Look at God! You came back! 😘
Stepping out of your comfort zone is a hot topic lately. Everyone is saying it. Hell, some of us are actually doing it. It got me thinking, who put us there, and what role have we played putting other people there? We like to talk about taking the leap, but how many times have we scared others from doing so?
"You shouldn't say that"
"You might not get the offer/might not win/might not do well."
"Are you sure you're qualified?"
"Don't be so loud."
"That's too much."
Or any other form of DON'T.DO.OR.BE.THAT.
We fence each other in; our friends, our partners, our children. Most of the time it's because we want to keep them safe. The world is a cruel taskmaster, and we know this firsthand. So we clip their wings to keep them close to the nest...just in case. Now this isn't always truth, of course. Some people really do believe the sky's the limit. I know yall have seen those American Idol auditions.
Be honest though: How many times have you stopped someone from applying for a job or to a school? Or going to an audition? Inadvertently, or sometimes even intentionally. As a mother, I do it. 😢 Just recently became conscious of it though. I don't want my kids to face ridicule, because I know a stranger isn't going to let them down as gently as I would, so I steer them away from things that I don't think they will excel at naturally.
Now in other cases, people see the spark, the fire, the potential, and try to snuff that shit out. There is so much power residing in some people that it scares us, or it triggers feelings of inadequacy, so we feel the need to "keep people in their place."
"How dare you walk through this lifetime basking in all the God given power you possess?"
But when we know better, we do better, right? (Or at least that's what we like to say.) Some gifts are innate, so we don't have to provide much more than a push. Others may seem far fetched to us, so in these cases, we need to get the hell outta the way, but also be a safety net if shit don't work out. It isn't our place to manage another's power, just as we shouldn't allow others to manage ours. We all have been given exactly what we need to handle whatever comes, if and/or when we decide to tap in.
Our inner critic is usually the manifestation of feelings of inadequacy planted by someone in an attempt to keep us safe or stuck. Either way, we are the only one who can quiet that voice and show up as we are truly meant to.
Strut, honey, it's time!💖