Mojo Monday - Saying Yes To Life is Saying Yes To Discomfort with Carly Taylor

In this week's Mojo Monday, Carly Taylor discusses the importance of embracing discomfort as a part of truly living life. She references a quote by Dr. Steven Hayes, founder of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to highlight how avoiding discomfort can prevent personal growth and meaningful experiences. Carly shares her personal struggle with writing her book due to feelings of imposter syndrome and fear of judgment. She encourages viewers to recognise that saying no often stems from a desire to avoid discomfort rather than from disinterest.

00:00 Introduction and Inspiration

00:53 The Gatekeeper of Discomfort

01:19 Personal Struggles with Discomfort

02:57 Encouragement to Embrace Discomfort

03:54 Living Life to the Fullest

05:35 Final Thoughts and Apologies for the sound quality!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:10):
Hi everyone, It's Carly Taylor here for this week's Mojo Monday.
So I was the other day, I will admit I
was scrolling on Instagram and I saw this post that
doctor Stephen Hayes had posted, and he is one of
the founders of ACT or Acceptance Commitment Therapy, and it said,

(00:30):
saying yes to life means saying yes to discomfort. And
I saved it because it's true right. Our willingness to
say yes to discomfort, to allow it to show up,
to hang around for a while, shapes or can shape
what we choose to do and what we quietly choose

(00:51):
not to do. So discomfort is kind of like a gatekeeper.
If we're unwilling to feel awkward or uncertain or exposed
or judged or even alone, then a whole lot of
life stays on the other side of that gate. So
new experiences, new challenges, new relationships, personal growth, joy all

(01:13):
locked behind the discomfort that we're not quite willing to feel.
And here's a personal example. So I have finally started
writing my book. And when I say finally, I mean.

Speaker 2 (01:26):
This has been years of stalling and just dabbling and
stopping and overthinking and announcing I'm going to write a
book and then not doing it.

Speaker 1 (01:36):
And do you know what held me back? It's discomfort,
so specifically emotional discomfort, the discomfort of imposter syndrome, the
fear of being judged, what people will say about me.
That in a highly critical voice, that is so persuasive

(01:56):
on steering life away from discomfort, because, let's face it,
if I don't write it, no one can critique it.
If I don't write it, I can't fail. If I
don't write it, I don't have to face that it's
comforted people not liking it or not reading it, or
not even buying it. And that voice, that internal narrator
that we all have, can take over your life if

(02:20):
you allow it to. And it's more than a narrator,
it's a dictator, or can be a dictator of our lives.
So maybe you've got your own version of this. Maybe
there's something you're saying no to that there is really
a part of you that really wants to say yes,
but you convinced yourself that it's too hard. So maybe

(02:44):
starting to date again, which could feel really uncomfortable, or
having a hard conversation, or traveling on your own and
the uncertainty that brings, or changing careers or even learning
on a new language. But you keep saying no, no,
not because you don't want it deep down, but because
there's this uncertainty, and that means it's uncomfortable, and that

(03:08):
inner voice keeps finding really clever ways to talk you
out of it. And if that's you, here's my message
for today's Mojo Monday. Say yes anyway, say yes to
the discomfort, because chances are you're not actually saying no

(03:29):
to whatever it is that you really want to do.
You're saying no to the discomfort that it brings. So
tell their inner voice to take a back seat while
you move forward with the racing heart or the shaky
hands or the voice that still says don't do it
because it's too hard. And even if it doesn't work out,

(03:52):
you've said yes to life and that matters. That's what
brings meaning into our lives. That's how we get out
of zombie land and really start to thrive. So these
days I say yes to more things. My inner voice
say is more than ever and it's still really uncomfortable.

(04:14):
But that discomforts only their short term, because life isn't
about staying in your comfort zone and doing the same
thing every day and numbing the hard pit bits and
avoiding anything that's uncertain and feels uncomfortable, And don't get
caught up in the trap of I don't want to
do that if really what you're saying is I don't

(04:37):
want to feel the discomfort that comes with that, because
they are two very different things. But we're really good
at convincing ourselves otherwise. Life is lived through experience. It's
lived through showing up, through saying yes even when it
feels really hard. And here's something we don't talk enough about.

(05:00):
We don't have unlimited time. We act like we do,
but we don't. We don't get to wait forever to
feel ready or to live a good life. So whatever
it is that you want to do, whether it's booking
that trip or making that phone call or starting to

(05:23):
date again, now is the time. Not because you have
mastered your fear or overcome your emotions, but because you're
willing to feel those things and then do that thing anyway.
So whatever it is for you, no matter how small,
move towards it this week. Expect the discomfort and see

(05:48):
what happens when you say yes to it. You might
just feel more alive than you felt in a long time,
and that is growth. So thank you so much for
joining me. Everyone have a great week and I will
catch you next week. See ya.