There comes a point when you have to decide what kind of life you want
When I was getting my M.A. in Counseling Psychology (over 10 years ago now), I was deep into studying my dreams, exploring my unconscious thought and action patterns, understanding how my culture, family and upbringing have shaped who I am.
It was an intense, at times painful, but overall deeply healing experience for me that has profoundly shaped how I see myself, how I see others and what I believe is possible for everyone (the forever optimist 🙋♀️)
Above all, I learned that feeling really is healing (thank you, therapy!).
AND, I also learned that there comes a time in everyone’s journey when you simply have to accept your past and make a decision about how you want your future to unfold (thank you, coaching!).
One of the key realizations I made about myself during my studies was that it was so easy for me to see myself from the eyes of an external observer, and, in turn, so hard to see myself and my journey through my own eyes.
As a result, I was mapping my life according to what looked good and what received praise while hiding my more delicate, softer but wilder, and soulful side.
Credentials and admiration made me feel safe while my feminine, creative, free, and eccentric sides made me feel vulnerable.
Achieving, studying and being busy made me feel important and in control while tending to myself and prioritizing my joy was easily judged as self-indulgent and unproductive.
I am sharing this with you because in the last 10+ years of coaching and mentoring hundreds of women, I know that so many of you can deeply relate to this .
I am sharing this because I know that it is exactly this cycle of looking at ourselves from the outside in that is keeping so many brilliant, kind, inspired women (YOU!) stuck in cycles of overwhelm, burn-out, and self-neglect.
And finally, I also know how many of you are so tired of the perpetual overwhelm, exhaustion, and hustle.
At the core of this behavior is what I believe is at the core of most of our mis-aligned decisions: OUR FEAR OF SOMEHOW NOT BEING ENOUGH.
And when you operate from a place of not-enoughness, you tend to…
⟶ have poor boundaries and overextend yourself.
⟶ pretend like you’re fine when really you’re on the verge of tears (or yelling at someone!).
⟶ don’t speak up for your own authentic desires, hopes and dreams.
⟶ feel confused when someone asks you what you do for fun.
⟶ engage with people who are not a soul match and drain our energy.
⟶ look for joy, love and admiration in places that aren’t authentic or not sustainable.
⟶ make your own joy an afterthought –the cherry on top, instead of your most important fuel.
So, here is the decision I want to invite you to make:
Can you decide –HERE AND NOW!– that you are enough once and for all and that you will shift into really finding out who you are, valuing yourself and making your joy a priority in your life so that you can have the energy, the clarity, and the enthusiasm to create an amazing life for yourself?
Your creating powers only work in their highest frequency when you are plugged into your joy, when you take a stance and say to yourself “I am enough and I will take care of myself in a way that gives me a fair chance of thriving and being the most joyful person I can be!”
If this resonates with you and you feel yourself leaning in, I want to invite you to submit an application to be a part of my Joyful – On Purpose 6-week small group mentorship program. We start in the week of October 10th.
You can find all the details and the application here.
If you’re ready to really shift your life in a major way and recognize that your joy is your greatest asset, I would love to invite you into this group.
I know that this 6 week experience will be magical and incredibly transformative for everyone.
I cannot wait:)
With love,
Caroline