This is officially a call to action: fail more.
Do you ever feel like you're afraid to lose or fail? Do you think that fear prevents you from doing things that you want to do?
The answer to both of those questions - for nearly every segment of our population - is yes.
They have been a resounding "yes" for me and for the vast majority of my life. What's interesting is that, as a child, I was less fearful. Part of that was knowing that I had some semblance of a support system to catch me when I fell. My parents weren't always there for me - with all respect to them and their own struggles - but I knew there were certain teachers I could call upon if needed.
When we get older, we become that trusted adult for others, but what happens when we still need those trusted adults and mentors in our life? For me, I reached a point where the torch was handed off to me, but I was not done needing help, myself.
In the process, I tripped over myself figuring out the new role. And now, more than ever, I feel like I need a "trusted adult" to help me. My parents rely on me now. So do my kids, and my wife. I have become "that person" for everyone around me. To be clear, it was - and is - a role that I am good at playing. I am well suited for it, based both on life experience and my willingness to be a student of communication, leadership, and so forth.
However, I am very much in the spot where I am teaching myself these things. To be clear, there's nothing wrong with being self-taught, but there's a void. I still need my own mentors. I still needed "someone to fall back on" when things got tough. Having to do that for yourself, and others, is about as heavy of a burden to bear as it gets.
So, what do you do about it? Well, persevere - for starters. If you are that person for other people, now is no time to be selfish about it. Continue being that person for others. Be there for them. Work for them, tirelessly.
But when it comes to yourself? More self-case than you think. Self-care can take many forms, but the point is that you're going to need less time in "go" mode and more time being idle and resting. More time to be still. To read, to lounge, to observe the space around you. In other words, you find the zen.
The other thing? Find online mentors. Find personalities online that resonate with you, that make you want to be better. Imagine they were your mentor. Treat them as such. Learn everything you can from them. Engage in that relationship; your mind likely won't even know the difference. You? You'll grow and find the peace and strength you need to be that person, for others and yourself.