The Courage to Decide: Why Choosing for Yourself is the Ultimate Act of Bravery

By Tricia Scott.

Have you ever gotten a brilliant idea or a flash of inspiration that felt so powerful you couldn't keep it to yourself?

How often have you excitedly spilled the details to your nearest and dearest, only to be met with, 'It's great! But don't get your hopes up.'

Your heart drops faster than a tower block broken elevator in a Hollywood movie. Talk about a comedown!

This moment is where a decision is made, and often, it involves us neatly folding our ideas away with a promise that you'll be back later and shelving it never to be seen again, but here's the thing. A decision was made - in this case, twice.

We chose to share our amazing idea with someone who, as supportive and loving as they may be, didn't get the memo. It's not even their fault. I've seen this scenario play out hundreds of times, and in 99% of cases, the person involved wants to keep the other safe and avoid disappointment, so they try to manage your expectations.

Here's the thing. If you're willingly reading this, you are a grown adult, and you are FULLY able to make your own decisions about what you do and do not get excited about and implement. Get your hopes up. ALL the way up. Let those ideas overflow from you. Dive in, drink in the excitement of your vision and revel in the possibilities. 

You do not need to wait for anyone else to approve your idea.

You do not need to tone it down for anyone's sake.

You are entitled to take up as much space as you like; take it ALL. There's always more where that came from.

The second decision made in this scenario was that we allowed someone else's reaction to outweigh our own knowing, so we decided to shelve the idea 'for now'. This is a mistake. BIG. HUGE. You are always the authority on you, and if you continue to hand that power away, you will always be in the shadow of someone else opinion.  

In case no one reminded you already today, you are strong AF. You are here today, participating in this life and showing up regardless; scientists tell us that the odds of you being born are 1 in 400,000,000,000,000. THAT is magic in itself. YOU are magic.

It's time to step away from the glass-half-empty brigade and choose to live your life in full alignment. Release their opinions with love and a 'no thank you', unpack and unfold that amazing idea and get to work.

You never know where your next idea will take you, and that's part of the excitement of living on purpose and by choice.

What will you choose?

Will you settle for a mid-level version of the life you desire? Or will you go for it? Will you lean all the way into that version of you you see when you close your eyes?

You get to decide, and by getting your hopes up, you show others what's possible. You lead the charge for others in your life who may just need that inspiration. I'm willing to bet that some of those people are the very ones who tried to manage your expectations in the first place.

Choosing for yourself is the ultimate act of bravery. We ride at dawn.

I believe in you (always).

👉🏼If you want to journey with me through 2024, I email our Hello CEO mailing list every Monday. To join, head to The Homepage and sign up!

Tricia Scott is a passionate startup business mentor and the Founder and Editor of The Female CEO - Create Evolve Overcome, a platform and digital magazine holding the space to showcase female entrepreneurs from all over the world. 

The Female CEO is gaining global recognition daily and Tricia is able to bring her own level of expertise as a start-up mentor and multi-company director to her very exclusive table along with her team of brilliant Guest Editors and Contributors. You'll usually find her with her MacBook in one hand and a coffee or a glass of something fizzy in the other. Reach out anytime!