I don’t know about you, but I was raised to be tough; to endure hardships, to put on a steely face over hurt feelings. Boys are tough, girls are soft….that was the mantra. You carry those “tools” with you throughout your work life.
“It’s a dog-eat-dog world.”
“Only the strong survive.”
“Life is a series of battles and conflict and only the toughest win.”
If that’s what you were raised to believe, it’s pretty well ingrained into your psyche by now. Regardless of where you’ve been and how you were raised, ask yourself whether these ideas have any relevance in Chapter X.
It is a war?
Is it about “winning?”
No, Chapter X is a time to examine your mindset and discard that which no longer has meaning. Maybe you fought your way through the corporate battleground or faced terrible hardships that required an iron-clad will. But honestly, it’s time to let it go and adopt a gentler, more nuanced way of approaching problems and challenges.
Chapter X is a time to strip away the hard edges and allow who you were (before you were encased in armor) to reemerge. You know, like in childhood when you are at your most curious, open, free-thinking, expressive and real. You know, before adults filled you with rules of “appropriate” behavior and aimed you into a life filled with hard knocks.
It’s time to reclaim who you were meant to be as a human. Not as a doctor, lawyer, executive, business owner or whatever your occupation. It’s time to experience life without the rules of socio-economic success.
Who do you need to be now?
I want to hear your thoughts.
