two steps forward, one step back

We’ve each grown to be who we are today with a story about who we are. It is a story bred from our experiences. It may be a story our parents helped us write. It’s usually a combination of the two, plus some. Oftentimes, we don’t know about or can’t see that story. It’s just the water we swim in. It’s our “truth.”

And then, at some point on our journey, we may decide that we want to be someone or something different in the world than our story predicts. Maybe it comes in the shape of a breakdown or revelation. Maybe it comes in the form of a dream, or an opportunity. And it lights something up.

Now, from a place of being who we know ourselves to be, anything but the path that aligns with our “truth” seems impossible, not for us. Our former selves will fight us on this divergence. THAT’S OK! The opportunity here is to choose something different ANYWAYS!

We have YEARS of experience with our story. It is home to us, whether we want it to be or not. It is comfort and collusion, whether we like it or not. The journey to be someone different is discomfort and discord, and it’s where our greatness is born and grows.

Once we choose something different, and head out on that journey, our former selves will sometimes pop back in for a hello, telling us we aren’t worthy of this path, we don’t deserve it, because it doesn’t align with our historical truth.

So, when you see some old patterns popping back up, or some discouraging thoughts emerge that feel all too familiar, remind yourself that this is the work - being willing to hear our former selves, give them a hug, remind them to put down the armor, and keep pressing on every day. Because even two steps forward, one step back, is progress. Get there how you get there!