Just do it!
Nike's 'Just do it' may be the kick up the backside we all need
Hello!
Welcome to my first ever newsletter 😀
I’ve never realised just how all encompassing the Nike slogan is. I also never thought I would be taking life advice from a sports brand but stranger things have happened.
I feel like I’m not the only one who puts things off - from the biggest dreams to small everyday tasks that need doing - I'm constantly thinking of doing but never really doing it.
Whether that’s finally getting the courage to seek other job alternatives, to pursue a hobby or learn a new language - we’re very good at talking ourselves out of it.
Take this YouTube thing for example - this has been a vague pursuit I’ve been toying with for a good few years. Yes, years.
I was making all kinds of excuses; it’s not the right time, I don’t have experience, I don’t have the confidence, ad nauseam. All these excuses were really a front for not really wanting to take that leap, because I was afraid of failing.
We create these concessions for ourselves when it comes to actually wanting to make change. Let’s be honest, being where you are now, no matter how disheartening or unfulfilling - it is still a familiar place. But when we create these boundaries for ourselves, in not wanting to go beyond them for fear of the unknown, we never really grow, never really try out what’s really out there.
It was when I was trawling through the Nike store, searching for new trainers that their slogan just stood out to me. It sounds ridiculous but it was like a eureka moment of Roda, why don't you just do it? Why procrastinate for literal years? Why is it always tomorrow, and not now?
So the next day, I got the camera out, plugged the mic and hit record.
I’ve come to the realisation that thinking isn’t doing. Thinking, imagining, dreaming isn’t what gets me the results I want. The real failure is letting the fear of failure hold me back.
What is that thing you’ve been putting off? What is it you always wanted to do but you’ve never fully committed to actually making it a reality?Â
Maybe today is the day to finally get up and do it.
And as the Nike succinctly puts it: Just do it.
Take care,
Roda x Â
PS: (Next week, I’m going to go through ways we can actually reach our goals) Watch this space! :)
Interesting things…
A Ted Talk - Fear setting by Tim Ferriss was an eye-opening video about how we should define our fears when it comes to goals rather than the goals themselves. Absolutely worth checking out.
A Podcast - Criminal Episode 45. Relistened to one of my all-time favourite Criminal episodes. (Only because I’ve literally listened to all episodes) This one centred around Bryan Stevenson, an African-American lawyer who has spent three decades working to get people off death row. Such an impactful and emotional episode.
A book - I’ve just finished Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel - a book set in a post-apocalyptic world that is not too dissimilar to what’s going on now 👀 but instead of the usual end of the world survival themes - it delves into social relationships, emotional resilience and is just a blast to read. ✅ Highly recommend!