In my view: Walk it off

Admittedly, when I sat down to write this column, I was going to write about lockdown, Covid-19 or something else that everyone is probably tired of hearing about.

So instead, I’m going to touch on another sore point, failure and self-doubt.

The elementary truth of life is that everybody has struggled or experienced failure at some point in their lives, every single one of us.

I think we often look at how some people seemingly portray themselves as having a perfect life, and it tends to play on our minds a little.

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Questions like “How does she have it all together?” or “Why can’t my life just go right for once,” will eat at you constantly.

But the fact is that there is no perfect answer.

Why? Well for the simple reason that no matter how perfect someone’s life appears, it is very likely that they too have their own self-doubts or have experienced their own downfalls.

Your neighbour struggles, your doctor struggles, and the beautiful couple you pass by every morning most likely has had their fair share of struggles too.

Granted, I think some of us do struggle or fail more than others, but all it means is that we need to work harder.

Showing up and tackling this wonderfully confusing journey we call life is the first step, the rest we can figure out as we go along.

Between this year and the last, my plans have fallen through countless times.

There were moments in my own life where, as soon as things didn’t go as planned, I was ready to call it a day and give up.

Everyone has that place where they do their best thinking, be it a garden or the porcelain throne.

Mine is the shower, and it was there where I realised that if I allowed myself to stop everytime something went wrong, I literally would not get anywhere.

The best I can do is walk it off.

If the last two years have taught me anything, it’s that we can bounce back from anything.

The point I’m trying to get across is that failure, struggle and even self-doubt do not define you.

You are not your failures, nor do your shortcomings dictate your identity.

Failing an exam, living with depression, social awkwardness or just needing a helping hand is really okay!

These are all just aspects that make up our journey, all we can do is get back up and walk it off.

Look at children for instance, or a baby who’s learning to walk.

Whenever they stumble or fall down, they get back up and try again.

Very seldom will they allow the bumps and bruises to discourage them, perhaps we could all take a page out of their book.

Stop letting self-doubt stop you from being great, don’t do that to yourself.

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