Nature is so magical and mysterious.
I photographed this cloud picture one day in Autumn because it made me wonder what was sitting behind the clouds. The grey background with puffy clouds layered on top set me thinking about how we are all complex beings and our stories have layers. I wondered if a band of rain made up the grey background layer, and if I could peel back that layer would I find a blue sky? Depending on the time of day I might possibly see a sunrise or sunset, or maybe the evening star.
We live our life based on what we believe—the stories we tell ourselves. And we believe them all to be true. But what if we peeled back the layers to better understand ourselves and then challenge that story by trying something new, or ‘breaking the mould’ so to speak.
How many times have you told yourself ‘I can’t possibly do or be something because….’?
Now challenge that ‘because’ statement assuming that the blockage wasn’t there. How would your story look, how would you feel and where would you be? What possibilities would emerge?
Once you challenge your thinking then new stories can emerge. Peeling back the undercurrent stories or layers holding you from your success can be rewritten.
Of course, that doesn’t mean that change comes immediately, but at least you have opened up your mind, sat inside that new story, and you are now in a better place to work out the steps to get there.
That’s what Life Coaches aim to facilitate for their clients. They help you to change your story—to bring out the gold within you to make change happen. They can help you think through where you want to be, encourage you to define the steps required, and support you each step of the way. There is no judgement, no advice given, just support, and encouragement, and they provide a means for holding you accountable for the actions you decide to take.
For some people, the story they want to change might be work or career related, like getting that promotion, or moving from a senior manager role to CEO. For others it might be a secret desire to run their own business—and be reportable to nobody but themselves. For others, it might be how to step back from the busyness, relocate, refurbish, plan for a holiday, or move into semi-retirement.
So how would you rewrite your story?
Why don’t you have a go?
- Choose a nice notebook and pen/pencil for yourself. You may prefer to draw a picture rather that write words—it makes no difference
- Find a comfortable place to write or draw—somewhere where you feel at ease
- Start writing down the stories you tell yourself, remembering to write about both the good stories and the undercurrent stories (the ones that limit you).
- Write a new story or draw a new picture. Begin with ‘Once upon a time…’ and end with’ …lived happily ever after’.
- Write down what and who you need to engage with to rewrite your story.
Please don’t rush the process, make it a nice experience for you. It may work best to put some time aside each week, but I recommend that you commit to a date to have the exercise above completed.
Then you can start to plan out the steps to make your new story your reality.
If you need help sign up for a no obligation free introductory coaching session. It might be all you need to get you started.
Georgena Stuckenschmidt