Banana Pudding
Last week I made banana pudding from scratch, and it was DELICIOUS!!! You may be wondering, what’s the big deal about banana pudding….so here’s the thing. I used to believe that things like homemade banana pudding were outside of my ability, so I didn’t even try to make such things.
Over the past couple of years, I decided that I was going to “learn how” to cook, and overcome my deficiency, and the most amazing thing has happened…..I have realized that my ability to cook is directly related to my willingness to just give it a go! I’ve also discovered that I really enjoy finding new recipes, and experimenting with new flavors and combinations, and creating things that other people like to eat!
I was reflecting on what changed, and how I got to where I am now, and I’ve come up with a few things, that I think are transferrable to other areas of my life. Here’s what I’ve learned:
We sometimes limit ourselves by one or two “bad” outcomes. I believed I “couldn’t” cook because I have some not so tasty outcomes in my cooking history. I allowed those outcomes to be the final word on my ability, rather than recognizing them for what they actually were….learning experiences along the path of becoming better. I have made some pretty yucky things in my time, but that doesn’t mean I “can’t cook”….it just means I need to do something different when making those recipes.
Having a “chief encouragement officer” in my life makes a huge difference. When I first saw the recipe for the banana pudding, I commented that the recipe looked good, and “maybe it was something I would be able to do”. My “Chief encourager” immediately questioned why I would think I couldn’t, because I was “such a good cook”. His response to my doubt caused me to think about why I didn’t consider myself able to cook. Having an encourager who will ask us to explore our doubts is so important to being able to recognize the limits we may be placing on ourselves.
Doing something you’re not sure you can do can result in some “sweet outcomes.” My banana pudding came out delicious! Even sweeter than the pudding itself was the affirmation that I can cook. Facing limiting beliefs and then overcoming them is certainly a sweet reward!
I hope that you’ll think about whether you have any limiting beliefs that are holding you back from doing something new…..and if you do, find a “chief encouragement officer” to help you create something new and delicious in your life!