Say “Yes” to what life has to offer, and expand your edge.

For a large part of my life, I said, “No” to a lot of things. I said “No” because of some kind of mental resistance.  It seemed easier to not do something than to do it. What I noticed when I looked inside, however, was this resistance was tied to something around fear or shame surrounding the things that actually was not serving me.  So, I stopped saying “No.”

Notice your own resistance to saying “No.” Who are you saying “No” to?  You are saying “No” to yourself.

Do I ask her out? 

Do I get up and speak?

Do I dance at the party?

Do I say yes to that invitation to the event?

In the above examples, the “Do I” is coming from your heart or your gut. That is that part of your being that knows what life is calling you to do.  The “No” is usually coming from your head, not your heart or your gut.* 

“No” results from a nagging thought or voice telling you all the negative stuff that might happen were you to say “Yes.” 

“She might not like you.”

“I’m not good at speaking in front of people.”

“I’ll look foolish dancing.”

“I don’t know many people going.”

…etc... 

With the benefit of hindsight, I have discovered that when my mind is wanting me to say “No” to an opportunity, it is usually an indicator that that opportunity is something that will bring me growth and joy.  The “No” resistance from the mind happens when we approach our edge, and at the edge is where the growth happens.

At every point, it is a simple matter to do the thing in question or not.   When I’ve chosen to go with the choices that life brings to me, but I’m a little scared because I have approached an edge, I often feel a visceral experience akin to jumping off a cliff for about .5 to 1 second.  Or, sometimes it can feel like walking through some other-dimensional portal.   

One thing for sure is that whenever I have overcome the hesitation towards the things that feels like an edge, I have never once regretted it.  Rather, I've found that from the moment of saying “Yes” to the edge opportunities that life brings me, my whole life becomes more expansive than it was before.  

So, I encourage you to overcome your resistance, and say “Yes” to what life has to offer!

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*On the other hand, if it is your heart or gut that are telling you “No,” then listen to the “No” in this case! And don't let your brain convince you to do something your heart or gut is warning you against.