Why I Am NOT Good Enough

Do you ever have a dream but stop yourself from achieving it because of your own personal fears or insecurities?

That’s how I am feeling right now. I recently blogged about having a dream to be an educational consultant and FINALLY admitting to myself and others out loud that I was committing to my dream and taking steps NOW to make that happen. (See post here.)

Before I made this public declaration, which is very important for your own accountability by the way, I had so many reasons and excuses why NOT to achieve this dream. Think of it as a defense mechanism protecting myself from potential pitfalls or embarrassment. But, what if it didn’t end that way? What if I was protecting myself from success and being a valuable influence in my field? That’s much more of a failure than if I just tried and wasn’t successful initially.

I am sure you can relate to the below mentioned reasons I continued to tell myself over the past two years:

• I am too young (okay well, I am sorta young!)- After only 8 years in the classroom, who is going to hire me to be an expert? It took my dad saying, “anyone!” to realize that I shouldn’t sell myself short. Although that might sound bias, what he was saying is if you say you are an expert because of your experience, regardless if you’ve been at it for 1 year or 100 years. I think he has a point. I mean, when looking at my resume I have helped hundreds of people even though at the time I didn’t call it “consulting.” The fact that I am young means I bring a unique perspective. I still remember what its like to graduate college from lots of theory-based educational courses feeling ill-equipped to lead students to success in the classroom. That perspective allows me to have one foot in the past to help those in that transition but also one foot in the future helping teachers continue gaining momentum of instructional effectiveness in the classroom.
• I have never done “consulting” before– Well, that’s not true either. Like I mentioned above, although I didn’t market myself as an educational consultant before doesn’t mean I never consulted for and with teachers. I have been helping teachers for almost a decade through mentorships of student teachers and beginning teachers, team leadership, professional development instruction, teacher coaching etc. It’s not like I taught in a classroom with my door shut never collaborating with other teachers. What’s funny is that that is my passion more than teaching- helping teachers teach. So of course I am an expert and I have definitely done this before!
• I don’t know anything about owning a business– Consulting means I am an entrepreneur (or edupreneur as we call it in my field) and own my own business, but I am a teacher, not a businesswoman. I have no idea what my first step would be. This is also an inaccurate statement. Whenever I don’t know something, I google it. So why couldn’t I just google ‘educational consulting’ and find a mentor to walk me through what to do. I was right, everything was right there where I needed it. Thank you Angela Watson for your guidance! (see post here.)

So hopefully after reading this post you realize that your fears, whether they are the same or different, are also false. My dad calls that “head trash.” Stop talking yourself out of your destiny. Get out there, pull yourself up by your boot straps and take that first step, then the next. YOU GOT THIS!

What excuses are stopping you from achieving your dream?

About the author, Gretchen

I am a teacher trainer and coach. Working elbow to elbow with teachers and teacher leaders to ensure instructional proficiency and student achievement soar lights me up. We have a real need in our nation for strong educators to remain in the field. My blog, book, podcast, courses and instructional materials are geared towards empowering teachers (and those that lead them) to receive the support needed to grow and thrive today, tomorrow and always.

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