putting yourself out there

This month I got into a new hobby, another creative outlet but this time it was jewelry making instead of ceramics. I made a few pieces that I got excited about and was secretly hoping that others would like what I made. I wanted to publicize my creations to see if anyone would be interested in buying them but I felt embarrassed and frozen when I thought about the possibility of getting no response at all. What if people don’t like my designs? What if I put myself out there and everything thinks that I am a complete amateur and crazy for trying to charge money for my creations? 

These doubtful negative thoughts plague us all. They bruise our confidence and bring us down. I asked myself if I could handle the worst scenario - the lack of response and the feeling of embarrassment and rejection. Although these are not desired outcomes I realized that I could handle their reality and that long term I would probably forget about those negative feelings. I challenged myself to take that next step and put myself out there with realistic expectations. I did not expect to become an overnight success story making millions, but I did hope that I would get at least a few messages from people telling me they liked the pieces. What was most helpful for me was having balanced thinking instead of negative or overly positive thinking.

So I took the plunge and guess what happened? I got several messages from both friends and acquaintances saying that they liked my pieces. Even a few put in orders to buy them! 
A few days later I put myself out there again, this time in front of strangers. I brought my jewelry creations to a boutique. Once again I surprised myself and got a few more sales.
Maybe I’m not quitting my day job as a therapist, but I do feel happy that I put myself out there and proud of the pieces that I have created and sold. The risk of failure and embarrassment was well worth the outcome. 

​Whether your big step is in dating, speaking up for yourself in a relationship, applying to a job that seems out of reach, or asking for a raise at work let us know on our social platforms if you have taken any risks and put yourself out there. If we never take risks we never find out what could have happened.