I was in beautiful Seattle over the weekend enjoying a little R&R after a very busy week. Whenever traveling for work I try to take a little time out to rest and enjoy my surroundings. Balance is something I work hard to create in my life.

As I was doing a little shopping at some of Seattle’s great boutiques, I came across this legendary sculpture in Fremont, “The troll under the bridge.” Some people were clamoring to get up to it to get their picture taken, while there were some little kids (and adults) who were not going anywhere near it! It got me thinking…we all have trolls in our life that we do not want to face. These scary images (or thoughts) that keep us from crossing a bridge in our life.  Whether a fictitious creature or one that haunts us from our past, we must be willing to face our troll no matter how scary it is in order to reach our next destination.

So what do you do when you are ready to face your troll head on?

 1.    Take Responsibility for the Path You Are On

Once we can take responsibility for our past, our mistakes and our outcomes, we can be empowered to accept the road we are on. Not everything is our fault, but if we take the time to change a perspective and take responsibility, we can learn, grow and cross that bridge regardless of the troll under it.

2.    Forgive Yourself and Others

Sometimes the biggest trolls in our life are people who in some way have wronged us in the past. To realize if we knew better we would do better, perhaps we’d take another bridge all together. But we are HUMAN! We all make mistakes, hurt ourselves and each other, not on purpose but because we are evolving and have different expectations of ourselves and each other. Letting go of guilt and anger will free you to move across that bridge at lightening speed.

3.    Never Give Up!

You cannot stop, never give up! Have you ever heard the saying, “I will cross that bridge when I get to it?”  You got to it…you are on it. So instead of waiting…lean into it, cross it, and get over it! It is easy to let the trolls in our life suck up our energy and optimism.  Make sure you are surrounding yourself with people who support you and inspire you to create the life you dream of.  Set goals (build your bridges), visualize your future as if it was NOW and stay dedicated.

4.    Take Risks

I know some of those bridges we need to cross look very scary…and those trolls are intimidating, but go over it with full force! Do not live life too careful. The most successful people take risks. Do not worry about making a “mistake” those are only lessons that help guide your path. Go…press the gas pedal and don’t look back!

If you are not familiar with the story of the troll and  3 Billy Goats Gruff here is:

The story introduces three male goats, sometimes identified in the story as youngster, father and grandfather, but more often described as brothers. There is no grass left for them to eat near to where they live, so they must cross a river to get to a “sæter” (a meadow) or hillside on the other side of a stream in order to eat and get fat. To do so, they must first cross a bridge, under which lives a fearsome troll who eats anyone who passes that way. The smallest billy goat is the first to cross and is immediately stopped by the troll who threatens to “gobble him up!” The little goat convinces him to wait for the bigger billy goat to come across because he is larger and more gratifying as a feast. The greedy troll agrees and lets the smallest goat cross. The middle goat sees that the youngest one has crossed and reaches the conclusion that the bridge must be safe after all, but is also stopped by the troll and given the same threat. The second billy goat is allowed to cross as well after he tells the troll to wait for the biggest billy goat because he will have the most meat. The third billy goat then gets on the bridge, and is stopped by the hungry troll. When the troll gets up on the bridge however, the third billy goat is so big that he easily throws the troll into the stream with his horns and crosses the bridge. From then on the bridge is safe, and all three goats are able to go to the rich fields around the summer farm in the hills. They all live happily ever after. The troll however was never seen again.

Dream it. Live it. BE it!