When I signed up to be a Hockey Cheerleader.

 I had NEVER been a hockey cheerleader before.

I know you are prob like, DUH ASHLEY, WTF is your point?!
I set a goal to try out for the squad. 

I questioned myself, my ability, what people would think…& I went for it anyways.

Nothing stopped me.

It was BRAND NEW TERRITORY for me.

It was scary. Outside of my comfort zone.

I had ZERO proof I would make it or could do it…

I did it. 

Same with…

• Dance class. 

• My sorority. 

• College. 

• Dating.

• Kids! 

• Entrepreneurship.

It was ALL brand new at some point. 

Everything we’ve EVER done in our lives, for the 1st time, we’ve never done before…

CRAZY when you think about it that way, right?! For some people it comes natural to try new things, but not everyone is wired that way. MOST of us have a brain that tells us to avoid failure, which is basically don’t do ANYTHING you have not done before because you MIGHT DIE. (Not really but our brains like to freak out.) 

Some of us were WAY more open to signing up for something new or setting goals without questioning them when they were younger…(hand raised)

And that “some of us” hit adulthood & we stopped. Why?!
We think just because we haven’t done something in the past means we can’t do it now. “Eh, it is too late. This is how I have always done it.” Or we just get complacent.

We are so attached to what we know, we don’t even attempt to create something different. Or do anything new.

We just keep creating the same life OVER & OVER.

And MOST of the time, it is because of 1 thing: we’re afraid to fail. 

I’ll admit, in the past that word has scared the F outta me.
I’m embarrassed to admit the amount of things I haven’t done because I “didn’t know how” & wanted to avoid failure.

But I am learning to embrace it. To shift my mindset around the BENEFITS of failing!
When I have tried new things in the past & failed, I let that completely STOP me, it was my reason to give up instead of using that as a learning opportunity. Or as feedback for ways to do it differently next time.  (When you look at it that, it is a little less scary right?)

When you wanted to learn to walk as a tiny human, you didn’t think, “oh, I have never done that before, I can’t do that.”
NOOOO!! You got up, you took steps. You fell. You got up again & kept repeating until you got it. You FAILED. You got GOOD at failing. And from that failure (FALLING) came growth (WALKING). 

Not having done something before is not a reason to not do it. 
Be willing to try it.
Be willing to fail. 
Then pick yourself back up again & keep going. 
And when you start getting the results, you know you’re doing it right.
There is never an age limit to set new goals & dream new dreams. 
I am giving you permission to as we get closer to a new year, to set a new big scary goal, go after it AND fucking fail forward. 

“Don’t fear failure, fear not trying!”