Riding the Doubt Wave

Launching my new creative business has been one giant surge for me. First there was the adrenaline rush of the idea, followed by the flurry of activity that accompanied setting up my online storefront and beginning to promote it.

For morale support, I started participating in artist forums where people have welcomed me with open arms. It was all going so well. I took a moment to slow down and self-reflect.

Then it happened. Doubt crept in.

“What am I doing? I write marketing copy and manage projects for a living. Sure my title, “assistant creative director,” has “creative” in it, but who am I to step into the world of artists. I feel like a big poser.”

I knew starting a business was going to be hard. What I didn’t anticipate were the waves of self-doubt that would wash away my feelings of accomplishment.

Have you ever lived through a doubt wave?

I know the wave all too well. It can take me from a confident, modern career woman on the crest of the wave to an unsteady, tumbling child in a matter of seconds. Fortunately, I have a very patient husband and two wonderfully insightful friends, Stacy and Caroline, who help pull me out of the water if the wave crashes.

Without a strong support system, doubt can be a paralyzing force, but do you know what? Doubt can be a good thing. It pushes me to try harder, to learn new things, and to never be satisfied with the status quo.

How do you ride the doubt wave?