Showing up authentically

Do you have different personas for different groups that you interact with?  Do you change your behavior and ideas to fit in with friends, family, coworkers, supervisors?  Do you wonder what people would think if they only knew the real you? 

These are all common ways we interact in the world.  Why? Because we think it will be easier, or people will like us better if we blend in.  These tactics do work…for a while.  But then this quiet voice from within that says something different. Can you hear it?  Do you listen, or do you ignore it until it gets stronger and louder?  Do you let fear kick that voice to the curb, bloody but still whispering ‘be the real you, you’re awesome’. 

I ignored, stuffed and throttled that voice to within an inch of its life, only to have it come back and tower above me with its loving, serene way.  “Come on a journey with me.  It won’t be easy for you, but it could be. Trust.”, it said.  This time fear couldn’t push it around and I was intrigued.   

So began my year of becoming more authentic.  I couldn’t imagine the doors that would open, the bliss I would find or people that I would meet. And it’s even harder to imagine going back to the old way of being in the world.  

My first attempts were timid and small.  People didn’t run away in horror at the real me, in fact they were more open and trusting themselves.  Not everyone was understanding or welcoming of the changes.  It turned out that this journey allowed me to ask myself, for the first time, if I really needed someone in my life that didn’t welcome the real me.  The answer – a resounding NO!  That cleared space for people who not only welcomed but embraced the real me. 

And something else completely unexpected happened during that year; I became more tolerant and welcoming with others.  I truly wanted to know about people, what they thought and how they felt.  Because I was no longer trying to be who I thought they wanted I was more able to see who they were.  It is a beautiful thing. 

It can be hard to break a pattern of being, but I encourage anyone who feels exhausted with the roles and facades they’ve created to listen to the little voice.  Take the first timid steps.  You just might be surprised at how awesome you really are!  And how great it feels to let go of the facades and just show up as you. 

If would like help in your journey to more authenticity, we should chat. 

Love and light to the awesomeness that is you!