It all started with ankle surgery.
For the past two years, I haven’t been able to run because of pain in my ankle. Finally, this February, after exhausting all other treatments, I succumbed to having surgery.
It’s been five months since I went under the knife and I’m finally healed enough to start running again.
Ok, let’s be real –it’s a slow jog. But it’s a start back to a half marathon.
This morning, I woke up grumpy and decided a run was just what I needed to clear my head.
About twenty minutes into my run I had to punch lizard. He just would not shut up.
My lizard is huge and looks a lot like Randall from Monsters, Inc.
And he follows me everywhere.
This nasty little beast represents my lizard brain, that ancient part of my noggin that is responsible for fear, anxiety and risk-avoidance.
Some people have a nice little devil and angel that sit on their shoulder and tell them what to do.
Me? I’ve got a freaking life-sized lizard.
This morning he was in rare form.
About five minutes into my run:
The Lizard: You know, you should stop. You’re going to reinjure your ankle.
Me: Shut up, Lizard.
A few minutes later…
The Lizard: Seriously, you should stop. What if you step in a hole and twist your good ankle?
Me: Shut up, Lizard.
Ten minutes into the run…
The Lizard: I’m worried. You should stop. You’re going to get tired and you are going to trip and hurt yourself.
Me: Shut up, Lizard.
Finally, at twenty minutes in, I’d had enough.
The Lizard: You are so tired. I can see it. If you stop now, no one will know. You don’t have to push so hard. Just quit. It’s easy.
Me: Shut up, Lizard!
That’s when I belted him one right in the kisser.
It was awesome! He got that dazed look like the Coyote when he got hit with an anvil. He spun around on his heels and did a face-plant right on the sidewalk.
And I kept on running.
It’s not the first time I’ve had to deck the guy.
He shows up all the time.
He tells me in sales calls, “Don’t price it too high or you’ll lose the deal!”
He taunts me when I’m writing, “What if they think your writing is crap? What if your marketing fails?”
He taunts me when I’m about to pick up the phone, “Don’t tell the client they should be doing something different? What if they get mad at you for bringing bad news?”
I’ll bet you have a “lizard”, too.
How do you deal with yours? I’d love to hear your stories of perseverance in the face of doubt. You can share them below…
If you need more help, here is another tool I use to stay focused and shut up the lizard.
Laura Posey is Chief Instigator of Simple Success Plans. You can check out her work and download free sales-building tools at http://simplesuccessplans.com
