Find Your New Sun
Truth Bomb: The biggest risk to our future “best” self, is the way our current self responds to fear.
Octavia Butler, a Black feminist speculative fiction writer once said, “There is nothing new under the sun, but there are new suns.” While literally, she was talking about space, she was also speaking the truth about discovering new paths and charting new courses because fear of the unknown has killed more dreams than the actual “risks” we often find ourselves afraid of.
Too often, we FREEZE up in pursuit of our destiny because we are afraid to explore the spaces in ourselves - and in the world - that we have yet to consider.
Take me for instance, I spent nearly four decades in pursuit of a measure of success that was inauthentic to who I was called to be. Honestly, because I had no clue who or what I was called to be to start with. I was convinced that I had to do what was expected, and stay the course I’d begun; as if I were not changing, as if the world and the things I did in it were not also changing. I worked hard - graduated high school at the top of my class, attended college on a full scholarship, joined a top bank as one of only four participants in a highly competitive leadership development program, got accepted into not one, but five top business schools (every single one I applied to), finished my MBA and went on to have a successful career at a Fortune 100 company. By all accounts I was successful. And from the outside looking in, I was walking in my purpose. On the inside though, I was miserable. Wildly successful yet desperately uninspired.
Octavia Butler also said, “I'm a pessimist if I'm not careful… an oil-and-water combination of ambition, laziness, insecurity, certainty, and drive.”
If you are anything like me (and most of my private clients), your ambition has led the way to discovering your zone of excellence and has catapulted you to success. However, knowingly or not, your fear and limiting beliefs (often masquerading as safety and security) are keeping you from operating in your zone of genius and unleashing your destiny.
To let fear inhibit our personal growth and make cowards out of us is tragic.
Readers of my blog will remember me saying,
So often, in the face of obstacles, we can feel like all our options disappear. Maybe we’re afraid to disappoint a loved one. Maybe we’re afraid to negotiate a raise. Maybe we’re afraid to apply to a new role, a new company, or to take the leap and change careers. So often, we allow that fear to win, to drown out our own inner voice, and convince us to stay in situations that do not serve us.
Don’t give fear too much power and control. It is natural to feel fear, but important to never submit to fear.
Don’t let fear cause you to overestimate risk. Fear and anxiety over change is natural. Fear is our brain's way of keeping us safe. However, understand that underestimating your power and not stepping into your purpose does you and everyone assigned to you a disservice.
We are the heroes of our own story, the masons of our future, and the only one able to take our own leap to our next sun.
Let’s explore further: sometimes, stepping into our purpose and exploring new “suns” is starting a new job or working for ourselves for the first time; changing careers altogether; going back to school; or making new connections now for the future. Walking in our purpose can be as daunting and uncertain.
But, the only way TO our destiny is THROUGH our fear. Feel the fear and move forward, with caution, anyway!
So, what do you do in the face of fear? How do you know when it’s time to pursue a new sun?
Get Quiet: Silence the noise surrounding you and focus on truly hearing your inner voice. It’s likely been trying to get your attention for a while now. What’s it telling you?
Get Bold: Strip away all constraints, expectations and inauthentic definitions of success. Embrace a willingness to explore what’s possible even when those things seem improbable.
Get Curious: Expand your vision by expanding your access and exposure. Take the time to learn about the world around you, about your interests in both your personal and career-oriented life, and the things that motivate you and make you feel joy. They may overlap, they may all be different, but they are all worth exploring if they bring you closer to your purpose, to exploring your new suns.
Get Help: Seek the support of an expert who can help you dig for insights and rediscover YOU.
Oh, and by the way, it is also totally and completely okay to change your mind.
It is understandable if everything you try does not move you towards your purpose or if you find a new purpose as you learn more. Take care of what needs taking care of everyday, but don’t lose sight of your purpose in the name of “safety”.
We are so much more than our fears.
Walk with the confidence that what can be, will be, if we only explore options beyond what we immediately see.
Ready to face your fears, rediscover yourself, find your purpose and unleash your destiny? Join me for a transformative intimate group experience, Destiny UNLEASHED! You’ve been playing small long enough. You’ve been settling long enough. You’ve been forsaking yourself while taking care of everyone else long enough. It’s time to rediscover YOU.
