I’ve been reading “Your Best Year Ever” by Michael Hyatt during my walks, and today I hit the chapter on limiting beliefs.
It punched me in the face.
The Limiting Belief I’ve Been Carrying
“Social media is too difficult to figure out.”
I watch others build audiences, create videos that get views, write posts that get engagement – and I wonder why they can figure it out so easily while I struggle. I have the desire to lead by example, but I can’t get my message out.
Here’s the truth I need to admit: I’ve been using this as a cop-out.
Sometimes I think limiting beliefs are just forms of laziness. We allow ourselves to believe them because it’s easier to stay small and not put the time in to really master what we say we want to do.
For me? I’ve always prioritized other things over social strategy. And the difference I’m encountering now – on Day 19 of perfect execution – is this: I want to stop wasting time.
I want to achieve these things for myself. And I want to use that experience to provide hope for other people.
The Real Cost of Staying Small
The crazy part is, I don’t know if I’ll ever really know what staying small has cost me.
I’m a firm believer in the butterfly effect. By making ripples and striving toward good things, we inspire others to do the same. And while I’ve tried to do that in my personal life for many years – hopefully people have seen it – I have not articulated the reason WHY behind what I do.
That’s a missed opportunity to lift somebody else up.
I can’t measure the cost of ripples I never created. The people I never inspired. The conversations that never happened. The transformations that never started because someone didn’t see that it was possible.
Why Now? Why This Challenge?
I think I’m like everybody else – you get old enough and you realize your opportunities are starting to slip past you.
You’re not as trim as you used to be. Your hair’s not as dark as it once was. You’re moving slower, aching more. All these signs of time passing, and yet a full list of things you still say you want to do.
For years I’ve read Dan Miller, who wrote “48 Days to the Work You Love.” One of his favorite sayings: “Don’t die with your music still in you.”
At 47, I’ve got music still inside. And I’m done letting limiting beliefs keep it there.
The New Belief I’m Building
Starting Day 20, here’s what I’m choosing to believe instead:
I have a message worth sharing.
We have agency in our lives, and it’s our responsibility to use that agency for good. By forming habits that serve us instead of working against us, we leverage that agency and make the world a better place.
Social media isn’t too difficult. It’s just unfamiliar. And I’ve figured out harder things than this.
I revised a 105-chapter novel in 19 days. I’ve executed seven daily habits with zero misses. I’ve written 19 consecutive blog posts while learning compound interest principles and teaching myself systematic transformation.
If I can do that, I can figure out how to create a 60-second TikTok video.
The Shift Starts Tomorrow
Day 20, my creative hour shifts focus. I’ve finished the first revision pass on my novel. Beta readers (my wife and son) are reading it now. While they give feedback, I’m building the distribution infrastructure I’ve been avoiding.
No more cop-outs. No more staying small. No more prioritizing comfortable over uncomfortable.
I have a message worth sharing. And starting tomorrow, I’m learning how to share it.
Day 19 Scorecard: ✅ Bible study ✅ Exercise (Workout A) ✅ Reading (Your Best Year Ever – limiting beliefs chapter) ✅ Calories ✅ Water ✅ Gratitude ✅ Creative hour (first novel revision COMPLETE – 97 chapters)
Nineteen consecutive perfect days. The limiting belief ends here.
The best time to stop staying small? Now.
See you tomorrow for Day 20.
The 740 Challenge 