Life follows many paths, and no path is free from its only set of miseries – you just choose which set of miseries to inflict unto yourself.

I realise I am often frozen into indecision because I see the path ahead from my decision looking menacing and fraught with potential failure, not realising the current path I am on might also be one that’s unfulfilling, blasé and boring.

But even after having chosen a path, how can we ensure we stay committed to it? How can we translate our day 1 motivational energy across to day 2, 3, 4.. and onwards?

I think we need to use the motivational energy to do the hard work of confronting the hard stuff that is bound to happen. We must talk about and face the things that get in the way – then they won’t seem so menacing when they finally appear.

We don’t want to be uncomfortable. We want a quick and dirty “how-to” list for happiness.

Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to skip over the hard stuff, but it just doesn’t work. We don’t change, we don’t grow, and we don’t move forward without the work. If we really want to live a joyful, connected, and meaningful life, we must talk about the things that get in the way.

If we want to live and love with our whole hearts, and if we want to engage with the world from a place of worthiness, we have to talk about the things that get in the way – especially shame, fear and our resistance to vulnerability.

Brene Brown, The Gifts of Imperfection