Are you like me, and second guess yourself on a regular basis? Why do we tend to believe other people more than we believe ourselves? Why are we prone to take on board someone else’s interpretation of a situation, rather than just trust ourselves and know that we are enough? I know, these are some pretty full-on questions to get you thinking as we launch into this week’s blog. I have just recently learned a valuable lesson that has reinforced to me, that I can trust my voice and that I am enough.

As I am writing this, I am sitting on a plane somewhere over the Nullarbor Plain, between Perth and Melbourne. Here is a fun but useless fact, the word ‘Nullarbor’ means no trees. I am doing some travelling at the moment, sharing the message from my latest book T.E.A.R.S of Joy, to the different branches of the Australian arm of a global organisation. A week before my session in Perth, I was warned in no uncertain terms, that it would be a tough crowd. I was told most people would not want to be there, they would probably not engage, they would be very critical and pick my presentation to bits. So, as you can imagine I was a little fearful. A speaker’s worst nightmare is talking to people who are not interested, not engaged, critical, and vocal about it.

Don’t get me wrong, I am confident of my message, I am passionate about helping people, but I was scared. Why? I didn’t trust my voice. I started to doubt myself and was even thinking about some of the things I might say that would open myself up to criticism. I was internally tying myself up in knots. On the morning of the talk, as I was preparing myself, the nerves were high, but I stopped and had a conversation with myself. Andrew, just be you, go in there with a desire to connect with the group, be relevant and share from your heart. The right people will get the message, and if there are people there who are not ready to hear what you are saying, that is okay. Trust your voice, you are enough.

As I started talking, I was surprisingly calm. They seemed like a great group of people, and as it turns out, they were. The session went amazingly well, from my point of view anyway, and I had people coming up afterwards telling me they really enjoyed it. There was more people engaged at this session than the other ones I had done. I left feeling on a massive high. It was a vastly different outcome than the one I was warned about. The big question is, why? The leaders who warned me, knew the people who would be attending. How did they get it so wrong, in this instance? Simple, the people responded to me in the same way I spoke to them.

When I started talking, I did not see a tough crowd, I saw a wonderful group of people who, like all of us, want to live their best lives. I knew I could help them; I trusted my voice and spoke to them with a desire to make a difference. I believe they picked that up. I am not trying to come across as bragging at the moment, because there have been many times when I bombed badly in a talk. I think I have just got to the point in my life where I know what I know, and I trust what I know. I also believe every person has a heart for others and a desire to be the best they can be.

I am telling this story because I want to encourage you to trust yourself. We will often face challenging situations, and we will often get someone else’s opinion of the situation. Just know the only opinion that matters is your own, and you are good enough to deal with any situation that comes your way. So, trust yourself and your voice. Are you facing a situation at the moment that is causing you some angst? Why? If you were to think about it logically, and not so emotionally, would it be fair to say that you can handle it? All you need to do is have faith and trust that your voice, your resilience, and your capacity are enough to deal successfully with any situation.

In my podcast this week called Jump out into life, Josie Warren discusses how, within just a few months, she was totally clear of multiple auto-immune and mental health issues that she was told she would have to manage for the rest of her life. She did it when she realised that she held the answers in her own hands, and she trusted herself and her voice. It is an amazing podcast well worth listening to.

As you get up after reading this week’s blog and get into your life, I hope you will do it with a different feeling. Despite all the opinions of people and the world, if you would just believe in yourself, trust in your voice, and know you are enough, you will be amazed what will happen for you in your life. Trust your voice today.