Before the First Word
Some days we’re stalked by a shadowy Imposter Syndrome, or freeze as our blood runs cold the moment before stepping into a presentation. It’s a primary instinct that can be immobilising. What it cannot be, is ignored. When we wake, our thousand fears conspire and collectively wake with us.
But something else exists in our evolutionary toolkit, however. Another primary instinct, just as powerful and useful on those days when workplace anxiety kicks in a little too hard. Fear can happily be countered by Imagination. Fear is, if nothing else, an unhappy future imagined.
Flip the What If
And one of the most powerful mental footholds in our daily working lives is the power of What If? Fear is us asking ourselves What if it all goes wrong… or What if something terribly awful and inescapably catastrophic happens? Caution is well regarded as a survival instinct, but how many of our daily fears are borne of routine, playing out in our heads so as to better be prepared in case they happen? That’s a switch we can flip. And we can do every day, and build stronger our own mental routines.
Some days we’re going to be on autopilot, so why not choose the right destination?
So! We can use our imagination to kick the cobwebs off the old fear and loathing. Give our fears a face and then squarely punch them. Describe them as an enemy would be described, and give it sufficient quarter. Take back the stage in your own mind and order the spotlight to shine only on the good things that are in your future. At Oh Yeah we thrive on the power of imagination, and know that it is the engine of all that comes next.