What Happens When You Start Betting on Yourself?

I tend to ask myself a lot of questions like these. For whatever reason, they not only help me think, but they also light a fire under my ass.

 

I like to consider myself a fairly motivated girl. And despite my accomplishments, which I am proud of, BTW, I know there are still things I really, really want to do. Things I'm dragging my feet on, while simultaneously taking small steps toward them.

 

I've also tried plenty of things that didn't work out. I wouldn't necessarily call them failures. Sometimes the time, money, or energy required simply didn't make sense anymore. But that doesn't mean I should throw in the towel on my dreams.

 

I have to keep betting on myself.

 

I started Inspired AF in 2022. I knew I wanted to build a business centered around being of service to others. I wasn't entirely sure what that would look like, but coaching and eventually having my own podcast were always the end goals.

 

So I started with what I knew best: candles.

 

They did OKAY. The COLD candles did amazing. But the candle business itself didn't turn out the way I'd imagined. And somewhere along the way, I realized that wasn't where my heart was.

 

So I pivoted.

 

I kept making COLD candles, maintained one Inspired AF candle line, and began putting my energy into what I really wanted to do.

 

Coaching.

 

When I started coaching, I did it for free. I joined a Mastermind, learned everything I could about working with clients, and continued investing in myself.

 

I wrote another book that became a bestseller.

 

And somewhere in that process, I found my niche. I recognized the one thing I'd struggled with for most of my life and realized that's where I wanted to focus my work.

 

Self-worth.

 

And guess what? I'm still building.

 

I've sold thousands of books. Not millions.

I have 12K followers on Instagram. Not 21K.

 

Would I like those numbers to grow? Sure. Would I like to reach more people? Of course!

 

But we have this tendency to measure our success against everything we haven't accomplished instead of recognizing how far we've already come.

 

And don't even get me started on the hustle-and-grind mentality.

I can't subscribe to that anymore. I've done it. And for me, it led straight to burnout.

 

As someone who is still betting on herself, and who knows plenty of other people doing the same, I've learned that sometimes we have days where we do absolutely nothing.

 

And that's okay.

 

It's a constant conversation with myself, a reminder that rest is just as important as the work.

 

 

Somewhere along the way, we've been conditioned to believe that if something isn't growing fast enough, making enough money, or reaching enough people, it must not be working.

 

But who the fuck decided what the timeline was supposed to look like?

 

I think about all the things I've tried that didn't turn out the way I imagined. And I realize that none of them were wasted.

 

Every single one taught me something about what I wanted, what I didn't want, and what I was willing to keep showing up for.

 

 

Not everything works out the way we expect when we start something new.

 

But I think one of the greatest things we gain along the way is a deeper trust in ourselves. The confidence to try something new. The courage to change direction. And, more importantly, the self-worth to know that our value isn't determined by whether something succeeds or fails.

 

Because here's the thing: Consistency doesn't guarantee the outcome you want. But giving yourself permission to evolve along the way means the journey can still be worthwhile.

 

 

Not promising yourself that everything will work out exactly as planned.

 

But trusting yourself enough to know that whatever happens, you'll keep finding your way.

 

Live hard. Love harder. 🩷

 

OOOHHHH - And just in case you missed it, I was a guest on the Awaken Hope podcast and it just aired on Sunday. Check it out. There are some good nuggets of wisdom in there. 

Listen to my Awaken Hope episode here.