New environments are intimidating.
Fresh job.
First date.
Different school.
Change is confronting.
Change challenges you in ways you haven't been tested before.
Your ability to adapt.
How quickly you can learn.
New experiences are stressful.
It can all become overwhelming.
But what can you do to reign the stressful situation back under control?
I'll get to that.
But first, a quick story about my recent new experiences.
A week ago I jumped on a flight to Germany.
36 hours of travel from Tasmania.
New team.
New coach.
New city.
New country.
I was nervous about the first training.
How was I going to fit in?
What was my role on the team going to be?
Will I make friends?
My heart raced with 1000 questions.
I knew I had to calm myself down.
I decided to look inwards to find my self-belief.
So what did I look for?
Actions and skills that I know I'm good at.
Then, positive self-assurance.
It's that simple.
When new experiences become overwhelming.
Lean on the things you know you do well.
Give yourself a mental high five after.
First, you have to recognize what you do well.
"What do I do well?"
This may be difficult if you have never asked yourself that question before.
At first, this may be confronting.
Even scary.
I promise you'll find something though.
You’ve conquered unique challenges throughout your entire life.
You’ve faced stress and anxiety.
Dominated adversity and discomfort.
We all have.
Search for ways you’ve overcome these in your past.
Find methods that have brought you success.
Or.
If you're really struggling.
You can ask friends or loved ones for things they respect and love about you.
Ask them what you are good at, and what they admire in you.
Make a list.
Heading into practice, I knew what I could lean on:
Bringing positive energy
Shooting the ball
Playing hard
Being a great listener
I focused on doing each of these skills to the best of my ability.
Once I executed a skill I gave myself a mental high five.
This is the process of taking a breath and saying "well done" to myself.
These steps helped calm my nerves and I found myself at home quicker than I thought I would.
So if you're struggling with nerves and stress?
Write down a list of what you are good at.
Bonus points if they are controllable skills:
Listening
Smiling
Breathwork
Asking thoughtful questions
A job-specific task
Focus on executing those skills to the best of your ability.
Then congratulate yourself.
New environments and experiences are chaotic at the best of times.
It's okay to feel a little nervous and afraid.
This is healthy.
Learn your unique talents.
Use your unique skills.
Be proud of your unique ability.
I promise in the end.
It will be okay.
Thank you for reading
If you enjoyed this.
I cover mindset skills in the weekly newsletter Mondays with McVeigh.
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Have a great day.