Hi Scatterbrain, I see you.
You worked so hard to get where you are. The challenges you face on a daily basis are enough to scare most people off. Seeing the world as you do, experiencing it in the way that only you can can often lead to you feeling overwhelmed and like you’re failing. Having a scatterbrain, or at least feeling like you do, can be a curse.
Some people in the world really do seem like they’ve got it all together. If only we could be like those people. Oh, what a difference that would make to our lives. At least, that’s what we tell ourselves.
Seeing those people focus with such ease is quite frankly sickening. What is wrong with me? Am I broken? Am I really that different from the rest of the world that I can’t do simple things that they can do?
Negative talk is rife.
I don’t know about you, but for me there are times when this difference brings a tear to my eye. Looking around and seeing people get on with life and find it so easy, or at least appearing like they find it easy, it’s absolutely soul destroying.
What good has this comparison done for us?
Like all comparisons, all it has done is breed negativity. You cannot compare yourself to what you perceive of another person, you cannot see their inner turmoil, you cannot see their inner struggle, you cannot see the blind panic that they live with each and every day. There are so many things that you cannot see that, once you start to uncover them, you may start to question the things that you can see.
You view yourself as a scatterbrain. You forget things, you get anxious and you get overwhelmed. But, you are missing something. Specifically, perspective. There are things that you do with such ease the other people just cannot do. Things only apparent to someone who sees the world in the way that you do.
There is nobody around with the creativity to match yours.
Nobody is around with passion like you possess, there is nobody around that is as loving and caring as you are.
You can, if you choose to, use your scatterbrain to your advantage. You have energy, you have drive, you have enthusiasm, you have all the things required to do something amazing.
All the energy you’re currently putting into being negative about yourself, all those nasty things that you have to say about them to yourself, could easily be put into other things. Imagine what would happen if you put that energy into your creativity.
Yes there are people around that are far more organised than you are, but I have a little secret I want to share with you. Those people, those super organised people, they could never reach the heights of creativity that your mind takes you to. They could never think at that speed that you do. they could never react with such passion like you do.
So what can you do to turn your pain into power? Start with a reframe.
First and foremost, you need to stop thinking of the way that you perceive the world as a problem. Yes, I know you don’t do things like other people do. But that’s kind of the point, don’t you think? That’s why you are special, the way you do things is different therefore the results that you achieve are different.
Do you have a very short attention span? Don’t worry, so do I.
Your short attention span, throughout most of your life, has probably been something of a curse; it doesn’t have to be though. Your short attention span gives you the ability to look at the situation and glean as much information from it as possible in the shortest amount of time possible. Despite how it may feel, your tiny attention span actually results in super focused thoughts. You can take in from a snapshot what the average person has to spend a fair amount of time in deep thought to take in.
The speed at which you process thoughts is enough to make the average person’s head spin. I know that, for you, it can be quite overwhelming. But, when you can separate the emotional component from it that rapid progression of thought means that you are able to connect the dots a hell of a lot faster than most people. Which translates to, you’re capable of being very clever.
Your short attention span doesn’t really make you a scatterbrain, quite the opposite in fact.
All the reframing in the world doesn’t do you any good if you can’t change the way you feel about it.
We have identified aspects of your personality that make you an absolute superhero. However I know with absolute certainty that you’ve just read of that and said to yourself, “oh whatever.”
I can’t say that I blame you. Throughout your entire life the whole world has been telling you that you are broken, that you have a scatterbrain. But, I am here to tell you the truth, not the nonsense lie that you have been fed all these years.
The truth of the matter is simple. Everybody is broken, everybody is a failure, everybody lets people down, everybody makes a mess of things, and everybody, and I really do mean everybody, is forgetful and, at times, useless. That’s life ladies and gentlemen. You are considerably less of those things than most people. You have spent your entire life being completely and totally honest about what you feel for your shortcomings yeah you are surrounded by people that lie to themselves about their own shortcomings.
Nobody in this world is perfect but you my friend are about as close as it gets. You are the perfect version of you. Not one soul on earth has the capacity to think and feel like you do. there is no being on earth has the kindness and empathy that you do. Nobody on earth has love and compassion in droves like you do. Nobody on this earth can create the things that you will create.
You are not the problem, the world around you is. Your scatterbrain is only problematic if you let it be.
There is nothing you can do to change the world around you and their perceptions. So why even bother?
Up until this point in your life you have spent your time and energy trying to conform to the way that other people do things. Now is the time to shed those thoughts, now is the time to decide to do things your way, now is the time to decide that you are good enough, and now is the time to show the world what an amazing, wonderful, and absolutely unique human being you are.
Conformity is not where growth happens. Look around you at those people that seem so organised. Do you really wanna be a boring old fart, like they are? Do you really want to live the depressing and soul sucking existence that they live by conforming?
As a certified scatterbrain you were born to be a nonconformist. You were put in this world to carve out your own path, you were put on this earth to create an impact and to leave a legacy. You were put in this world to be you. There is, and has never been, anybody on earth like you. Your mission in life is not to be like everybody else. Your mission is to show everybody the full extent of the wonderful, creative and clever human being that you really are.
The world does not need more sheep. You are a Shepherd, you were born to lead. You may not have found your flock yet, but they’re out there. In the meantime you just have to keep stepping, keep working, and (most important level) keep being you. You don’t have a scatterbrain, you have untapped power.
There’s nothing to be gained in this world by trying to conform to somebody else’s ideals. Your scatterbrain separates you from the crowd, its time to learn to love it.
You could never imitate those people and be happy. How could you, those people don’t even understand you. How could you be happy forcing yourself into such a closed minded box?
If you take anything from this piece of writing, I hope it’s that the things that you perceive as being your flaws are actually part of what makes you unique and part of what makes you an essential part of this world. Your brain is not a mess, you don’t have a scatterbrain. You are in fact someone with immeasurable power locked away in your brain.
If there is ever a time where you feel like you should conform, like you should bend to the once and ideals of another person, I want you to send me a message. In that message I want you to tell me about your uniqueness. I want you to tell me about the things that make you who you are, I want you to tell me about the impact that you have on the people in your world. I promise you I will respond. When you come to me with ideas about conforming to what other people want I will be there to tell you off. To talk some sense into you. To remind you of how truly wonderful that you are.
Confidence is how you describe something to yourself.
You know you have enough knowledge and enough skill to get it done.
But you tell yourself you’re not confident enough to do it, which is bullshit.
You have enough knowledge and you have enough skill. Therefore, you are enough.
Confidence is just how you’re describing it to yourself, how you’re describing how you feel about that particular thing to yourself. Be confident about your scatterbrain!
Confidence isn’t achieved by knowing lots of stuff or having lots of skill, confidence is achieved by telling yourself that you are good enough, that you do know enough, and that you do have enough skill.
Confidence is just self-awareness. When you lack confidence, your insecurities are causing you problems that are creating issues that don’t really exist. You have the skill, you have the knowledge. Therefore, you are good enough and you can do it.
Sometimes all it takes to make you realise that, is just to step forward and do it.
I have done things in my life that I thought should have been done by someone with far more knowledge, far more experience. That was just insecurity talking, I had enough so I did it.
I’ve been called arrogant in my time, but it’s not arrogance. It wasn’t false confidence. I knew I had enough knowledge and enough skill to do those things. So I did it.
Confidence is a cumulative effect
If you want to know more about the power of cumulative effects then head over to another post I wrote that talks about exactly that. https://mybizacademy.co.uk/success-or-achievement-is-a-cumulative-effect
Need some help with understanding and utilising the power locked away in your scatterbrain?
Then I can help. Head over to my website and send me a message.