In order to truly disrupt the sleepwalking cycle, you have to make one decision. Commit to being your true SELF.
In order to be your true self, you will have to commit to S-E-L-F in all you do.
S-E-L-F stands for Show Up, Engage, Listen and Follow through.
S: Show Up. Truly show up. Be present. Someone once said showing up is 99% of success in life. Be fully present. Be available to your life. Joyce Meyer says, “God is more interested in my availability than my ability.” Think of it. If you have all the resources of the universe at your disposal, and you don’t even show up, then, you don’t have access to those resources, do you? You have to show up to gain access.
I once auditioned for a prestigious choir during my undergrad studies. Being a new immigrant, I was flummoxed when asked to sing the national anthem. I was embarrassed because I did not know it. Then I was asked to sing any song and I shyly sang the “Happy birthday” song. To this day, I do not know if I made it into the choir. Why? I never showed up to find out. I was so humiliated. I found out many years later, that the auditions were just to weed out tone deaf applicants. I learned that they almost always let you in. I never showed up, so I missed out on a terrific opportunity. Maybe you are afraid, or feel inferior, like you don’t know enough. But, like Marie Forleo says,
“Everything is figureoutable.”
E: Engage. We are so distracted. Our eyes are glued to screens. Dr. Ned Hallowell calls it “Screen Sucking”! Fingers constantly fidgeting, we crave our gadgets, reaching for our addictions… Escaping and numbing with food, screens, shopping, anything to keep us from dealing with the pain of being ourselves, living our so-called mundane lives. There is always something beckoning, promising some excitement… Something better, greener, stronger, more HD…
Brene Brown calls it avoiding shame and vulnerability… Armoring up, we pretend to be too cool for school, but we are running away from our own lives.
Dare to turn off the distractions and engage. Dare to stop numbing your self. Roll up your sleeves, do the work your live deserves. Be goofy. Be excited. Risk being uncool. Risk being so excited you are uncool! Be fully present. Go all in. Pay full attention to what is in front of you.
L: Listen. What is your life telling you? What are your patterns? What have you lost? What do you have? What are you doing? What are your strengths? What are the people around you saying? Listen to your life. What are your hangups or recurrent mistakes? What is your kryptonite? What are you missing? Who do you want to be? What are your ideals?
F: Follow through. Pick up the tips, the lessons, the advice… Apply them to your life. Let go of that toxic friendship. Stop that destructive habit. Pick up the phone and call that parent. Buy that book. Take that class. Create and work that budget. Smell that rose. Do something about the insights you received when you listened to your life. Don’t go back to sleep. Don’t go back to numbing. Don’t eat the seeds of wisdom you have received. Cultivate them and Let them grow instead. Then you can eat the fruits of harvest later.
It will not be easy. But it will be worth it.
How are you going to be true to your self? In what ways will you Show up? Engage? Listen? Follow through? Please share your comments below. Thanks!