Do you struggle with doubt? Doubt is when you have an uncertainty about something. It is when what you thought you were sure about does not seem so sure. Doubt is an attack on your convictions. A renegade thought that is out of alignment with what you believe.
One of the most insidious characteristics of doubt is that it can be rooted in reality. What do you do when the world around you causes you to doubt? Maybe you have a goal that you want to achieve and you are doing everything you can to accomplish that goal, but nothing seems to be working. That is doubt.
Maybe you were asked to do something because of a certain skill set you possess. But as it gets closer to you executing on that task you begin to question whether you could perform at your best. That is doubt. Or maybe even, you gave up on a dream because what you wanted and what life was giving you, were completely different and totally out of alignment. That is doubt.
Doubt wants you to give up. It will look for and present evidence contrary to what you believe, solely for the purpose of you giving up on that belief. Doubt hits you where it hurts, your identity. If you lose confidence in who you are you lose confidence in what you can do. And if you lose confidence in what you can do, you will not do anything new, inspiring, or pioneering.
You must realize that you have opposition. There are people places and things that will come in your life that will cause you to trip up and potentially fall. The bible says that we are constantly wrestling with negative spiritual influences. You are a spiritual being having a physical experience. Doubt can be used against you to thwart your progress.
That being said, I do not want to paint an ugly picture of doubt. Doubt can also be the thing you need to get the paradigm shift necessary to receive the breakthrough, that will take you to a new level.
When you look at doubt from a pragmatic perspective all it is, is a question. A doubt is an ideological question that attacks your conviction. A doubt will skip your head and go right for your heart. It is a testing of your character. If you do not stand for anything, you will fall for everything. Doubt wants to see if you are going to fall or stand.
This can actually be a good thing because you grow when your convictions are tested. Think of it as if you were taking a test in school. Why does the teacher give you a test in the first place? To see whether you know the knowledge. If you have an unwavering conviction, then a doubt is just a sparring partner; It is helping you get better. If you do not know what you believe and why, then a doubt is a snare.
Your Adversary not Enemy
What is at the root of who you are? This is the question that your doubts subliminally asks you. It is an important question to be able to answer because it is an inspection of your identity. Who is the you that only you know? When you come up against opposition what do you do?
It is about strength of character. A doubt wants to know what you are made of. Think of it as an adversary not an enemy. You deal with doubt by being committed to yourself. You must know that you know that you know that you are who you are; and be unwavering in that belief.
This is why what you believe is so important. A doubt will make your strength a weakness. When the devil tested Jesus in the wilderness, he quoted from the bible. How do you rationalize the world around you? How do you make sense of your experiences? Your conviction is what informs the way you think.
You must strengthen what you believe. This is how you deal with doubt because you will be able to stand in the face of opposition. You must be in alignment with yourself.
What you believe should inform what you think which should inform how you interact with the world. Your truth has to be truer than the doubt. This is how you beat doubt every time.
How to Deal with Doubt
When a moment of doubt comes into your life, engage with it. Learn it. Identify what the doubt is, and where it came from. What aspect of you is it questioning? Is It questioning a thought/knowledge that you have, or is it questioning a belief that you hold?
After learning about the doubt, compare it to your truth. How does that knowledge or belief fair against the doubt? Given what you know which one makes the most logical but more importantly applicable sense?
Is the doubt in alignment with who you are? If it is, then you have a new perspective and a renewed belief in your conviction.
If it is not then either the doubt is wrong, or what you think/believe is. In this situation it is important that you find clarity because now doubt has taken hold of your thoughts.
Remember, doubt wants to see if you are going to stand or fall in the face of opposition. It is an agent of fear. Its favorite question is “what if?”. Clarity of thought leads to clarity of conviction. If you can think in a way that is aligned with your spirit being, you can overcome thoughts and feelings of doubt.
At there best a doubt can be an inconvenience. At its worst a doubt can, be detrimentally impactful on one’s life. They are unavoidable, duplicitous, and cunning in nature. Doubts can also be a catalyst for positive change giving birth to new paradigms and perspectives.
You deal with doubt by facing it with your truth. Through strengthening your convictions and living a life that is in alignment. A doubt is a rival—it’s intentions are not necessarily inherently bad or good, it just likes to play devil’s advocate. This is how you grow and mature—by facing and beating opposition. Do not allow doubts to rule your life; believe in something bigger than your limitations.
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