For the first quarter of 2019, my intention is to focus on subject matters that relate to your “behaviors and patterns” and provide insight on how to effectively work with them.
For January it was “slowing down”.
February was “presence”.
And for March, it’s “vulnerability”.
When you take the time slow down, you start to see things more clearly – you’re able to observe what’s happening around you and make more conscious decisions.
Inevitably through this process, you create a stronger sense of presence in your life. Presence allows you to connect more deeply and open to your heartfelt desires.
And as you start to develop a keen sense of the things that you desire in your life, you also begin to realize that in order to obtain these things, you need to take a closer look at your behaviors and patterns.
Taking a closer look requires you to be vulnerable – to embrace humility and examine the parts of you that are holding onto the “old”, ineffective ways of doing things.
Sometimes these things are obvious; other times, it takes a friend or partner to point them out.
Staying open to the feedback you receive through self-examination and others is the essence of vulnerability; it’s a willingness to receive feedback and use it as an opportunity for learning and growth.
On the flip side, stubbornness is one of the biggest factors that prevents you from staying open to this process.
And at the core of stubbornness is fear.
Fear of change.
Fear of admitting that something isn’t working.
Fear of letting go.
Do any of these fears sound familiar to you?
If so, for this week, I encourage you to slow down and take a moment for self-reflection; take notice of when you resist new perspectives and opportunities for change.
In the coming weeks, I’ll talk more about the process of opening to new perspectives by embracing your fears and obstacles.
Along with this, I’ll share some of my thoughts on how vulnerability can create lasting, positive change in the workplace.
Until then, have a great rest of your week.
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