I’m taking a real risk leading with that headline.
No, I’m not telling you to get over yourself. Really I’m not. Sometimes it’s completely appropriate to take ourselves seriously.
I am, however, telling myself to get over myself. And I tell myself this regularly.
Get over yourself has been one of my mantras for several years now.
And it works.
Taking myself and my actions too seriously keeps me from taking risks, it leaves me playing small, and it honors ego over passion and creativity.
My ego might have me fighting for my vices, justifying their goodness, or not stretching toward the next level of personal or professional growth. And what I’ve found – when I put ego aside – is that I can take any one problem more seriously when I let myself off the serious hook a bit.
The “problem” may require my serious dedication, yet my relationship to the problem does not equal my worth.
Am I making sense? Can you see where this might apply to something in your life?
Think for a moment about a challenge you’re facing. It could be something related to giving up or starting a new habit. Now, stop taking yourself so seriously. Wait a moment. Does that change anything? Does it allow for a shift in perspective?
get over yourself Recently, I was reading the author Todd Henry on the subject of how ego sabotages creativity and I was thinking how these same principles apply to our pursuit not just of a creative life, but of a health-filled one as well.
Henry says:
“Confidence says ‘I’m valuable’, while ego says ‘I’m invaluable.’”
Confidence is therefore what enables us to step up our efforts and make stuff happen. Venturing into unknown territory is never easy. We’re a culture that generally wants ease, a quick fix, a magic bullet to avoid discomfort and disease.
Unfortunately, most opportunities for growth don’t come without a bit of distress, unease and even blind confidence. But with the mantra, get over yourself, you may be able to shift from the skeptical analyst – imagining what could go wrong – and step more easily into both authenticity and possibility.
There are lots of ways to say get over yourself.
I could gently assuage myself by thinking about how hard it is to “get out of my comfort zone.”
I could enlighten myself about “getting out of my own way.”
But somehow, the simple mantra get over yourself allows me to step out of my comfort zone and get out of my own way all at the same time.
It allows me to find that sweet spot where intention and absolution meet.
It leaves me open to the experience that would (and will) unfold in front of me.
Who knew that something that sounds so harsh could actually feel so incredibly Zen?
I hope you’ll find some time to get over yourself too. (It’s liberating!)
Warmly,
Andrea Nakayama

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