We get confused sometimes.

When we presume that our emotions or our fear should be allowed to dictate our decisions, we are subconsciously giving up control.

If your emotions tend to hijack your life choices, the real question you should be asking is, “What if it’s not about me?”

There are dreams and goals living deep inside of us –

Inside of me –

Inside of you,

That for some reason or another, the runaway emotional rollercoaster that dictates our lives causes us to put off or never pursue at all.

I struggle a lot with subtle underlying fears.

These fears are so hidden that most of the time they are unidentifiable. But the power they hold over me is so strong.

They keep me from taking action, from connecting with people, from having conversations and relationships that could’ve or should’ve added so much to my life.

I’ve seen the same inaction and hesitancy played out in other people’s lives as well.

They often don’t recognize that by not showing up in life, whether it’s a coffee date or a phone call, they are giving in to the lie.

And the lie is what is on the other side of all the “what if‘s.”

Today I had an epiphany as my mood shifted as quickly as the weather forecast.

I went from excited, optimistic, and productive to discouraged, disappointed, and depressed within a couple of hours.

And suddenly, this truth jumped out at me and shook me to the core.

Not showing up doesn’t just affect me.

What if the depression and disappointment kept me locked up in my house as the fear of contracting a virus has done for so many of us over the past few months?

Sure, if I am not exposed to people in relationships, there will be no disappointment of rejection. And I definitely can’t be accused of doing something wrong or failing.

But what if showing up wasn’t for me, but for the person I was supposed to talk to?

The conversation I was supposed to have?

Or even the support of just being the constant for someone to believe in again?

Suddenly there was no fear, there was no barrier, and there was no option.

What about you?

What is keeping you from taking action?

What is holding you back from having that conversation or just showing up to be there for someone else (even when it’s not convenient)?

And how many times is it going to take until we think that our consistency is not making a difference in this world?

Because for years, those who have made the difference in my life are the constants –

The ones who never quit, the ones that stayed the course, and the ones that one day I know will cross the finish line beside me.

Maybe someone is looking to you to assure them that even though times get tough – and emotions go up-and-down like a roller coaster, even the bravest of us are still human and “superheroes” go home at night and take off their cape with a sigh of relief like everyone else.

So do that thing,

make that call,

and show up in life because the world needs you.

At least someone in the world does, and when you wake up in the morning and look in the mirror, it just might be her!