“Don’t stay where you are tolerated. Go where you are celebrated.” The Creative Commons
We each have a solid internal compass; a knowing that stirs within us. It’s that feeling you get in the pit of your stomach or the slight pain you feel in your chest. It’s the lump in your throat that offers a critical message. A message of survival, and a message of enduring hope. The signal that screams for you to let go of the trapeze and grab the bar floating towards you. That voice whispering in your ear, “thrive and be celebrated for all that you are”.
We hear the call. We will sometimes even take a step towards it, but too often, out of fear for own security and protection of a fragile identity, we withdraw. We retreat back to a place of perceived safety. A place which has been our haven for too long. We know it is getting crowded. We feel the tightness of the space we are outgrowing. Yet, we continue to seek refuge from the unknown. We allow fear to quiet our internal voice. We find it difficult to act on what we know to be true.
But. . . the feeling grows. It builds until it reaches a point where we have no choice. We can no longer stay in the space that has become too cramped. Like a trapeze artist who floats gracefully through the air, we know we must release one bar in order to grab the other. The timing must be right. If we let go too soon, we miss the moment and fall into the net. When we wait too long, we lose momentum and the other bar becomes out of reach or it takes more energy to grab it. Timing becomes everything. Our planning is purposeful, and intuitive knowing is trusted.
I had the privilege this week to work with over 150 leaders in various industries on different occasions. The theme that resonated in virtually all my conversations was the need to move towards something greater. To not stay stuck in what no longer fits. To have enough clarity to know what bar you were releasing and which you were reaching for. To be courageous enough to let go of one trapeze and grab the other. To be able to breathe through that moment when you are suspended in mid-air with nothing supporting you. To develop a safety net for a fall, but also to know you can climb back up the ladder and try again. And, to trust the sense of pure bliss in knowing that you have successfully moved into a space that fits your growing potential.
I wonder today, what spaces are you outgrowing? And what would it take to go where you can be celebrated?
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