It’s so easy to push through. To power through work and life with brute force, doing one thing after the other. Forcing yourself to make it happen, in spite of fatigue.
Some call it discipline.
Some call it rigor.
Some call it the movie Rocky.
Some call it the only way they know how to survive.
For most of my life I called it all those things. [cue: Eye of the Tiger!]
I’m learning it’s more than that. And it’s not the only way.
The compulsion to do more, make more, and power through more, can also be a coping mechanism - a way we learned quite literally to survive through the storms of growing up, painful family dynamics, untouched emotions kept deep inside, etc.
And while this rigorous compulsion can serve to protect and propel us for a time, it’s not really sustainable. Because it’s tiring. And as fast moving as it might seem, it actually can keep us stuck. (Like being on a treadmill and wondering why you’re not going anywhere.)
Enter: the empty space.
Time to just be. To soften into nothing. To face the fear of the unknown. To be faced with your emotions, your thoughts, your heart’s calling.
The empty space is where the magic happens. It’s where you get in touch with your humanity. It’s not always pretty. It can be painful. Terrifying. Seemingly unending. (“Will I ever create anything again?! Will I ever want to get out of bed again?!”)
Until it’s not.
Until a switch happens where you learn to love that empty space. Where you embrace it because you embrace yourself. Where inspiration enters your being effortlessly - because you stopped trying to force it to happen.
Like magic. Things start to happen for you. Opportunities are created. There’s a current supporting your forward movement. No more fighting against the stream.
That’s the power of the empty space. And it can still exist alongside hard work. It’s simply about making time to pause and let go and let a greater power take over for awhile. Relief! You don’t have to do it all alone.
I wish that empty space for you this week. Anything as small as 10 minutes with your eyes closed, to an entire day laying under the clouds. For that time, take pressure off yourself to figure stuff out or do anything. Just be. Empty. Space.
If you must be rigorous, be rigorous in your effort to commune with this empty space and make time for it as much as possible.
I’d love to hear what comes through as a result.
to creating from peace, love, & solid ground under your dancing feet,
Jess
p.s. If this makes sense to you but you’re still wondering HOW do I actually get there? Or, if it doesn’t quite make sense but you really really want it to because you’re tired of being stuck in the same pushing patterns…. I encourage you to reach out to me. I’m taking on a small group of clients this fall for 1-1 and group coaching and one of the spots might be perfect for YOU. When you email me, I’ll send you a sample class full of really valuable takeaways and we can talk further about the options for working together.
Because together, we can let go, trust, and create more powerfully than when we are divided.
