Elena Agafonova

​ Coach | Author | Happiness Explorer 🌱 ​

Letters of Change A weekly space for happiness, self-trust & the art of living well ​ Let’s begin gently

Hello and welcome back Reader!

Trying something new can feel like stepping off a cliff, especially when the silence that follows is louder than any rejection.
No feedback. No applause. Sometimes… no results at all.

This week’s Letter is about confidence, not as something loud or bulletproof, but as a quiet form of self-trust that carries us through the dips.
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Especially when nothing seems to make sense anymore.

The Days I Doubted Everything

I remember the early days after I published my first book on Amazon.
I was excited, hopeful, proud. But I also found myself checking the sales reports almost obsessively.

Most days: nothing.
No new readers. No purchases. Zero.

And I spiraled into doubt.
​What if it was all a waste of time?​
​Why did I even think this mattered?​
​Who am I, after all, to believe someone would buy a book from a no-name like me?

It was hard. I felt lost, discouraged — even angry.
The silence felt personal, and the fear drained me.

But through that fog, two things anchored me:

• The fact that the book was real. I had finished it. Shared it. That mattered.
• The honest encouragement from my first readers. A few beautiful souls who found it early and wrote back.

They used words like hope, realistic, reassuring.

That was enough to hold on.
I reminded myself: this was real — and their voices mattered more than the silence.

Then I made a decision:
I would keep writing.
Not because I was sure it would work. But because I love writing. Because I have something to say. Because it makes me feel alive.

Six months later, I looked at the numbers again.

More than 50 people had bought the book.
Real people. Strangers. Readers who said it helped.
Not a bestseller. But meaningful.

And I realized: confidence isn’t about certainty.
It’s about keeping your heart open — even when no one’s clapping.
It’s about making something because it matters to you.

That was my moment of clarity.
That is my carpe diem.

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The 3-Rule Check for Any Dilemma

When everything feels uncertain, I come back to three grounding rules.
They help me shift from spiraling to steady.

Rule 1: This is real.

When life throws you into a storm, the first reaction is often denial:
"This can’t be happening. This wasn’t supposed to go this way."

But the longer we resist reality, the harder it is to move forward.

The first step is simple — and powerful:
Pause. Breathe. Write down what you do know, what’s true right now.​
Not what you fear. Not what you wish. What is.

Only from that place can you act.

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Rule 2: Stop the fear loops.

In hard moments, the mind jumps between worst-case futures and past regrets.
Neither helps.

Fear feeds chaos. Guilt drains energy.

Instead, remember: you did your best with what you knew.
Tomorrow could be worse — but it also might be better.
​Stop clinging to what was. Make room for what might come.

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Rule 3: Carpe Diem.

No matter how messy life feels, something beautiful is still here.

A child’s laugh. A moment of quiet. The courage to start again.
​Don’t wait for “everything to be fixed” before allowing yourself joy.

Notice one thing — just one — that feels alive today.
Hold onto it. Let it be enough for now.

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Your Turn

What’s a decision you’ve been sitting with, doubting, or second-guessing?

Try the 3-Rule Check.
Write it down. Breathe through it. See what changes.

What shifts when you honor what’s real, silence the fear loop, and return to the moment?

I’d love to hear — just reply and share what came up. I always read.

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P.S. If you want a little more support with self-trust, you might like:
👉 Ask the Master — a quiet practice for reconnecting with clarity​

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With warmth,
​Elena