If you teach yourself this, success will naturally come your way

Just think about it. Something you really want, but keep being too afraid to do. Because you don't dare, you don't do it. And because you don't do it, you don't move forward.

For me, for example: driving a car. I have a fear of driving and therefore only sit in the car out of the way. I don't have a car (probably consciously because God help, otherwise you have to be in it too) and I haven't even bothered to take a course to overcome my fear of driving. Result? I still have a fear of driving.

And you can repeat this little tune with everything in life. A confronting but at the same time reassuring thought: you are actually the only one who is really in your own way. The cool thing about the brain? Just like a muscle, the brain gets stronger the more you use it. And you actively ‘use’ it by pushing through those barriers. Crawling out of that comfort zone. But we often find that too scary.

Do you feel stuck and that you can't realize your goals and dreams? Maybe you're ‘stuck’ in a fixed mindset. Where you want to go is the growth mindset. Only then can you truly change. Let me explain.

You and I were born with a growth mindset. As a child, you see opportunities and possibilities in every situation. You love to take on adventures. Think of that famous Pippi Longstocking quote. ‘I've never done it before, so I think I can do it.’ As you get older, your brain can switch to a fixed mindset. This can happen due to criticism or negative experiences. Suddenly you start seeing obstacles. You start thinking less grandly and creatively. The Pippi statement suddenly turns around. ‘I've never done it before, so I have NO idea if I can do it.’

And there you encounter a little circle. (Hi self-fulfilling prophecy). You believe that you can't do something and therefore don't put in the effort to learn it. The result: your negative perception of yourself is confirmed and your life remains the same. Wooooo. Maybe that's not at all what you want. At least I don't.

Fortunately, the brain is not the hardest; you can switch back to the growth mindset if you want. With a growth mindset, you believe that you can learn anything in principle. And that you are also open to doing everything to get better. The result: you develop yourself.

So remember: you can do anything. Even the things you can't (yet) do now. And if you really want it, then you will just invest hours into it. And then you will get better. Ha, personal growth doesn't have to be that difficult.