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Life Is Precious — Don’t Become Paralyzed By Self-Doubt
Each day is a chance to reframe our doubts as positives — indications not that you don’t have what it takes, but that you are consciously aware of your limitations.
“Don't ask yourself what the world needs, ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
— Howard Thurman, Author, Philosopher & Civil Rights Leader
On a recent episode of the acclaimed news program 60 Minutes, tennis champion Rafael Nadal made a candid, but somewhat puzzling, statement.
“If I don’t feel doubt,” Nadal told reporter Jon Wertheim, “I’m going to be in trouble. Doubt is very important to my success.”
“If you don’t have doubt, it probably means that you’re being arrogant.”
Nadal is a 19-time grand slam champion well on his way to becoming the sport’s all-time leader despite his elimination this week from the Australian Open. Many regard him as the greatest tennis player of all time. Yet, here he was admitting that, on occasion, even he lacks confidence.
If Nadal’s words can teach us anything, it’s that even the most successful people in their industries can be insecure at times — feeling that what they have may not be enough.
But the key is that they do not let their concerns paralyze them. Instead, the doubts humble them to train even harder each day. Then, when pressure situations arise, they can be mentally, physically, and emotionally prepared to persevere.
As you read the following declarations, reflect on how you can avoid letting self-doubt inhibit you from pushing beyond your outer limits:
If you are reading this, you are alive and still have incredible work to do, hearts to liberate, and minds to inspire. Life is about progression, not perfection.
There are no limits except those you that impose on your mind.
Live by design rather than by default. Many people spend their entire life working to make someone else’s dream come true instead of going out and cultivating their own.
Focus on letting go of any self-limiting and sabotaging stories you tell yourself, the masks you hide behind, and the labels you over-identify with.
Sometimes experiencing doubt, uncertainty, and pain is nature’s reminder that there is something essential to learn, to experience, and to embrace.
When we walk into tunnels of darkness, we’re provided with an invaluable opportunity to re-emerge into the light, having grown and transformed into something far more real.
Each day is a chance to reframe our doubts as positives — indications not that you don’t have what it takes, but that you are consciously aware of your limitations.
Ask yourself: What are your doubts and insecurities? How can you turn those perceived weaknesses into strengths the way Nadal has?
Self-doubt makes you human. Refusing to acknowledge self-doubt is the only true weakness!
P.S. If you are in search of a book recommendation, our team at The Daily Coach highly recommends More Beautiful Than Before: How Suffering Transforms Us by Steve Leder. In this elegantly concise, beautifully written, and deeply inspiring book, Rabbi Leder guides us through pain’s stages of surviving, healing, and growing to help us all find meaning in our suffering. Drawing on his experience as a spiritual leader, the wisdom of ancient traditions, modern science, and stories from his own life and others’, he shows us that when we must endure, we can, and that there is a path for each of us that leads from pain to wisdom.
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