How I went from awkward overthinker to more creative more of the time
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I’m in a cafe in Krakow, Poland.
I’m in my usual spot as people shove enormous croissants into their mouth holes.
I’m reflecting on how lucky I am to get to write and be a bit goofy for a living.
It hasn’t been without hard work and working on my mindset.
One of the things that continually held me back was overthinking.
The overthinking would lead to this low-level anxiety that stunted me further.
I’d continually grind my cogs as though running on the spot, paralysed by analysis.
I always had good reasons for why I wasn’t suited for this.
I created resistance to writing about certain topics.
I blocked myself from leaning into my projects and hitting ‘publish.’
Overthinking was spoiling my creative work, but it was also wrecking my confidence.
It made me awkward and self-conscious.
I lost out on so many opportunities.
It was when I found Eastern philosophies, Zen, Stoicism, and then ultimately ‘Three Principles’ teachings that I got a hold on my mind.
I internalised their ideas, and my humanity, peace, and energy returned.
I found my confidence.
It had never left, but it had been smothered.
I learned that mental wellness isn’t about control.
It’s not about techniques, either.
And it certainly isn’t about memorising bloody ‘frameworks.’
No one in the history of mankind has found a way to control their thoughts or think less.
No one has ever walked into a room and felt confident because they’d memorised how to behave according to a set of rules.
Instead, I learned the power that mere understanding had on my mind.
