Did you know this?
You may have heard the concept that our amygdala or lizard brain works hard to keep us "safe".
I learned this concept deeply in Coaching School and here is what hit me with this idea today that I want to share with each of you because it is important:
Our amygdala has a job of keeping us SAFE which means: staying the SAME. Therefore, when we step out on a limb and consider trying something new, our lizard brain will perceive that as a threat and yell "DANGER" and try to stop us from doing that "new" thing even if there is no real danger involved.
Example -
when we want to try something new such as:
* going to a networking group and introducing ourselves in a 60 second 'commercial' in front of the group
or
* going live on social media
or
* being vulnerable about our fear of _________
or
* holding a first in our business (first reach out to a potential team member, first message to a possible customer, first time to do an in person vendor event or spa experience, etc)
Any of these FIRSTS can 'feel' like danger to our amygdala.
So -
It is super important to let our brain know:
"It is ok for me to try something new.
Thank you for showing up with all the alarms to make sure I am safe, but you (name your amagydala!) can go take a nap. I am safe. I am okay. I am going to try something new and I am safe. You can stand down."
You will be AMAZED with the difference in telling your brain that you are SAFE and that it is ok to do something new. (I learned this technique of talking to our lizard brain and telling it to go take a nap from a Psychologist who coaches high performing kids before high stakes SAT or GRE tests and teaches them techniques to feel safe and calm. This psychologist nicknamed his amagydala "Andy" and he tells Andy that it is ok to stand down and take a nap)
What happens when we tell our amygdala to stand down?
Well...it slows down and quiets our lizard brain from yelling thoughts that are designed to keep us in the same place without growth because that is "safe" for our amygdala. The types of thoughts that we share with ourselves will vary, but here are a few common ones that our lizard brains will offer:
You've never done this.
You might fail.
Who are you to try xyz?
It isn't the right time.
Don't do it.
It could go horribly wrong.
You don't have enough time.
You need to research this for weeks before starting.
You don't know what you are doing.
What will others think?
Instead, we can gently tell ourselves:
I am safe.
I am simply trying something new and this will help me grow.
I want to do this new thing in order to ____.
It is good for me to stretch, grow and try new things.
I won't be perfect the first time I try something and that is ok and I am willing to do it again and again to grow and improve.
Thoughts?
Is this helpful?
This was a game changer for me when I learned this and I hope it is helpful for at least one person.
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