One thing that I’ve noticed about us women is that we love to please! And because of that need to please, we have a hard time saying no. Our “yes man” spirit keeps us busy doing what we didn’t set out to do. 

Let's go back to a moment in time -- a moment when you were so excited to start a new job, but a few days after the interview, you received an email saying you didn't get the position. Or maybe there was a moment when you applied to your top choice college and you received a letter saying you didn't get in.

If you know me personally, you would know that I am pretty great when it comes to discipline. I have no problem with work before play. In fact, majority of the time I confuse the two. For a Type A personality, it can be hard to distinguish between work and play. I find joy in working. I get high off of goal setting, working on a task, and finishing it to completion. Nothing gets me off like checking the last item off a to-do list, and as soon as I'm finished, I’m on to the next.

Fear and self-doubt are nothing but stumbling blocks that prevent us from doing what we are called to do. The fear of not measuring up or not being successful will continue to dictate your results and life if you let it. We allow fear and self-doubt to cripple us from doing the things we desire and know that God has destined us to do.

Perfectionism is a personal trait characterized by a person’s striving for flawlessness and setting excessively high performance standards, accompanied by overly critical self-evaluations and concerns regarding others’ evaluations. For perfectionists, life is all about a person’s accomplishments or looks. Fear of failure is often a driving force in a perfectionist’s life.

When I think about my biggest fear, I think about the idea of failing. Somehow common fears like the fear of never getting married, rejection, or change never trumped my fear of not being successful. I’m sure that many of us can relate. The idea of not making it in life is a terrifying thought. To think that we work so hard and put so much time and effort into building or creating a “successful” life only to never make it is quite devastating. The question is, why do we find that so horrible? 

As goal and purpose driven women we have a desire to do our best and succeed. Unfortunately, these desires and goals sometimes give rise to unwanted stress and overwhelm in our lives. We have so many things that we are aspiring to do and don’t know how those things are going to happen. 

As women, God has given us one of the most intimate gifts -- the ability to love deeply and passionately. We feel so much love and compassion towards others that it’s easy to give it away. The problem is not that it's  hard finding the capacity to love others. The most difficult problem presents itself when it comes to loving ourselves. 

It’s halfway through January and some of you are already ready to throw in the towel. Either you haven’t started your goals yet or you already find yourself giving up, begging for 2017 to come  so you can acquire a second chance.