Daring Monday: Become a World Changer

Happy Monday all. I’ve been plugging away designing handouts for tomorrow night’s Tarot class, but in the back of my mind I’ve been having a conversation with myself about this week’s Daring Monday post all day. You see, I don’t think that I can over-emphasis the effect that my Find Your Voice confessional post has had on my life, and on this business in particular.

Confessions is Good for the Soul

I’d spent so long hiding under a rock convinced that there’d be an emotional backlash (shame, guilt, rejection) if I let everyone know the whole, true me that I put that post up knowing that was exactly what was going to happen.

Not only was I surprised to find out just how very wrong my ego had been (Isn’t it always?), I was in for an even bigger shock. I was still standing, still had all my friends, but that was secondary to the fact that I felt… Free. Weightless and happy. In fact, confessing seemed to boost my confidence in ways that nothing else I’d ever tried had.

Then vs. Now

Do you know that before I had Everyday Well-Being (my real brick and mortar holistic living store) I had an old blog (a few of you might have actually followed me from there), Flaming Renaissance, and I even had a coaching business site all set up (you can see the Everyday Renaissance site here if you really want to). I use the term “set up” loosely, as by that I mean that my gorgeous and wonderful web-guru (Hi, Becca!) had totally created the face on my site, but it actually was (and is) empty. (It’s cute though, isn’t it?)

Totally and completely blank. Nothing. I have tons of pages full of notes and thoughts, ideas, dreams and goals. I even have a little file folder with product ideas and writing suggestions, but none of it ever got beyond scrap paper scribblings. (For this past (almost) year I’ve considered myself ahead of my usual game based solely on the fact that I had at least the basic content on up Limitless Living, if nothing else.)

I just can’t seem to find the confidence to put myself all the way out there. When it comes to my work I keep hemming and hawing, moving back and forth, never really feeling like I have what it takes or even know what I’m doing. I should say, I couldn’t find the confidence.

It seems that it wasn’t Me that was lacking (as that nasty voice in my head was trying to make me believe), and it wasn’t that I needed to keep narrowing my niche down over and over again. It was just that I hadn’t left myself the room – given myself permission – to be my Self.

My confession, combined with an earlier Dare to just Be and a profound walk through my labyrinth, flung this space wide open. Suddenly I found I knew my answers, and not only that, I had the strength to believe them. (Maybe I even knew them all along, but as long as I was under the rock I just couldn’t bring myself to trust them?)

Within only weeks of stepping into the spotlight, I knew exactly what needed to be said. I knew what to put on the About page, what to tell you all that I did and how you could hire me, and I’d even decided on a (possibly) revolutionary system of pricing. I sat down and set all of this up in one day without batting an eye (I even finally put up a contact page – because I can’t have you all thinking I live in Ohio.)

I had Wakizashi peruse it all for flow, typos, and feel and he asked me if I was nervous, or maybe afraid. I thought about it and realized… I felt great. For the first time in years I had thrown myself on my personal Path with abandon. No holds barred. And the reward was great: confidence, excitement, promise, and a new hope.

I Could, Maybe Even, Change the World

In the midst of this story, I saw Kyeli and Pace post an announcement that they were offering scholarships to their World-Changing Writing Workshop; all you had to do was write something longer than 500 words about World-Changing.

I have a secretly held dream to be someone who literally changes the world. I don’t mind whether I’m a shooting star kind of world changer or the “just one pillar among” many kind; I’ve just wanted, for years now, to contribute something that helps shift the world – for the better. So, this invitation was very tempting, another secret me that I hold close to my heart would have to be exposed but… It’s just to @Kyeli and @PaceSmith (I reasoned).

I determined to find the space and time to write about being a world-changer, and when I finally did that other secret me flung herself on the page full-force. And guess what? I Won! Yep, the secret me turned out to have powerful words and passions all tied into that dream and she moved me forward into yet another opportunity. (So much for no one seeing it, you can read my World Changing Entry over at Freak Revolution.)

What’s it To You

Now here I sit; I’m the same me – just more fully me I guess. I’m all exposed, and even though logic tells me that I should be in the greatest danger now I’ve discovered that the real danger was with me under the rock.

Before, I was in danger of suffocating under the pressure of my full self – there just wasn’t room for all of me – and my lovely new wings – in that tiny space. I just didn’t realize that that was what the problem was, I thought all that breathlessness was the result of my (reasonable) fear of the danger of coming out.

But the butterfly, now fully transformed, can’t stay in the Chrysalis forever. She’ll die. She needs to come out – no matter how difficult or terrifying that might be.

So, here I am. Sitting on my rock in the sun with my lovely new wings airing out. And you know what? I’m gorgeous. And there’s something else I know for sure, as I finally sit on (instead of under) my rock, I know that you are gorgeous too.

Maybe it’s time for you to climb out from under your rock too? Why not? The sun is lovely and warm, the flowers are stunning, and the sky is limitless. Join me?