I’m not qualified to think like this but I do anyway!

Have you watched the video above? I often head to Instagram stories to impart my thoughts on everyone else and often they turn into a blog, such as this one. However, I could easily let Gremlin number 1 take control and convince me that it’s not a good idea, that I’m not qualified enough to allow my thoughts to be shared with the general public, that people don’t want to listen to my ramblings. And of course, G1 might be right, not everyone wants to listen to my brain dumps, often created throughout a dog walk. But, just maybe, my video might make someone think twice about their business, it might make them rethink their marketing strategy or pick up a self help book designed to bash our gremlins into the ground.

So this got me thinking about what other gremlins we encounter on our journey into entrepreneurship. Hands up if you’ve ever felt one of the following:

• Shit, I’m not sure I can do this
• I’m afraid people will judge me
• My friends don’t see how awesome I am
• I don’t know enough
• No-one will want to buy from me
• I don’t know what to do first
• I’m out of my depth
• I don’t know what to charge
• How the hell will I get this off the ground?
• What if my competitors laugh at my attempts?
• I’d rather stay invisible, away from the limelight
• I don’t have enough time

“It’s not what you are that is holding you back, it’s what you think you are not” Anonymous

I bet you’ve felt at least one of the above statements and they are just the tip of the iceberg of low self-esteem comments I hear from my clients, so if you take anything away from reading this, you are not alone. These thoughts are natural, I’m not saying that they are right, but they are what we all think at some point. It’s my job to act as the anti-dote to all of those feelings and turn them around. Give you an injection of confidence that will help you manage those feelings moving forward.

Recognising when you are feeling those gremlins raising their damn cheeky heads and voicing their opinions again and knowing the truths behind them will allow you to pursue your dreams with all the passion began with. It might be that you feel shame, powerless or experiencing levels of anxiety which you aren’t comfortable with. These are all signs that your gremlins are growing. Do you know what one of the best ways of keeping them at bay, and perhaps it’s one of the hardest as we challenge behaviours we learned as a child, but experiencing a sense of accomplishment 9no matter how big) will do more for you than listening to those negative opinions.

Please know that the gremlins don’t have to be in your life forever, we can work on that bit together if you prefer.