Level Up! With Shay

I have been proud of myself lately. I’m stepping into someone I’d like to be more and more every day. I’ve started a new job with some new people and I have been very aware of how I present myself. When going to new places, I tend to be very shy and not speak up much. I’m not sure where that comes from because I can be very outgoing and assertive in some situations, but I can take a couple guesses and I will write an entire blog post about that some other time (maybe even a book!). And even though my current reality is certainly challenging at times – I love a good challenge – I have had a lot of fun with it. I want to share you a few ways I’ve been making the most of it. Wanna hear?

You don’t know what other people are thinking

Are you ever sitting around someone and think the weirdest thoughts? Just random ones? Thoughts that they would never be able to guess if they tried? If we think other people are thinking certain thoughts, and without asking them, it’s simply just our ego trying to make stuff up. You think someone is mad at you but really it’s all in your head. You think someone thinks you’re a dumb person for making a mistake, but really they aren’t even thinking about your mistake anymore. We need to stop assuming that we know what other people are thinking. We have NO idea. And this is in ANY aspect in life. At the grocery store. In traffic. How many times has someone cut you off and you’ve responded with “What the hell are they thinking?!” YOU think they aren’t even paying attention to you, but they could be thinking “I’m so sorry for cutting you off!” Just because you don’t get a wave doesn’t mean they aren’t sorry. A small example, but I imagine relatable to a lot of people! Anyway, stop assuming you know what other people are thinking. And more importantly stop REACTING to those made up thoughts and ideas in your head. More than likely, they aren’t true anyway.

Be nice to everyone

I had a very interesting and necessary interaction today. I walked into a store to make a delivery and was met with some very negative energy. It was a little early in the morning and they had just opened, so maybe they needed a few warm ups to get their day started. I did my best to stay positive and cordial and then when I got back into my car I took a couple breaths and reminded myself that it wasn’t anything personal. And I’m glad I responded in that way because I had to make a delivery later in the day. It seemed the woman had warmed up and was in a good mood AND met me with that good mood! Imagine if I had given her attitude the first time we interacted and then we met again a few hours later. That would be AWKWARD. I probably wouldn’t like her and she probably wouldn’t like me either. And maybe between us first meeting and our second meeting, her interactions with other customers would have been awful. Maybe she realized that her attitude probably wasn’t necessary and so she changed after I left. Again, we don’t know what other people are thinking. Most of us are taught when we are young – treat others how you’d want to be treated. So just because she treated me “poorly” doesn’t mean I should ALSO treat her poorly. I want to be treated with kindness and grace, so I will also treat her that way. Be nice to people! You may be the good catalyst, OJ kind of start to their day!

Don’t be afraid to ask

Why don’t we ask questions? Well, for many reasons actually. We think people will think we’re dumb. Or maybe that we’re bothering them. Or maybe we’re scared of the answer. Maybe we don’t think we’re worthy of the answer. I’ve talked about this exact “lesson” on the Level Up! episode with DJ Kara. Listen to it HERE! It never hurts to just ASK. Your intentions are (usually) good, right? If that’s the case, just ASK. More than likely, your life will not dramatically change with an answer. But it definitely won’t change without an answer. If you’re like me – someone who has been afraid to ask questions all their life because of looking silly, desperate, or needy – please listen to me now and ask some damn questions.

I’m loving it here in Atlanta not only because it’s a new place, but because I’m learning so many things about myself. I want to keep that going.

Thank you for reading this. I appreciate you following along, or if you’re just joining – welcome! ❤

#LevelUp

If you enjoyed this blog, please follow it HERE! 🙂

FOLLOW me on Instagram @levelupwithshay

LISTEN to the Level Up! With Shay podcast HERE

SUBSCRIBE to my YouTube channel HERE