Doubt. An invisible force that we all deal with. Sometimes more successfully than others.
In this week's episode of In The Groove, which you can listen to on the Apple Podcast App & Spotify or watch on YouTube, I share my thoughts about how to reframe doubt and use motivation to sustain us through times of serious doubt.
I believe that when faced with doubt, we are given an choice. We can either choose to continue living the mundane life of comfort and safety and let doubt convince us to not change anything, or we can choose to meet doubt face-to-face, and despite the fear, push through and prove to ourselves how much we can accomplish.
For those of you who don't know, I really enjoy learning about psychology. I was actually going to study psychology if I didn't study music in college. Currently, I'm reading a book by one of the most well-known psychoanalysts and psychologists in history, Carl Jung. Last week I stumbled across this passage:
"He who cannot bear doubt does not bear himself. Such a one is doubtful; he does not grow and hence he does not live. Doubt is the sign of the strongest and the weakest. The strong have doubt, but doubt has the weak. Therefore the weakest is close to the strongest, and if he can say to his doubt: 'I have you,' then he is the strongest. But no one can say yes to his doubt, unless he endures wide open chaos." -Carl Jung, "The Red Book" pg. 361
Everyone experiences doubt. Doubt doesn't determine whether we are strong or weak, but how we deal with doubt does. As Jung says, the strongest of us deal with doubt by saying "I have you," in other words, not letting the doubt control us.
Here's the catch, you must be willing to endure wide open chaos.
In my circumstances, wide open chaos means not knowing when I'll be able to ever play a gig again (I cannot wait until this COVID-19 virus shit is over with), or being guaranteed a steady source of income, or the possibility of getting injured and not being able to play the drums. Chaos is the unknown. But how can we accomplish anything new and significant if we don't venture into the unknown? If we settled for comfort and order all the time, we wouldn't grow.
To hear more about how I deal with doubt and reframe it, how I'm able to say "I have you," please check out episode #4 of "In The Groove: A Podcast for Drummers & Musicians" available wherever you listen to podcasts (visit the links above or below)!
As always, have an incredible week. Please stay healthy. And if you find that you've been getting any value from these blog posts or podcasts, please share, like, comment and subscribe!
Sincerely,
Austin
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