Almost exactly one year ago, I made the somewhat impulsive decision to travel solo around Europe for a month.
After a series of professional and personal blows left me questioning whether I had made the right moves in my life, I felt that I needed to get away from the rat race for a little while. And it was great. It was life-changing and eye-opening in ways that can only be summed up in a blog post of its own (coming soon, I promise).
But what I found almost equally as interesting as the trip itself was people’s reaction to it. When I would tell people about it, whether it was fellow travellers during my time abroad or colleagues after I came back, I got a lot of “Oh, I could never do that!” and “You’re so brave.”
You see, I didn’t feel brave. I’ve never thought of myself as brave. While my Instagram posts from last summer show me smiling and looking at ease in various locales, the truth was that behind that grin, I was terrified.
When I first landed in Athens, Greece, I couldn’t even leave the airport. It took me about an hour of walking back and forth in front of the sliding doors and pretending to buy things in the gift shop before I could work up the courage to step foot in the city.
Why am I telling you all of this?
Well, I’m happy to announce that I have officially launched my content and social media consultancy, Jasmine Williams Media.
And this past Friday, my last day at my 9-to-5 job, I was hit with the exact same feeling I felt a year ago in Greece.
After years of wanting do my own thing but not quite figuring out how to do it sustainably, a series of opportunities came about that allowed me to turn my side-hustle into a full-time venture.
When I handed in my resignation three weeks ago, I was on a high. I was filled with the same confidence that I had when I bought my ticket to Europe. The feeling that I could do this, I spent years preparing for this, that nobody could stop me. Then the self-doubt hit.
What am I doing?
Am I ready for this?
Am I experienced enough?
All of a sudden, I didn’t want to leave the airport anymore. This new venture felt so daunting, all I wanted to do was take it all back. Un-resign from my job and go back to my desk and my daily tasks.
But then I remembered that just like any big project in life, you have to take it one day at a time, or even one step at a time.
Back in Greece, to push myself through those sliding doors, I gave myself little goals that I could easily achieve. “Just get to your hostel,” I told myself. After that, the next task was finding something to eat. I had flown thousands of kilometers away from home, but finding my first souvlaki felt like the biggest accomplishment ever in the face of overwhelming fear.
With Jasmine Williams Media, I know the only way to quell those feelings of insecurity and fear is to apply the same approach. Break every project down into simple, manageable tasks. See it as a series of steps, rather than a never-ending marathon.
Today is the first day of my new life as an entrepreneur. And I’m not going to pretend I’m not scared. If anything, I’m going to use that fear as fuel because I know now that bravery isn’t blind confidence – it’s feeling the fear and doing it anyway.