Growth
This past week, I recognize I am in a dip. My morning and evening routines have almost disappeared. I stopped practicing yoga poses and missed several days of my ten push-ups. I caught myself scrolling and getting lost in everyone else’s words instead of my own. And an old story showed up. The story, I’m not enough: not consistent enough, not capable enough, not enough.
If you’ve ever heard that voice, you know how convincing it sounds. But I did what I’ve learned to do. Instead of believing the story, I got curious about it. I looked closer. And what I found surprised me. The problem was never that I’m not capable. The problem was the opposite.
April and May were very busy months because I kept giving my time and energy to other people’s projects. I saw their potential so clearly, and I’m genuinely capable in the areas where they were struggling, so I stepped in…again and again. And here’s the realization that stopped me. People will never become more capable if I keep doing what they can learn to do for themselves.
I wasn’t failing. I was over-giving, and calling the exhaustion failure. There’s a sentence on my list of things my future self no longer does. The sentence is, “I no longer spread myself too thin.” I wrote that line because I know this pattern of taking care of others before I take care of myself.
Seeing potential in people and their ideas is a gift, and it’s one I want to keep. But the most generous thing isn’t always to do things for others. Sometimes the most generous gift is to let people grow their own capability while I tend to mine. Part of becoming your own special someone means you don’t abandon yourself.
I’m fantastic. 😁 I shed a few tears, I laughed, and I realized I am more capable than the dip wanted me to believe.
This newsletter is arriving to you on June 4th rather than June 1st because of my choices to prioritize other people. A real life consequence. Not good or bad. Not right or wrong. But I didn’t keep my commitment to myself and I felt that.
I am excited to experience June with my focus on saying “Yes” to building my capability.
If you’re in a dip too, I encourage you to examine your thinking and actions. And whatever story you start telling yourself, detach from the story and maybe ask yourself, “What am I focusing on? What do I want to focus on? What am I learning?”
Aloha 🌺😁
New Blog: “Why I Drew Circles Around Myself”
As the title states, yes, I used to draw circles around myself on purpose. Maybe my story will resonate with you in some way. As you will see, I had a lot of fun at the beach in the sand and in the ocean.
New Yoga Blog: Extended Triangle Pose
Even though I have been struggling with practicing the yoga poses daily, I’m proud of myself for creating the weekly yoga pose videos. This week there are tree roots under the yoga mat because of where I placed the yoga mat. The ground is already slanted and the tree roots added an extra challenge for me. I happily persevered.
Fun Personal Learning for You: ”Get Your Ass Outside”
This month I have a fun song to share with you. The song is “Get Your Ass Outside” by A Brother’s Foundation. Sometimes it’s easy to get in a routine of not going outside. There can be comfortable items indoors that are enticing. And sometimes the thoughts in our head can keep us inside. I am encouraging you to get outside more this month when possible. And if you can get to nature, I encourage you to get in nature.
“Get Your Ass Outside” video