All Your Skills Are Useful

Honor All Your Skills

Self-limiting beliefs come in many flavors. The most common involve self-worth, but I’ve been guilty of some I failed to recognize until recently. Like you, life has given me a wide variety of skill sets, from basic life skills, to those I acquired through experience and education. Yet somehow, I’d gotten it into my head that it was OK to toss aside over 30 years of college and work experience in favor of a single-minded dream.

Needless to say, the last few years kept me stuck in a mire of my own creation where I focused on a single path to success, ultimately growing frustrated when I saw little progress. It wasn’t until I opened my eyes, and acknowledged the value of all the years spent getting my accounting degree, and using it in a variety of industries, before I realized not only did I need to keep that door open for opportunities, but there’d be times when both major skill sets could be combined into something beautiful.

Little did I know, releasing one, big self-limiting belief would break the chains that bound me to a singular, minimally successful mission. Doors I hadn’t even noticed would begin to open, and I’d be infused with a new energy; a new purpose, and best of all, renewed faith in the overall goal which seemed unreachable only a short time ago.

Releasing Resistance

I’d attached a lot of bad feelings, toxic experiences, and frustration to the skills which kept me and my daughters warm and fed for over 30 years. It’s with no little relief I can embrace them again without the fetters of unhappy times, and situations that beat me down, and led me to question both my choices and self-worth. They also led me to leave the last toxic situation I’d put myself in, and allow myself to believe I could, and would chase my wildest dreams.

The decision I made 8 years ago led me on another journey through peaks, valleys, and roads peppered with switchbacks. I’ve seen some of my lowest lows, and highest highs, questioning myself at too many crossroads, instead of trusting I was on the right path, even if it seemed to be filled with unrelieved perils.

I can’t honestly say what it was that made me question my resistance to dusting off the old, tried and true skill set. I only know it was the signal the Universe was awaiting to open doors, windows, and elevator shafts on my behalf. As long as I resisted using the skill set containing my best and worst experiences, I was blocking the avenues most likely to take me where I wanted to go.

Do What You Love

My stubbornness is both a blessing and a curse. I tend to hang onto things, people, and places longer than I should. I have a hard time believing in myself, and require far more proof of my worthiness than others who know me well. I’m a constant challenge to my daughter, especially, when it comes to accepting, and capitalizing on what I know, and the gifts I’ve been given. It’s as if I need unequivocal proof of those skills and abilities, yet every time the Universe offers such proof, I find a reason to discount it.

Accepting compliments has never been my strong suit. I finally learned by minimizing or denying them, I was disrespecting the giver by telling them their opinion didn’t matter. I learned to say thank you, and keep any feelings of denial to myself, but the Universe hears it all. It insisted I learn to cut the denials off at the pass, and truly believe in myself, and all my abilities; not just the ones I felt comfortable with, for the lack of taint infused by others.

I finally realized I love working with and supporting small businesses who are growing; who are focused on using unique skill sets to achieve lofty dreams. My dreams have always included helping people, though my introverted, empathic nature prefers to do so with minimal contact. I’ve discovered lately, I needed to reaffirm those goals, and take advantage of the evolution of work spaces in which many people work from home instead of having a brick and mortar business.

Frustration Breeds Resistance

Granted, not everything is suited to a virtual work space. Not everyone is comfortable working virtually, or directing their own work load, and time. The first step for me was to take 10 steps back and look honestly at:

• Who I am
• What I love to do
• What skills I possess
• Who I love to work with
• Why I’ve allowed some skills to gather dust

It’s also important to recognize the time I’ve spent figuring these things out wasn’t time wasted, but instead, it was time well spent. I had to realize my skills aren’t mutually exclusive despite the fact one is right brain, the other left. There’s a point where they converge, and in fact, I was using both in my last job.

Therein lies the problem I’ve struggled with for the last few years. The frustration point I’d reached before I decided to go off on my own left me with a bad taste in my mouth for the merging of those skills, and a deep-seated resistance to what I saw as falling back on the tried and true while admitting my dreams were pie in the sky.

Go Back to the Source

I know now, it wasn’t about using the skills. It was how, where, and for who I was using them. Though they don’t realize it, it took the ongoing confidence of someone I’d worked with for years to make me see how short I was selling myself. Granted, it took several lost opportunities for me to figure it out, and to embrace those skills. Until I did, I spent too much time apologizing for what I didn’t know, or information I needed to retrieve, and not enough time remembering how often I had risen to whatever occasion came my way.

Sure, some things have grown a bit rusty, while others are impacted by changes in the industry, and constantly changing rules and regulations. But one of my super powers is research. I’ve been blessed with opportunities to keep those skills sharp with my writing, but until now, failed to realize how valuable they are no matter what I’m doing.

Releasing Resistance Attracts Opportunities

As I embark on a new and improved path where I utilize all my skills instead of limiting myself by being too selective, I appreciate all the opportunities I’ve been given to learn, grow, and even make a few hard, left turns that led to dead ends. Every step I’ve taken has been on the right path, even when it seemed to be taking me backwards, or worse, into stagnation.

I’ve learned there’s a time to rest, a time to reflect, and a time to move. They can occur independently, or concurrently, but ultimately, change is inevitable. Allowing fear or self-doubt to get in the way may stall the process for awhile, but invariably, like a baby bird, you’ll get kicked out of the warm, soft nest whether you like it or not, so you may as well learn to fly.

 

About the Author

Sheri Conaway is a Holistic Ghostwriter, and an advocate for cats and mental health. Sheri believes in the Laws of Attraction, but only if you are a participant rather than just an observer. Her mission is to Make Vulnerable Beautiful and help entrepreneurs touch the souls of their readers and clients so they can increase their impact and their income.

If you’d like to have her write for you, please visit her Hire Me page for more information. You can also find her on Facebook Sheri Levenstein-Conaway Author.

Be sure to watch this space for news of the upcoming releases of ” Rebuilding After Suicide” and “Sasha’s Journey”.