Simply Enough

Have you ever felt excluded or marginalized?  Or, had difficulty empathizing with another person or group, because you haven't shared their experience or agree with their views? Not everything has to be adversarial.  Curiosity is the glue that binds us, and there is more that connects us than separates us.  We're all more similar than different, and awareness is a step to inclusion.  If we all learn more, and judge less, we can come to the table and break bread together.  

Have you ever been in an imbalanced friendship? More giving and the other taking? Rather than feeling you need to prove or earn your value, listen to your inner GPS, and don't go by their voices and measures of your worth to them.  What they think of you does not matter more than what you think of yourself.  Weed the garden and flourish amongst those who love you, not for what you can do for them, but simply for you, just as you are. 

Have you ever stayed in an environment or stuck with an idea that  hurts you?  What’s the price of the struggle, when your gifts and talents are so taxed?  Honor what makes you sing, rather than be the canary who suffocates in the coal mine. Your self worth doesn’t have to be wrapped up in the status quo, and you don’t have to fear being unravelled.  You can choose to let go, release control and surrender to the possibilities and boost of what may come.  

Have you ever felt you had to be all-or-nothing? Or if you're not The Best, then it's not worth doing?  Recognize that there is Joy and value in the middle, and a mission can still be served from there.  Give yourself permission to have joy by releasing extreme standards- Things don't have to be just right, or best ever.  By getting out of our own way and being present, then the middle is where we all can meet and connect, rather than dangling alone at polar ends. 

Have you ever felt pressure to become The Best, or to maintain being The Best, or felt like a complete failure because of not being The Best? But being The Best doesn't always equate with happiness.  Instead, realize that One's Best is fluid rather than static, and isn't all-or-nothing.  Don't beat yourself with the ruler that only measures the mark that you missed.  The measure of your value isn't distilled down to one event, so give yourself compassion to say, "For this moment, I am doing My Best."

Have you ever wished you could believe in yourself more?  A belief is just a thought you keep thinking, and self belief can become a self-fulfilling prophecy.  Limiting beliefs are learned, not inherent, so rather than focusing on what you lack, believe in what you can practice and build upon.  Your past doesn't have to infiltrate your present.  Move in the direction you choose, and if you can't believe in yourself, borrow our belief in you.

Have you ever thought you'd "die from embarrassment", so you opted out of a moment? It's the power we put on our belief of what embarrassment is that keeps us hamstrung from doing anything.  Instead, laugh about it, learn from it, and enjoy it! Let's not take ourselves too seriously, and let's live every moment in the moment, and recognize the moment passes.  Find laughter, knowing that life is to be lived, not avoided! 

Have you ever felt that someone has made a wrong assumption of you? Rather than worry about what others might reduce you to in their estimation, stand in a place of self-compassion.  We can't control others, especially their assumptions they choose to formulate.  You can't take on every battle, and you get to decide if it's even worth it to engage.  You don't need to defend, prove, or protect yourself.  Ask yourself, "Is it worth it? How does that serve me?" and own your answer and your narrative.  Truth is in your authentic self, rather than in the assumptions of others.

Have you ever wished you had more confidence? Confidence isn't blind arrogance, or thinking you're infallible.  Honor the blooper outtakes as much as the highlight reels, because confidence isn't about the ability to succeed in a task.  It's about the mindset going into it, regardless of the outcome. 

Have you ever felt stuck? What's familiar isn't always good for you? Don't take things lying down and let people wipe their shoes on you.  State your name, stand up, and step forward, to the edges of your comfort zone, just as you are!