| Three conversations in the last three weeks that made me think, Hmmmm… I guess this is something other visionaries may need to hear, too.
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“I just feel so anxious and hopeless…” an aspiring messenger says after living through the most grueling year of her life with a divorce and custody battle.
“You know, I work with messengers and this is a phase of the process…” I continue to explain that Inspiration and Action are often followed by Resistance from the part of us that is scared to step into that vision, or the part of us that knows we have something in our lives that needs to be healed before we can fully step into the work.
***
“I just can’t believe I haven’t been even considering engagement or my numbers of followers on social media…” another messenger says after spending the last year focused on building the container for her work.
“Would it have been within your bandwidth, or even wise, to spend a lot of time marketing and growing an audience before building the courses and infrastructure for your business? There are phases of building a vision as HUGE as yours…”
***
“I just feel so low… uninspired… discombobulated… and like I’m so far behind my friends who are…” one messenger says after birthing something extraordinary into the world.
“Have you completely forgotten what you accomplished this year? Do you have any idea how far ahead you are at your age? Maybe you just need some rest?”
***
The gift and the challenge [superpower and kryptonite] for visionaries are one and the same.
We don’t just look at the world --
we see the world AS IT COULD BE.
We don’t just look at people --
we see THEIR POTENTIAL.
We don’t just look at ourselves --
we KNOW WHO WE ARE HERE TO BECOME.
This superpower is AWESOME when we are in seasons of Inspiration, Action, and Impact. It gives meaning to every idea, activity, and connection. Awe and wonder at the magic of the world we live in permeates our every moment.
However, there are these things called cycles. [I know, right? Why didn’t we learn this anywhere in our education, damn it?]
In between cycles of Inspiration, Action, and Impact,
are cycles of Resistance, Recovery, and Release.
These three cycles can be excruciating for visionaries like me and my clients who have this deep knowing that we are here to change the world. And if you also got that “your value is tied to your performance” st*ry going in the background, then it’s even worse.
Our Visionary [future-thinking] becomes, as one of my clients says, “our Judge, Jury, and Executioner.”
We judge ourselves by a standard or ideal
that doesn’t even exist in this present moment.
It’s what could/will be in the world;
it’s who we will all be in the future.
We shake our heads as we listen to the evidence that we are failing to meet that standard and determine that we must be broken, stupid, off-track, or __________ [what does your jury accuse you of?].
And then we do the most horrible thing.
We punish ourselves by:
pushing through the resistance that’s usually telling us where we need to heal before we can take the next step
forcing ourselves to stay hyper-productive when we really need to recover and rest
working on the next vision when it’s really a time to look at where we’re at, celebrate what we have achieved, and release what might keep us from achieving our vision
These cycles are maybe the most important
lesson we were never taught.
And without them, we cause ourselves so much unnecessary suffering in the form of anxiety, depression, self-harm, and _______ [what does your suffering look/feel like?].
So, before we walk into the unknown of another year to tackle our dreams, I'm going to invite all of us to:
sit our Visionary down and have a conversation about cycles
acknowledge our Visionary for all that was actually accomplished in 2020
release the Judge, Jury, and Executioner from their duties
extend Grace to our Visionary for all that wasn’t accomplished in 2020
develop some method of staying connected to cycles and celebrating them
The method might be:
a regularly-scheduled check-in during your quiet time
a note you put on the potato chips that you always grab when you’re mad that you’re not in one of the fun cycles [or is that just me?]
asking your closest ally to keep an eye on you, help you see these cycles coming or when you’re in them, and model the Grace that you need to remember to give yourself
other: _____________ [What’s your game plan? I'd actually love to hear from you!]
May your Visionary be blessed with the Grace to relax into the cycles and get the most out of them… |
| | Founder, True to Intention
Smart-Mouthed Seeker | Unapologetic Story Junkie | Message Oracle | Messenger Guide
Mom | Wife | Friend | Witness to Divine Intention through Story
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