Hi {{ first_name | default: there }},
Mid-January is a strange liminal space.
The festivities are over.
You’ve probably done your end-of-year reflections.
Deep down, you know what you want to change.
But the routine is creeping back in.
This is the exact moment when most people slip back into autopilot, that default mode of life - tolerable.
New year, new me and new dreams collide with frustrating meetings, annoying emails and the never-ending weight of adult responsibilities.
A lot has already been written about how to stick to goals. Productivity hacks. Atomic habits. Behaviour design. The list goes on.
You likely know the advice. And yet - you still haven’t moved.
A photograph from my trek to Langtang, Nepal last year
Not because you don’t care. Not because you lack motivation or ability. But because you don’t feel safe.
Most people aren’t afraid of failure. Failure is neutral.
They’re afraid of one of these three things:
Ego fear: What will people think?
Loss fear: What if I lose my identity, status or credibility?
Uncertainty fear: I don’t know how to or what happens next?
This is where autopilot tempts you back into its warm cuddle.
Its job is to keep you safe and your identity intact:
Don’t veer off your lane.
Don’t question the script.
Don’t try anything new and silly.
So instead of naming the fear, we default to familiar excuses:
“I need more clarity.”
“I need more confidence.”
“I need more time.”
And of course, there’s no magical fairy coming with any of those.
Let’s use a simple gym analogy (gym memberships spike in January after all!). You wouldn’t expect to compete in the Olympics after your first gym session. Or your tenth. So why do we give up on you after the first few tries?
Every rep matters. Each rep teaches your body something important: “This discomfort won’t kill me.”
Over time, that evidence compounds and the muscles grow. Courage works the same way.
A new year doesn’t give you courage.
Resolutions don’t give you courage.
You can’t think your way into courage.
Thinking is the language of the brain - not the body. Your nervous system needs evidence of safety. And the only way to gather that evidence is through action. Not leaps, but loops.
You don’t need to:
Quit your job
Start a side hustle
Stand on a stage
Courage is a loop, not a leap.
Courage looks like:
Not reaching for your phone when you feel bored
Sitting with discomfort instead of numbing it
Blocking time for what actually matters
It’s like investing a dollar each day and letting it compound. Each loop takes you on an upward spiral.
Courage isn’t something you summon.
It’s something you accumulate through tiny actions over time.
And just like sensible long-term financial investing, it’s not about waiting for the right time, it’s about just starting.
Here’s a micro-courage exercise that I get my clients to do:
Ask: What would a 10x more courageous version of me do this year?
Scale it down to a 5% version.
Ask: What’s one small action I could take this week?
Book 15 minutes in your calendar.
Do it privately. No announcements. You can email me of course if you need accountability. (I reply to every email). 🙂
Let the evidence of safety compound.
This is the kind of space Unthinking Space is.
No hustle.
No optimisation.
No “new year, new me”.
Just creating enough safety to take one small step and make it sufficient.
A reflection question for you:
What’s one small, sufficient and safe move your future self would thank you for?
Wishing you inner safety,
Nirish
