Finding Yourself

Do you know when people ask you the question, “What do you want to do with your life?”  Or some variation of it, and your mind goes to the small corner of shame where you know you should have come up with a good answer, but your well is completely dry? That happens to me a lot.

I’ve often thought about how can I determine what I want to accomplish with my life. Where do I begin to figure this out? Many people say you need to find yourself.  But how?  And what does it even mean to find yourself? 

When I read this quote, I felt connected to it; like it answered these deep inner questions I had kept hidden away.

 “Listen to your inner-voice” …..What does that sound like?  When you hear your inner-voice, is it your heart talking to you, or your conscience?  I suppose you can choose which one is dominant, but I think that when we are finding ourselves, we need to set aside the voice that is telling us, “what will the family think”  or “You should find something more practical.”  There are cases in which you need to listen to this guidance, but just for a moment, listen to what the other voice is telling you. That is the voice of your personality! Remember when you were a child and you could get away with doing things you loved to do, even if it was weird?  But because you were young, the adults accepted it.  Things like playing in the snow, running around the house naked, and finger painting? There might be similar things that you heart and personality are trying to tell you but you suppress them because they “aren’t acceptable”.  Do an experiment and listen to what your personality is telling you. Follow it and see where it leads you.

Surrounding yourself with others that are loving and nurturing to you, help you develop that idea. They will help you follow that inner voice. These are great people to be around.  They could be your family, or just one really close friend.  Even if you can’t be around them a lot, set aside time to spend time with them. It doesn’t have to be an in-depth conversation about analyzing the pros and cons of your idea. Most of the time, it’s just having fun. Have a food fight! Or Pillow fight! Have FUN!

When you are in this process…that is when you find yourself. You have found what makes you happy. You have let yourself be happy.  When you are happy, you love yourself and the work you have done.  The quote says to love your art, but it can be any accomplishment, any craft, or even an emotional skyscraper that you have made.  It’s wonderful because it’s a part of you. You have put your full heart into it.

Start now by finding yourself and listening to the inner voice. You truly will find yourself and find your happiness.

Dreams

Have you ever told someone your dream for your life plan and they stifle a laugh, or tell you how unrealistic it is?  Unfortunately so many people believe that being different and getting out of the “mold” is going to lead your life down a road of failure.  It’s completely not true.

When I read this quote it really made me think about how many wonders we have today because of people who stood out from everyone else. They weren’t afraid to be alone or stepping out of the mold of society.  Thomas Edison is such a great example to me in this.  The light bulb was considered a myth, or a dream to always stay a dream.  He was considered crazy and spent a lot of time alone. However, he did it. He created light!  Who isn’t to say that you can’t do something like this?  You want to create holographic communication?  Do it! You want to dive to the bottom of the ocean? Do it! You want to learn how to knit a sweater! Just make it happen. I’m talking about big and little dreams! No dream is unreachable, and nothing is too small. Make it happen. If you don’t start, then it will never happen.  Just don’t be afraid of being alone. 

Following your dream doesn’t always mean that you are going to have a lonely life. It just means that you need to not be afraid of being a lone.  Don’t let that fear stop you from pursuing your dream.  Many times in your journey you meet your closest life friends.  You will find people along the way that will help motivate you and help you accomplish your dream.  The people that you expect support from the most, may not give it right away. It’s not because they don’t love you or think that you can’t succeed, rather they don’t want to see you fail. They are letting fear stop them.  Don’t let that happen to you! Honestly, when you first attempt to do what you want, you will fail. Look at how many time Thomas Edison failed before the light came alive?  You can’t let that fear control you and stop you from fulfilling your dream.

It is your dream to live. Live it!!

Dare to Believe

Are you a person that is afraid to try new things?  Big or small, it can be nerve racking to change something in your life. Something as small as changing the brand of laundry detergent, to a big move to a new city can cause so many different emotions.  One universal emotion we all feel is fear.

Why are we afraid, or feel anxious when new things are entered into our lives?  Why are we afraid to change? Because the fear that it won’t work out, overrides our adventurous mind.  We are afraid that our lives will fall apart if we make the wrong decision.  I’ve recently been deliberating over a big decision for me and what helped me make this decision was to go to the “why”. Why was I wanting to change or why is this change necessary?  Knowing the ‘why” is good and helps us not feel so scared, but more importantly is knowing where the “why” is coming from.  Searching in ourselves with our decisions starts with knowing what’s in our heart. This quote by Bryant McGill says it so perfectly.

We need to not be afraid of following our heart, because good things will happen.  I know it seems scary when our dream seems impractical or even impossible, but we can’t let fear grasp us and hold us back.  We need to Dare to believe in ourselves. Dare to believe in others. Dare to believe that even though this world is a wicked place, that good can come from it.  One amazing and inspirational example of all time for following her heart was Mother Teresa.  She was such an amazing leader of this world in her service to others. Her dream was to uplift those around her and help as many people as she could reach.  How much good came from her actions?  How many ripples of good influence did that one stone make in this incredibly complicated world?  Did any good come from her following her dream, despite the difficulties, and doubts she must have had?  Of course. That is why we speak so lovingly of her name today. 

Following your heart doesn’t mean you need to make a world impact. The truth is, you never know how many people you inspire each day, but just being you.  There are so many good things that come about from doing what you love and trying new things.  Act on what your hearts telling you. It will ultimately lead you on the happiest path that brings good things to others along the way.