I made my first post a few days ago and I'm already struggling with continuing. The fear of putting myself out there, the fear of rejection, the fear of many things which has actually led me to write this reminder to myself and for anyone else who is scared to take that risk.

The mean girl thought I had was "will anyone even read this" but also who gives a fuck. The right people will support and love what you do and the others, does it really matter.

I think the major thought I had was, will anyone even read this? Do people even read anymore? I guess it's different when you have ADHD. I know what I'd much rather do than what I should really be doing. I always think about wanting to read a book, but I scroll instead. I've become a scroller and I honestly hate it. I can feel the brain rotting as I say to myself "one more video" but really it's one more hour later or one more day. and the cycle repeats.

And It got me thinking.

Do people actually read anymore? Attention spans seem to be shrinking by the day. TikTok, Instagram reels, endless scrolling... it's so much easier to digest a 15 second video than sit down and read something properly. I'm incredibly guilt of it. I can't even remember the last time I actually finished a book. You open your phone for a "quick scroll" and suddenly an hour has disappeared and your brain feels like it's been gently microwaved.

But when you start to notice it, you also start to realise something else. Reading slows you down. It makes you think. It gives your brain something to chew on instead of just feeding it endless bite sized distractions. And maybe that's the point. Maybe we don't actually need things to be easier. Maybe we just need to try again.

Trying seems to be the theme of life lately. Or more accurately, avoiding trying. Because trying means risking failure, embarrassment, awkwardness, or someone seeing you not be perfect at something. And apparently that's one of our greatest fears as humans, looking stupid.

But here's something I've started reminding myself:
You can't be embarrassed if you don't get embarrassed.

Think about it. Embarrassment isn't the moment itself. It's the story you tell yourself afterwards. You try something new, stumble over your words, post something online, start a project that might flop... and then your brain decides it was humiliating. But what if it wasn't? What if it was just... new? A story, an experience. That's all everything really is.

Most people aren't laughing at you anyway. They're too busy worrying about themselves. And the ones judging the loudest are usually the ones who need try anything at all.

One of the best pieces of advice I've heard is this: The quicker you fail, the quicker you learn.
Failure isn't the opposite of progress. It's usually the fastest route to it.
Every person you admire is just someone who tried more things than you did, and kept going when it felt uncomfortable.

Because the alternative is staying exactly where you are. Doing the same things, thinking the same thoughts, living the same days on repeat. Safe? Maybe. Comfortable? Sometimes. But exciting and living the life you dream of? Probably not.

And if you're honest with yourself... you're probably already sick of the same sh*t.

So try the thing. Start the project. Take the class. Book the trip. Say yes to something you've been talking yourself out of. Worst case scenario, you learn something. Best case scenario, your life changes in ways you couldn't have predicted.

And maybe reading this was your first small step. After all, if we can train our brains to scroll endlessly, we can probably train them to try again too.

Because at the end of the day, the biggest risk usually isn't failure.

It's never trying at all.