Writing Challenge #4

I don't think this prompt could have come at a better time in my life...

Speak Less by Laura Kimball

What I must do is all that concerns me, not what the people think. This rule, equally arduous in actual and in intellectual life, may serve for the whole distinction between greatness and meanness. It is the harder, because you will always find those who think they know what is your duty better than you know I. - Ralph Waldo Emerson

I once received a fortune cookie that read: “Speak less of your plans, you’ll get more done.” What’s one project that you’ve been sitting on and thinking about but haven’t made progress on? What’s stopping you? What would happen if you actually went for it and did it?

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Sometimes when you speak less of your plans you don't have the witnesses to say "Well? Didn't you say that you were going to do so and so?" It is easier to slip, and lie to yourself about what you have actually accomplished. We are our own best excuse. I used to be really private about my plans and realized that I had covered up my dreams with reasons. It is still difficult to share too much about my future plans, but I like to keep myself accountable with a few.

So, project? I don't really think in terms of projects -- rather goals or 'things to do'. Honestly, I am really doing all the things that I want to right now. I think I would rather answer this in terms of personal development. The project I am working on right now is 'maintaining'. Not fluctuating my mannerisms, humor, thoughts, silence, conversation, or laughter (just to name a few) depending on who I am with. Living and relating without fear. That is my project.

What would happen if I just went for it and did it? Well, I think I am starting to figure that out. It is absolutely terrifying sometimes. The "what ifs" overwhelm my thoughts. But you know what? The best part about it is that the reality that is experienced from pushing through that fear is so much more amazing than the dreams that plague me when I don't.