Authentic's I'm happy to have you here! I'm happy because I'm able to express myself in the most purest form with intention. I'm happy and grateful because you have joined me in this sacred space. I'm happy to be starting something new! I thank God you have joined me. I'm definitely smiling more because of it! We're discussing being ourselves this week. Being authentic at its core I believe is being who you genuinely are. I'm going to share with you my experiences. Getting Naked as my life coach, Precious, says! I'm telling my business gladly because I get to share my gift. Thank you for honoring my gift to! :)
Hiding Behind My Glasses.....
So my family and I are invited to a social function but, I'd rather be alone. I feel good in solitude and I wanted to enjoy that. Besides I get really anxious when I have to enter social settings and it's usually because my thoughts can't get past how people see me. #GettingNaked
I have to be at this social function because its for my nephew-in-law's birthday. It'd be rude if I don't show up right? So I go. I try to ignore my anxiety all the way there, talking to my husband about some random topic that has popped into one of our minds. By the time we've arrived to the party, I have to use the bathroom but its mostly nerves because when I get there its not much to dispose of. I just sit there to catch my breath. I stand and look in the mirror to give myself the pep talk. The pep talk is the speech I give to the nervous Sharhonda to muster up strength to perform. The pep talk goes like this, "OK, put your face on!" That's it.
I then wipe my face with a cool towel as if I'm wiping off the old face to make way for the new one. I smile at myself to check to see if the smile hides my anxiety. I make sure my eyes look bright and convincing as well. I walk out of the bathroom with my face on and I smile with a glow, "Hi, how are you doing?" I give hugs and make small talk all the while the anxiety bubbles in my belly. The voice in my head is saying, "Hurry up and find a seat!" This way I can get settled into my safe place. It's the place where I may be a little hidden but around people who I'm used to. I can't wait to leave and I'm thrilled when its nearing the end because I can get in the car, breathe, and take this dang face off!
In these instances I'm clearly not being authentic. Surely I shouldn't walk in shaking like a leaf! Yes, I'm overly concerned about how others see me. I'm thinking about possible mistakes I could make even though I've never committed any foolish acts at family functions. When anxiety talks, it talks big! Insecurities thrive in this condition of the mind. It suffocates authenticity. How could I possibly be myself when I am worried about how to impress everybody else. I'm concerned with being perfect for them. I forget about myself. Super revelation! I'm overly concerned with failing a test that I may not even be given. If I am given the test these people aren't my teachers. God and Life they teach, they use others, they instruct, and give wisdom. People well they are vessels. How I'd like to have been able to hear that in the moment but my mind was consumed with worries about how others see me.
The beautiful thing is we are given second, third, and fourth chances! I had a chance to face my fears... I had a chance to just be me without apology. It was a thanksgiving holiday with my family. I immediately begin to get anxiety about who am I going to talk to, how will I interact, and how will people receive me? I immediately began to worry. That sucks right! To have a mindset that turns on worry as easy as you can turn on water. I recognized immediately that I was heading into a bad place and that it would ruin the rest of my day. I didn't want that. So instead of my usual go put your face on speech, I said to myself, "Just be you".
Woooosaaaaa!!!! *Smiles*
That just feels good even saying it in my mind right now. It's like a fresh wind blows in from the east and flows over to the west with ease. It feels good. If you can imagine a warm spring morning where the trees are bright green and the sun is shining. It feels like that. Beautiful. Calming. Courageous. Joyful. Great! Magical! You just have to be there in that moment. Give yourself permission to just be you! After that decision, with every move I made I said, "it's OK". If I had a thought about worrying about what I said, or did, I repeated to myself, "it's OK". Ultimately, it's okay to be you. It's okay to laugh extra loud. It's okay to not go and be a part of the group right now. It's okay to sit in the room with the old folk because you like their spirit. It's okay to talk to the kids instead of adults because you like how they talk! It's okay to sit by your mother in law to enjoy her smile. Whatever you choose to do in this moment is okay because you are being true to you. That's authenticity.
Authentic's being you along this journey is important because you take off the chains of your past, along with the opinions of others. You remove chains of bondage and negative thoughts. Being you is one of the greatest freedom's you can afford yourself. To just be is a gift. I look at commercials, TV shows, media, and I see how people are trying to force you into a box. It's a gift to miserable people when you are miserable with them. I understand that because when I became ill I sought out people who had the same illness as me. They understood every pain and complaint I had. If you are always around people who are miserable though and you can't get out of that misery something is wrong. That's not a place God intended for us to live forever. For that reason I needed to break free from putting on the face. I was trying to fake it until I made it but I wasn't accomplishing anything. I wasn't showing people who I was. I'd end up angry when people weren't putting forth any effort in getting to know me. If I wanted people to know me, I have to be authentic. I have to be me no matter the setting. I have to be me so that anxiety, insecurity, and fear of others opinions doesn't win. I have to be me so that others can see the freedom that comes with staying in your own lane.
So Authentic's what does it mean to be yourself? Who are you? Do you put your face on before leaving the house? Do you put on for the crowd? Let me know your experiences. Share with me when you didn't honor yourself by being yourself. How can you turn that around? How can you become authentic in this area of life? Just be you! I'm excited about sharing my experiences with you this week. My intention is to be me so that I can be more authentic!
Signing off.....
#HidingBehindMyGlasses
#Journeytoauthenticity
#GetNaked
#YouInspireMe
#BeIntentional
#BeYou
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