Faith and doubt. Two words. Two beliefs.

The first time I really sat with that, it blew my mind because I had never considered doubt a belief. Wow. Even thinking about it now amazes me.

Here’s my point: What if those two words could be powerful enough to change your life? They can either work for you or against you. Used the right way, they can push you toward things you once only imagined but were too afraid to pursue.

That’s why I believe it’s important to be mindful of who we talk to and who we share our ideas and dreams with, especially when we’re still learning to use our faith to move us forward.

Think about it. You share an idea with your best friend or your cousin, and the first thing they ask is, “But what if it doesn’t work?”

Sometimes people miss the point entirely. We never know for certain whether something will work, so why automatically imagine the worst outcome instead of considering the best?

Why not ask, “What if it DOES work?”

One question focuses on an undesirable outcome. The other opens the door to a desirable one.

And you have to ask yourself: What makes us so quick to imagine the things we don’t want to happen?

Think about it. You’re about to board a plane from Atlanta to Los Angeles. Do you sit there thinking, What if this plane crashes? Of course not. You expect to reach your destination.

Yet when it comes to our dreams, our businesses, and the things we want to accomplish, we can spend more time imagining everything that could go wrong than considering what could go right.

And if you’re surrounded by people who constantly encourage you to think that way, you need to challenge that thinking or reconsider how much access you give them to your dreams. You don’t need people reinforcing your doubts when you’re trying to build your faith.

Let me leave you with this.

One of the greatest gifts we have is our imagination. And when you start asking yourself, “What if the very thing I’m imagining actually works?” you give yourself permission to believe it’s possible.

Faith and perseverance will help you keep moving toward it, but it all starts with your mindset.