This one thing can change your life...

Humans fascinate me.  But more specifically human behavior fascinates me.  It is that fascination that has lead me on a life long journey of deep internal reflection, dialogue, and transformation.  I figure if I can gain a deeper and more profound understand of my own thoughts, words, and behaviors, I can not only create the life of my dreams but I can become more effective and influential in helping others create the life of their dreams.  It is on this journey I have found one of the greatest gifts.  It has also been one of the greatest challenges I have had to face, but doesn't it work out that our greatest challenges usually are the very things that become our greatest gifts? It's not easy to always see and appreciate it at the time however.  This gift I speak of is vulnerability.  I know your head may be spinning right now as mine did when I was first confronted with the concept of vulnerability.  Especially when vulnerability was described as a strength.  That was news to me!!  I grew up with notion that perfection was a sign of strength.  That I needed to protect and guard my image at all costs.  The greatest sign of strength was being the best - at everything.  So I was led down the path in pursuit of straight As, captain of the baseball team, work out phenom, leadership guru, intellectual genius, and the list goes on and on.  I thought if I could achieve all of these things, or more specifically, if I could at least get people to perceive me as a pillar of perfection in all of these areas, it would be a sign of strength and power and influence.  The challenge with that is I wasn't perfect and never will be.  No one is.  We all have fears, demons, skeletons in our closet, inadequacies, and insecurities.  We have fears of failure, fears of success, fears of never finding love, fears of not being good enough, and fears of not belonging.  Some may experience each of these to lesser or greater degrees depending on the individual, but we all have our internal and external challenges.  The more we can come to terms with our own mortality, the more we can be open about our fears and challenges, the more we can express and come to terms with what scares us, the more we can shed this coat of protection that blocks us from the transformations we crave deep in our souls to create the lives we were meant to live.  And the more we can shed these layers of protection we so carefully have built up over the years, the more we can release the light that resides inside each and every one of us.  This is possible for everyone of us, but it does not come without a price.  That price is hard word, deep internal reflection, and times of severe emotional discomfort.  It is a challenge and a calling very few people will undertake because of the enormity of the process but the rewards are there for the taking if you are willing to venture out from protection of your cocoon into the world of vulnerability.  Being vulnerable is about being truly honest with  yourself about your weaknesses and your strengths.  It is about creating a complete connection and transparency with your thoughts, emotions, and behaviors.  It is about seeing yourself for what you are and not what you wished or hoped that you were. It is about shedding the facade and displaying your naked self to the world and as Brene Browne, PhD would say, "Yes, I am imperfect and vulnerable and sometimes afraid, but that doesn't change the truth that I am brave and worthy of love and belonging."  Now go out there and be imperfect. Be vulnerable.  And let your true self shine because in the famous words of Howard Thurman, "Don't ask what the world needs.  Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it.  Because what the world needs is more people who have come alive."