I think about trust a lot. A decade or so ago, I realized I was spending my life following “rules” and “guidelines” that weren’t mine. While working hard to follow these external rules, I rarely cultivated trust within myself.
For example, from my pre-teens to my early 30’s, I painstakingly straightened my hair because my curls were too unruly. I needed to be polished and put together. My curls couldn’t be trusted. If you’ve ever spent way too much time or money defying your true nature, I know you can appreciate the freedom that I’ve claimed by embracing my curls.
It’s not just about tossing your hair straightener. How we do one thing is how we do most things.
If you’re prioritizing external rules over honoring your internal wisdom, there is a good chance that you may not be trusting yourself as often as you could be.
When we don’t trust ourselves, we
- second guess ourselves,
- feel stuck in indecision,
- are consumed with fear over making a bad or wrong decision,
- worry there’s a better approach out there (and we keep searching for it), and
- look for external validation or assurance instead of tuning into our own awareness.
With all of the personal study I’ve done around trust, trust isn’t something you either have or don’t have. It comes with practice.
You may have more clarity around some decisions than others. And that’s appropriate. Like whether or not to take on a new client. Some decisions have higher stakes and require more information. Like your next pivotal hire.
Consider how you could benefit from practicing trusting yourself:
- What do you notice when you’re struggling to make a decision?
- What do you notice when you make a decision with clarity?
- Is there an area of your work where you could trust yourself more?
- How could your organization benefit when you have more trust in yourself?
- How is your organization impacted when you doubt yourself?
If you have any questions or would like to explore this topic with me, email me at tara@tara-whitney.com or schedule a coffee chat. https://lnkd.in/evQSpm9G