Crickets & critics

You know when an idea comes to you, and you think you’re a genius and the first person ever to think it? I might actually be the first to coin this. Granted, I did a surface-level search, but let me have my moment, because all the results were about critics of cricket the sport.

• What’s a decision or action that you’ve been sitting on? 
• If you do <decision or action>, what scary thing might happen? 
• If you don’t make the decision, is it because you’re sitting in the familiar, even if the familiar is holding you back from a better, albeit unknown, future? 

Thích Nhất Hạnh wrote, “People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.”

For me, the scariest thing about launching anything or taking a big action is the reception. Or lack thereof. I never thought I’d be the one to do this, but I printed out flyers for my pet photography business with those tear-away contact info pieces. I’m posting them on dog park bulletin boards this weekend. The only thing keeping me accountable is that I told my mastermind group I was going to do it. 

In my mind, I’m scared because it would mean more people know about my services. I’m at a higher-priced tier but offering a different experience from other photographers. I’m scared that there will be no response (crickets). And I’m also scared that I’ll receive hate mail akin to who do you think you are, charging this? or I can take photos with my phone (critics). Of course, this is very dramatic and too black-and-white. Because there’s also another possible reception: genuine client inquiries. Plus, writing hate mail takes effort—I hope they find peace in their lives and maybe have to run two laundry drying cycles instead of one. 

It takes a lot of introspection to figure out why you're sitting on an action. Sometimes it's simple, like "I'm don't know if it's going to work, so why waste time on it?" Other times, it's deeper, like "I'm afraid I'm going to fail, and all my friends will say, 'I told you so.'" If the latter is the case, those are not your friends! They are energy vampires! Or it could be that you set your action/decision so unbelievably high that it's unattainable, so it gives you an easy out, like, "I don't want to take that improv class because what if I'm terrible at it and then can't fulfill my dream of moving to Chicago and being an improv star."

To paraphrase the earlier quote, it's way easier to sit in the known than expand into the unknown. So there you have it, my genius phrase is crickets & critics. You heard it here first, folks! (maybe)