assedtraining.
I wouldn't really push myself.
I'd go out and do most of theruns and then that way, when I
didn't get the goal time that Iwanted, I could blame it on.
Oh well, yeah, I didn't trainvery well.
(05:23):
That's me not showing up formyself.
The most recent marathon I ranand then the ultra marathon I
ran after that I put in the timeI showed up for myself.
In rain, in snow, I was goingthrough a breakup.
When I was sad, when I justdidn't want to, when I was
exhausted, I put in the work andI showed up for myself.
(05:45):
And I think those are the tworuns I'm the most proud of,
because I really showed up.
It might not have been thefastest and no, I mean, I didn't
fail Anytime you cross thefinish line I do not believe is
a fail.
Even if you don't cross thefinish line when you show up, I
don't see it as a fail.
But how often do we let fearget in the way Because it's like
, oh well, if I don't do this toperfection, I'm failing.
(06:07):
But really the fail comes fromwhen we don't show up for
ourselves.
So when we decide we want towrite that book, we sit down
every day for 10 to 15 minutesand we just write and we just
write, which is great.
I think that's a great way tostart any new task.
Is that 10 to 15 minutes?
It's short.
But then all of a sudden westop pushing ourselves, we stop
(06:30):
paying attention to what we'rewriting.
We're just kind of putting itout there, putting it out there,
putting it out there, but thenall of a sudden it just becomes
action.
There's nothing behind it.
That's when we're not showingup for ourselves.
When I did this podcast, when Ifirst started thinking about
this podcast, I got this idea.
I knew I was on the brink ofsomething.
I felt it in my gut and Ididn't know what it was and I
(06:50):
just started writing aboutthings I want to talk to people
about, because it seemed likewhat I was getting from people
is they enjoyed talking to me,they enjoyed listening to me.
I had done a lot of work onmyself and I continue to do a
lot of work on myself and peopleseem to really enjoy having
these conversations and Ithought what about a podcast?
I love listening to them.
So I started making outlines, Istarted creating YouTube,
(07:13):
different things, I talked todifferent people that did
podcasts and I kind of createdthis whole scenario in my mind
and then I just thought I needto just start and then I
launched my first podcast, myvery first episode of my
intentions, and it's not edited.
I wouldn't say it's the worstone, but it's not edited.
I didn't really think itthrough, I didn't really have an
(07:33):
outline, but I just needed tojump and I just needed to start
and I was so proud of myself andhere I am sitting we'll say
three seasons later, becausethat's how I'm structuring this
doing 10 minute thoughts and Iam so thankful I showed up for
myself in that moment bystarting, starting before I was
ready starting even though I wasscared what people were going
(07:54):
to say, jamie.
You actually have nothing tosay, jamie.
No one wants to hear what youhave to say.
You're a horrible editor.
You don't even know how to do apodcast.
But here's the thing.
Personally, I know one otherperson doing a podcast and
that's it.
And I think it's pretty specialwhen you, when you get
something in your heart and youfigure out a way to make it
happen and you just jump.
(08:16):
Recently I noticed I've beenfalling into old patterns with
myself.
I've talked about that again ona lot of the podcasts.
So these last two weeks I'vedecided to get up 15 minutes
early every day to take a longwalk with Gunnar because I love
the mornings.
I realize I really do love themornings as much as I love
sleeping in.
These realize I really do lovethe mornings as much as I love
sleeping in.
These spring mornings we havehere in Wisconsin have just been
(08:38):
absolutely glorious.
So I used to set my alarm forfive o'clock and it would go off
until six, 6.10 in the morningand I would be like, well, if I
can't get up early, I can't getup early, so I just won't do
anything at all.
So I thought, what if it's just545?
I have sweatpants.
Next to my bed, I have mytennis shoes Sometimes it's just
Crocs I know it's not good formy feet, I don't care.
Sports bra and a sweatshirt.
I just get up, I throw thatstuff on, I grab the leash, I
(09:02):
walk outside and I go.
And I have to tell you I havelooked so forward these last two
weeks to getting up with mybuddy.
I have conversations with him,I have conversations with God.
I set intentions.
Sometimes I just look at thesky and think this is so cool.
I get to start my morning thisway and then I usually even have
an extra five to 10 minutes inthe morning that I'm able to sit
(09:24):
down at my desk and journal,even if it's two minutes, with
my coffee.
I really love mornings.
But I got to tell you I juststarted.
Instead of saying like, okay,I'll do it Monday, I'll do it
this day, I'll do it this day, Ijust started.
I got the idea in my head.
I set my alarm and I was likeno matter what, I'm going to get
up, even if I'm half asleep,and that has helped switch this
(09:44):
mindset in me into like, okay,what's next?
So what is the story that'ssitting on your heart?
What's the story sitting inyour head?
What is something that you'rethinking I'm scared to fail at?
What is something that you justneed to start?
(10:04):
You need 10 minutes a day tojust start this, and if you miss
a day, that's fine, do it thenext.
You miss two days, that's fine,do it the third.
How are you showing up foryourself by just starting?
How are you taking 10 minutesto start something?
So you can start something?
Thanks for sticking with me.
Have a beautiful day.
This has been your 10 MinuteThoughts.
Bye.
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