So tell me, what are you afraid of…
THE STORY
…Fear is one of the great societal equalizers; we all fear something. Even Oprah, one of the seemingly most fierce & confident women on the planet fears balloons. I kid you not. Google it. Me? I’m afraid of bugs (particularly the stinging variety), the dark and gargoyles. Um, ya…I realize gargoyles aren’t real, but you have to admit, they are pretty damn terrifying.
Not all fear is bad though, it’s actually a basic human instinct meant to keep us alive. The fear of falling off a cliff keeps us back from the edge. The fear of burning our hand instinctually stops us from putting said hand in the fire. The fear of being plowed down by a bus stops us at the curb to look both ways. The fear of losing our bikini top in the waves on a public beach reminds us that double knots are a good thing.
Forget about gargoyles & bikini tops for a minute. Let’s talk about the big fears. The really meaty fears with teeth that lurk around in the darkest corners of your mind. The fears that are ingrained in your very being, that paralyze you, kill your confidence & stop you from fully living your life.
The beasts that have always dominated my life are the fear of looking stupid, the fear of not being good enough, the fear of being abandoned & the fear of not having enough money. To simplify it, I fear criticism, rejection & failure. Pretty common fears for a lot of us I think. And trust me, those fears have roots that run deep. I spent a whole lotta years of my life being dominated by them instead of facing my fears.
But guess what my friend? You do not have to continue living a life dominated by the fear beasts in your head. Facing your fears isn’t as hard as you might think. They are nothing more than perceived fears; fears of what might, could, maybe happen. The fears aren’t the problem, it’s your reaction to them. Fear can motivate you or paralyze you, the decision is entirely yours.
Question your fear. Is it really your truth? Is it accurate? What’s the worst that can happen? More importantly, what’s the best thing that can happen? Fear is a big fat liar. Fear will tell you anything that it can to keep you pinned down in your comfort zone…even if said comfort zone isn’t so comfortable anymore.
Use the power of your mind. Seriously. We silly humans often don’t recognize the vast wealth of power tucked away in our skulls. Visualize yourself doing the very thing that you’re afraid of, I mean the whole scenario from start to finish. Your mind doesn’t realize that the visualization isn’t reality. How do you feel when you see yourself overcoming the fear & accomplishing your goal? Hold onto that feeling & revisit that visualization all the damn time.
Finally, here’s the tough one. Feel the fear & do the thing anyway. The cool thing about fear is the more that you face it head on, the less power it holds over you. The more often you call fear out for it’s lies, the less likely you are to believe them. Confident people feel fear too, but they do the hard thing anyway.
“Confidence isn’t the absence of fear. It’s the belief that you’ll be okay despite your fear.” ~Nick Wignall
THE OUTFIT
At first glance, this mesh dress would maybe be one of those pieces that you’d think, “What in the hell am I going to do with that?” It is nothing more than an unlined piece of nude mesh…but therein lies the beauty of it. It’s simplicity is what makes it so easy to style. I’ve layered it over a nude sundress & tee as well as skinny jeans & shorts. Somehow the skinny jeans & shorts outfits didn’t make the blog…I’ll have to recreate the jeans look because that might be my favorite way to style it.
Today I paired it with a brown floral print sundress with a chambray shirt layered on top for both warmth & coverage since I wore this to work. The combat boots were an easy choice because in my mind, nothing works better with girly fluffliness than a pair of badass combat boots.
THE TIP
Combat boots are always a good idea. Okay…maybe not always, but pretty damn often. For me, combat boots are a closet staple. The thing is, they’re comfortable & surprisingly versatile…they seriously work with more things than you’d imagine. The pieces they work best with are often the least expected; think tulle & sequins or sundresses & shorts. Combat boots come in a wide range of colors & prints so if standard black isn’t your jam there are plenty of other options to choose from.
THE LINK UPS
Check out the weekly link ups I participate in for even more good reads & style ideas…
Mesh Dress: Similar; Floral Dress: Similar; Chambray Shirt: Similar; Boots: Similar
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