Notice anything different?

Well, you shouldn’t. And that’s a good thing! I successfully (BY MYSELF) moved this website to a new hosting service after a long, internal struggle otherwise known as laziness + procrastination = anxiety over trying something new.

I’ll back up. A few weeks ago, I got the dreaded email that it was time to renew my website hosting service as well as my domain registration.

Cue the racing pulse and rapid heartbeat.

For some reason I’ve convinced myself that I’m no good at technology. There is no traumatic event contributing to this irrational fear. All I know is that anytime I have to fiddle with technology, especially if it’s unfamiliar, I low-key panic.

After all, it took me over a year to finally jump into Instagram. And that’s supposed to be FUN.

The email also reminded me exactly how much it was going to cost to renew all of this stuff. Over the past year, I have submitted writing pieces to several lovely sites. Problem is, I mostly receive payment in the form of a pat on the back for a job well done. Needless to say, that dollar amount was looking pretty scary as well.

It was quite a dilemma.

Time was running out. So I asked some writer friends to see if anyone had any suggestions for how to move an entire website, and if so, which was most cost effective.

A few gave recommendations. Others referred me to the person they hired to build their own websites. That sounded like a delightful solution. I’m all about making life easy when it counts, and that includes paying someone to do the things I dread.

Exhibit A: We pay someone to wash and groom our dog. Brushing her is the equivalent of an arm workout. Chewbacca’s hair seems wispy in comparison. I have shampoo and a brush at home, but I’d rather light my own hair on fire than to do that job. We all have a breaking point where we’re willing to pay good money to avoid our own personal pain, and don’t feel one ounce of guilt about it.

So after getting some quotes from tech-savvy people, I realized they would charge me more for the process of moving my website than the actual renewal itself would cost. I’m no math whiz, but that didn’t seem to add up.

Finally, I knew it was time to just do the thing.

Something you might not know about me is that once I set my mind on something, it’s nearly impossible to let it go. This is a rare occurrence, because it is in direct contrast to my natural born tendency, which I affectionately like to call procrastination.  I’m also an Enneagram 9 and one of the spot-on phrases used to describe us is, “We start slow and then we really taper off.”  

Which is why no one is more surprised than me that I dove head first into this challenge. I finally just took a deep breath and with trembling hands, opened a new browser to the Google search engine.

**How to move your website to a new hosting service.**

Boom.

Hundreds of articles and tutorials popped up instantly. I chose one that most looked like it was written by a 3^rd grader and got busy.

I’m not going to lie, it started out pretty rough. Words I’ve never used in my entire life mocked me from the glowing screen.

Permalink.

Nameserver.

FTP Credentials.

But I persevered. I kept reading. I watched the tutorial videos. During one particularly harrowing 45 minutes, I resorted to clicking the “chat” button on the hosting provider’s customer service page. I’m sure they were delighted to converse with me.

But when all was said and done, I imported and exported and migrated that sucker all by myself. I unlocked and transferred and paid a fraction of the cost to a brand new provider.

Thankfully, stepping out of my comfort zone is becoming more and more familiar to me. I still glow a little inside when I think about what I accomplished that day.

Life can be filled with obstacles and challenges that seem insurmountable. Even the smallest of tasks, especially for someone with anxiety, can seem monumental.

But I’ve learned to just take a deep breath and take it slow. Sometimes that mountain isn’t quite as big as it seems. And even small victories are worth celebrating! I’m so grateful for moments like these when I realize that I really can do hard things.

Except for shampooing our dog’s potty path. I will continue to pay good money for that service until the end of time.