Which Voices Will You Listen To Today?

Whose Voices Guides Your Progress?

Writing is easy for me. Finding people who will to pay me to write for them—not so much. Or so I keep telling myself, and it occurs to me therein lies my problem. When I write, I let it flow, allowing the words to come out however they want to. Perhaps I need to apply the same concept to my business instead of getting in my own way?

When I set the intention to not only write 3 posts a week, but to get ahead by at least two weeks, and ultimately a month, ideas for posts flooded me from all directions. I’d get ideas from my morning pages, from someone I saw at the gym, from someone’s passing comment—a veritable cornucopia of ideas. It made me realize I could use the technique with anything I wanted with all my heart. Not only that, it became almost child’s play to get me to sit down at the computer or with a notebook and write. In my mind, I was “getting” to write now, instead of “having” to write.

Learning from What Works

So why are the intentions I’m setting about career and clients failing to appear as abundantly as blog topics and the words flowing so readily from my fingers?

I realized it has to do with conflicting mental states. On the one hand, I want to write for people who are deeply invested in the success and expansion of their clients. On the other, my inner voices were screaming “imposter” so loudly they were nearly drowning out the part of me which believes wholeheartedly in what I do and what I’m capable of accomplishing.

This dichotomy leaves me in a strange sort of limbo. Telling the voices to shut up isn’t really effective as they invariably shout louder, much like two people arguing completely disconnected opinions. Both sides get louder and louder, though the points they’re making rarely hold enough water to fill a thimble.

My inner critic has no justification for its opinions, but it does have a long history of succeeding in keeping me from reaching my full potential. There are so many roads I bypassed and chances I didn’t take because I gave in to the fear inflicted on me by those voices of dissension.

Recognizing Our Worth and the Value of Our Contributions

In recognizing the fear I inadvertently also found the solution; a solution I wrote about in another post recently. I don’t try to subvert those voices at all. I let them have their say and respect their opinion, but I don’t give them voting rights. I also don’t allow them to ramble on forever, effectively filibustering a vote to take action they hope to curtail. I am the Council and they are the populace who shares their opinions in hopes I’ll vote their side.

Unfortunately, they’ve been winning up to this point if only because I unconsciously either allowed the filibuster to continue or gave my votes over to fear and feelings of unworthiness. But no more! If nothing else, it’s time I set a better example for people reading my words.

We all have important messages to share. Not everyone will agree, and those who don’t may not listen. Those who do may smile and nod their heads. Maybe a few will be inspired to speak out themselves. There are far more who, I believe are confused and don’t have an emotional attachment to anything in particular. The goal isn’t to persuade or convince, but to provide enough information to allow them to make their own educated choices.

I’ve learned experiences I share resonate with people, but only when I’m open and honest about them, admitting to my struggles and weaknesses as well as celebrating my successes. It was a long, hard road for me to understand how admitting to vulnerability is empowering. I understand how difficult it can be for others to walk that road and come out stronger and more connected. Who better than me to help them find their own voice to express their Humanity?

Embracing Differences So We Can Learn to Be Our Most Awesome Selves

Lately, I hear a lot of people criticizing this generation or that. They close their minds to lessons they might learn because the teacher is either too old or too young, and therefore, out of touch. What a crock! I’ve learned so much from people younger than me. The difference in perspective is, contrary to popular belief, an asset, not a liability. If we only speak to people who see things as we do, we’re giving in to those voices that tell us we have to stay exactly where we are.

I for one am tired of hearing I don’t have what it takes to break free of my current reality, or that I’m not smart enough, good enough, or any of those “enoughs”. In fact, when those voices start yammering, that’s exactly what I’m now telling them. “That’s enough! It’s time to give someone else the talking stick. You’ve had your say and it’s becoming repetitive. And annoying.”

Seeing the Future We Envision Using All Our Senses

We all have our way of seeing the world, receiving messages, and imagining our future. I tend to be quite visual despite my lack of artistic ability with pictures. I see entire landscapes with trees, birds, the crashing of the ocean, and all the scents and sensations that go with it. So when I look at silencing the voices which keep me from attracting clients, I see a distinct image of putting duct tape over the mouth of an angry and belligerent speaker and watching the insanity rage in their eyes. They can glare and shoot daggers all they want. Their greatest weapon, their voice is no longer active.

In visualizing things I want, they become more powerful, more potent. I find myself standing (or sitting) taller and taking a giant step into the unknown, confident I have all I need to master whatever comes my way. It’s a lot like the Wonder Woman style power pose which has become so popular of late. When you stand in your power (or see it in your mind as clearly as the face you see in the mirror) you become that power, and own what happens in your future.

Sure, things may not go exactly as you’ve planned, but that’s not always a bad thing. What’s important is to be ready to dodge a punch, climb a mountain, or leap over a flaming pit to reach your goals. There will always be challenges along the way, but attitude is everything. When we believe we can accomplish something with all our hearts, nothing and no one will stop us. We’ll face trial by fire if need be, but we’ll keep going.

We Achieve Greatness By Stepping Into Our Personal Power

There’s a scene in “The Princess Bride” where they run into a forest known for insane perils rather than face capture. Nobody ever survives the fire pits, the giant rats, and other vicious freaks of nature. Yet somehow they make their way through the forest, taking on all challenges and conquering them all. Why? Because they believe they can and don’t allow fear or nay-saying voices to convince them otherwise.

This post has, as often happens, taken on a life of its own and strayed far from my original premise, but the underlying message remains. If we are stuck and not making progress, it has everything to do with which voices we’re listening to, which ones we allow to influence our votes, and which ones we may have to use duct tape to silence once we’ve tired of their propensity to have their say a time or ten. When we focus on the voices which tell us we have no limits, the limits fade away. Maybe they don’t disappear like magic, but their influence on where we go from here has less and less control over the roads we choose and our rate of progress thereon.

About the Author

Sheri Conaway is a writer, blogger, ghostwriter, and advocate for cats. 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.. And check out her new group, Putting Your Whole Heart Forward.
Be sure to watch this space for news of the upcoming release of “Life Torn Asunder: Rebuilding After Suicide”.