The Fear of “Falling Behind”

One of the biggest fears that keeps us stuck in indecision is the fear of making the “wrong” choice. Behind this fear is often a deeper fear:

I’ll fall behind.

The fear of “falling behind” in our businesses or work or with other pursuits is why we work longer and harder, neglecting self-care and vacations.

It’s why we struggle to rest.

The Myth of Behind

Behind is, by definition, a comparative term, and the story about “being behind” is rooted in comparison.

Behind what?
Behind whom?

Behind where others are?

Behind where you “should” be at this stage of your life, your career, your progress?

Who determines what those those markers are that tell you you’re behind?

How do you even know if they are accurate?

Even if they are accurate, how do you know that you’re “behind”? The measurement of where you are today is just a snapshot of today; it’s not the completed story.

This comparison — whether to others, a previous version of ourselves, or the expectations we place on ourselves — is a function of the ego. It keeps us separated from the powerful Divine being that exists within each of us.

And this separation is what stifles our work.

The story of “being behind” is a story that I hear in my own thoughts on a consistent basis.

The story that we are “behind” isn’t true, and it definitely doesn’t serve us.

A Different Story

We can get so worried about falling behind that we don’t consider an alternative story.

What feels like a “detour” may not be a detour at all. It may be the path we’re intended to take. Perhaps it just looks like a detour because it’s not the well-paved road that everyone else is on.

What if every experience, every choice, every person you met along the way, was divinely planned to prepare you for where you are now?

It all converges in the present moment.

When we accept where we are now in our lives and work, we create the spaciousness that leads to free expression and our most powerful contribution.

The power is in the now, and in the now the concept of “behind” doesn’t exist.