Imagine if, on days when you are about to do something in life or in work that scares you, you could have an easy way to remember that “You got this”?
Well, you know what – you can.
It’s called your “Badass list”.
I’ve been doing a five day challenge that involves a number of mindset exercises, and one of them was so good that I wanted to share it with you.
The Badass list.
Day one of a Be On TV challenge with Jen Gottlieb and Chris Winfield, and the heavy guns are already out.
Jen is explaining her Badass List exercise.
For those moments when you are about to do something uncomfortable or scary – be it at work or in your life – when it can be super easy to get caught up in the fear and all the reasons why you couldn’t possibly do it – you simply turn to your badass list and remember what a Powerhouse you really are.
I’ve taken the exercise that Jen presented, and added a couple of extra steps.
Step 1: Think about what it means to you to be a Badass?
“Badass” is probably quite an Anglo Saxon expression, and if you look it up in the dictionary you will most likely find a range of definitions including things like “tough, uncompromising, intimidating” and “marches to their own drum”.
I couldn’t find myself in a definition that talks about intimidating, but I could find myself in the idea of marching to my own drum.
What is important in the overall notion is about being bold and courageous and so in the end, I looked for my own definition.
The way I interpret the word is this. I consider myself to be a badass when I am really scared about doing something but I do it anyway; or when I stand up for what I believe in, even if that puts noses out of joint; or when I ignore what everyone tells me is expected of me and I do what I feel is right even if its not what has been done for years.
Bearing in mind that the spirit of the exercise is to motivate yourself to remember what you are capable of – what does “Badass” mean to you?
Think about that for a moment.
Step 2: Brain dump your badass moments
Spend some time listing out ten different times that you have been a bad ass in your life. Remember its your definition of Badass – and they can be moments from work or from any other area of your life.
Display the list somewhere that you can see it easily and look at it in the moments of self-doubt to remind yourself what you are capable of.
Step 3: Choose three occasions and remember what it took for you to be such a badass
Select three items on your list that really mean something to you – it might be because it was very recent, or the most scary, or very fulfilling – whatever works for you.
For each of them, I want you to think about the situation and moment in time, and I want you to answer this question:
What did it take for me to gather my courage in both hands and do the thing?
Maybe it was the situation and you knew that the implications of doing the thing were less bad than the implications of not doing it. Perhaps you decided that you just needed five seconds of courage to do it. Or perhaps, you gave a call to your favourite person for a pep talk and she gave that boost.
Whatever it was, the objective of this step is for you to remember that you already have all the tools you need to overcome the fear or discomfort and do the thing. Because next time it comes up, you are going to tap back into those tools.
How to use your badass list:
Next time that you are in a situation where you are feeling outside your comfort zone, or downright scared, look at the list. Pick one of the things on the list that inspires you or is in some way similar to what you are going through at the time, and tap into those tools to take your courage in two hands and do the thing.
Perhaps this will mean weighing up what would happen if you continue to listen to the fear and not do the thing. Perhaps this will mean counting down from 5 and having those seconds of courage to press publish. Or perhaps it will involve giving yourself a pep talk, just like your favourite person did that other time.
Whatever it is, just know this: you are a badass and you have got this!
I would love to hear about your badass moments. Want to share them with me? Put a comment in the comments box and let me know.