Addiction is a very serious thing.
The Collins English Dictionary defines addiction as follows: the condition of being abnormally dependent on some habit.
I am publishing, for the first time ever, that I am an addict. I am taking the first step, with all of you as my witnesses, to end my addiction. I’m asking for the help of my friends, my family, and any other readers out there to join me in my well-overdue, virtual intervention.
I am addicted to excuses.
For the past 15 months, I have been living in France, and I don’t speak (much) French. And until now, I have been dependent on the habit of excuses, which have enabled me to continue my life in this way. Here are the tools I have been using to sell myself short:
- I work in English
- I don’t know enough grammar yet
- I don’t know enough vocabulary
- I don’t want to sound stupid
- I’m afraid of making mistakes
- I don’t want people to laugh at me when I speak
- I can’t express myself fully
And on, and on.
This is the moment where I am airing my dirty laundry, admitting my fault, and holding myself accountable to all of you.
I have reblogged something from Sojourning Abroad that has served as my wake-up call. You can read it, here. The video in this post has highlighted for me that my excuses, not my lack of knowledge, are the reasons I do not speak French yet, and has given me the sense to understand my next steps. Thanks in advance to everyone for helping to end my addiction to excuses. It’s time to come clean and speak French!
If you can, take the time to watch the video posted by Sojourning Abroad in this post. Maybe you, too, can find the motivation to learn another language!