Pick a challenge, that feels good to you afterwards!
I believe, if we pick the right challenge for ourselves, it can be very enlivening, even though it might not feel that way, while we are in the midst of it.
To be clear I am not talking about the adversities life and circumstances often throw at us, which can be unbearable to handle, like for example pandemics, terminal illness, caring for elderly parents etc. These are utterly out of our control and we do the best we can in those situations, one day at a time.
No, I am talking about the kind of challenge we actively chose, which is connected to an idea we have, a passion and/ or a value of ours and which makes our heart skip a beat. It’s scary and thrilling at the same time, we are not quite sure, whether we are able to do it, but we’re gonna do it anyway.
Just because!
Let me give you a recent example of mine, which did make me really feel good afterwards.
Ready? Here it comes!
The challenge, which made and is still making me feel so good about myself right now, is that I drove all the way from Barao de Sao Jao, Portugal, back to Galway, Ireland on my own!
2900 km and two ferries later, using only toll free roads and visiting my friends in Cornwall along the way, I made it back in one piece.
For someone else, this might be a piece of cake, my mom or cousin for example can drive 1000 km in a day. It doesn’t face them at all. Me, 600 km a day is the most I can do and I have to take things slowly.
The downside of having a great imagination is, that I am also wonderful at literally imagining all the things, that can go wrong. It’s like an inner film, that runs even though, I didn’t sign up for the horror show:
The car exploding with me in it was one of the main themes for example.
Thank you anxiety…
Maybe the fact, that I was stranded with my car once in France for three weeks on my way back from Germany to England, 30 km away from the ferry port didn’t help either.
What I am saying is, that the challenge we are gonna feel good about afterwards is a very personal thing. It means a lot to us, while it might not be such big of a deal for others. That’s why it is vital to ignore what others are doing, when choosing a challenge. But rather look inside and connect it with a passion, a value and an idea of ours. Because when we do this, it naturally will have all the components we need to embark on this journey:
Determination, we’re gonna do it!
Excitement and fear, at least for the most of us! Sorry!
We haven’t done it before, not in the way we are intending to do it this time.
There is an element of risk involved and we are not entirely sure whether we’re gonna manage.
So, let’s break this down, shall we?
To be honest, originally, I was trying to get a friend of mine to travel and share the journey back with me, but that didn’t pan out in the end. At the same time I had to somehow get back to Ireland. I seriously was wondering, how I actually got all the way to Portugal in the first place, lol!
Taking a plane back, which would have been so much easier wasn’t an option and I really couldn’t chicken out anymore, could I now…
One of my passions is traveling, being on a journey, not having everything planned and it links very much into three of my values, which are close to my heart:
Discovery, curiosity and freedom!
I loved the idea of driving through all of those countries, Portugal, Spain, France, England to get back to Ireland. Taking it slowly and really experiencing the distance, versus flying.
And that’s exactly what I ended up doing. I had a week to get to the ferry in Roscoff, 2000 km from my starting point. My anxiety had me check my car in the garage before leaving, good idea, always.
Honestly it felt like an epic journey, somehow like a pilgrimage, where you are confronted with yourself in some way.
I was driving and driving and driving with sometimes the radio or the CD player on. I booked my accommodation just one day ahead to have more flexibility.
While I was driving, the landscapes changed, the temperatures, from hot to much colder. Some days my anxiety was talking loudly to me, seated right next to me, the passengers seat.
Let me tell you, I stayed in some beautiful places, met some interesting people, explored the surroundings. Some routes were beautiful to drive, others charring. Often it felt like the distance wasn’t shrinking at all, as if time was standing still.
When I arrived in La Rochelle, I felt exhilarated. Leaving the next morning I was thrown by my hatchback not wanting to close. Excitement and fear walking hand in hand.
All in all, my epic drive was challenging and also taxing, as well as enjoyable and fulfilling at times.
If we expect to just feel great about our choices and ideas, we never gonna do anything!
Because usually there are some demons, which love to come along on the journey and of course there is the big unknown and we can’t really predict how things will pan out. How difficult or easy it actually is gonna be.
And of course it is much easier to just dream about our passions, let the ideas and possible challenges float by our inner eyes. Enjoying a lovely daydream!
There’s nothing wrong with that, some ideas will always just be a fantasy we want to indulge in.
But there are passions, which are begging us to move forward with. When we find the courage to follow an idea, which is linked with a value of ours, we will be most likely challenged at the same time. That’s my experience.
Of course there is also no guarantee, that we will accomplish what we set out to do and that we will feel good afterwards.
Still, I believe it’s more than worthwhile to give it a go, because if we do manage and if we feel good afterwards, it is the greatest thing ever.
In my case, my journey changed me on some level and it gave me a huge confidence boost.
Because now I am asking myself:
‘If I am able to do this long journey all on my own, what else might I be able to do I never thought was possible for me?’
It’s an exciting question to ponder.
And now, I am wishing for all of you, that you may pick a challenge, that feels good AFTERWARDS!