You are a coward
You might not realise it, but you are.
Of course, you want to think of yourself as brave. You believe that when push comes to shove you’ll do the right thing but be honest, you won’t.
Not that there’s anything wrong with that. You’re one of the many high functioning cowards out there in society. You go through life unchallenged and untested. Most of the time you don’t have to worry about this being uncovered.
You could get through most of your life without other people finding out. Finding out about what you are underneath it all.
That’s not the issue. You’re not worried about them finding out about your cowardice. The real concern is that you have to live with yourself knowing that you are.
There’s nothing to worry about really. Just hope that you’re never in a circumstance where they are looking for volunteers.
Now, you could turn and say that there’s nothing wrong with being a coward. Why should anyone have to be brave in this day and age?
There’s no necessity to be brave, but it can help to be so.
You stand to benefit the most from letting go of cowardice.
It’s not going to be overnight. Either way, you’re going to have to drop the cowardice. Do more in future to prevent it from being an inhibiting force.
What are you afraid of?
What is it you’re afraid of exactly? This has been somewhat of a mystery to those around you. Do you care to let us in on the secret?
Now I know that it is easy to say that the others won’t understand. That’s fair enough. They might not understand. That is a risk that you are going to have to take.
You’ll probably give a few excuses and try and tell me that you’re not actually a coward. If anything you’re really really brave.
No one’s buying it.
Don’t kid a kidder.
You’re not worried about dying.
You’re living in the best times.
In fact, if you die, it will most likely be down to your own neglect or stupidity. Or if you’re making a real effort, both.
You’re not worried about that.
You could say that you’re worried about disappointing your loved ones. Let me put this in the best way possible. It seems like you don’t need to worry about disappointing them any further. Considering all that you have done and been through it’s safe to say that you don’t have to worry about that.
Even better than that all you have to do is throw money at them. Mind the words of Bobcat Goldthwait, “Money is the great eraser”.
Now there’s a catch. The catch is you have to get paid in the first place if to chuck a dollar in their face.
It’s not that either.
You don’t want to rock the boat is that an excuse that you want to try?
There were times that you would get properly stuck in. Now, you don’t do that anymore.
Like on that Irish road trip. The other two lads were getting stuck into each other over Trump. You sat on the sidelines, not getting involved.
You said that you didn’t want to make anyone feel uncomfortable but how true is that? Now there’s a chance that with getting older you don’t want to spend so much time arguing anymore.
That’s ain’t it chief, that’s not the reason.
Be honest with yourself, you know what the real reason is, don’t you?
You went out with a girl who wasn’t right for you because you were afraid.
Let’s take a trip down memory lane.
It’s going to be uncomfortable.
You could do with more discomfort in your life.
Now you went out with that girl for more years than you would care to remember.
How many years? 2009-2016.
Seven years?
That’s a long while to waste someone’s time.
You remember how it was on again off again. How you were a terrible boyfriend, and yet she hung on in there for you?
You should have ended it far sooner, and you didn’t. Why is that?
It’s because you don’t want to be the bad guy. You don’t want people disliking you. When it comes down to it you struggle to make those difficult decisions not because they are hard to make. You don’t want people to dislike you.
Here’s the thing.
It’s better to be disliked sooner than later.
You know for all your bravado. Bravado about not caring about what other people think. You sure do spend a lot of time considering other people’s thoughts.
You’re perfectly content to put up with something you’re not happy with as long as no one has a bad word to say about you.
You have to cut that out this year.
It might be too late for you, but you can’t keep living like this.
It’s not working.
You can give in to the fear or let it control you.
You’re at a crossroads. You can keep doing what you’re doing with diminishing returns. Let’s be honest, the returns weren’t that good in the first place.
You got to risk people not liking you. They’re going to do it anyway so you may as well own it.
If anything being liked is overrated.
Think of all those people you’ve met who are well liked. Remember Beardy Steve? Who liked him, or trusted him? Who was a close friend to that guy?
No one was.
Do you want to end up like him?
No, you do not.
This year you’re going to be disliked more often. You’re going to speak up a bit more when it comes to something displeasing you. You owe it to yourself. At this point what exactly have you got to lose?
It may be scary, and you may get overtaken by cowardice, but you’re going to push on through.
People may hate you for it, but they might feel something better instead.
They’ll respect you.
Well, coward, you think that you got what it takes?
How scary can it really be?
