Hello Rockstar [FIRST NAME GOES HERE]!,
I am so excited to be writing you its feels like it’s been forever! There have been so many pivots in my world recently I’ve almost developed thigh muscle definition- almost, and I couldn’t be happier to be here with you right now.
In the process of letting go, you will lose many things from the past, but you will find yourself. Deepak Chopra
Letting go of almost anything even if it’s something we’ve been desperately trying to release is hard. There is a certain comfort to our discomfort. Have you ever had a powerful urge to floss your dog’s teeth? No? What about one to scrub your refrigerator draws? Well, that’s exactly how my inconvenient resistance to letting go rears its ugly head. Just like that, I’m about to complete a lengthy project and scrubbing bubbles hijacks every molecule of my brain.
Fortunately, today I realize, that the source of my fear of success originated from the meaning I gave my slightly strained childhood experiences. In my head, the freedom acquired from monetary wealth equaled sad, neglected little ones. My dad was very successful. Me, my baby sister and brother were neglected, so thats how my kids would end up if I made real money, right?Absolutely not! This accepted belief-I kept snug in the back pocket of my five year old OshKosh B’gosh was the biggest roadblock to my professional growth. I can almost guarantee that your wildestest longings are also being held back by the tainted lens through which you see yourself and what youre capable of.
This shows up in our grown-up life by sub-consciously finding evidence for this belief which reinforces its perceived truth. This keeps us stuck in an endless cycle of recreating the same outcomes.
Visualizing my kids as poster children for a Jerry Springer episode left me terrified, so my business excelled at the speed of a baby turtle. The frustration of not reaching my potential challenged me to make a real attempt at releasing my inner-child’s beat-up old baggage. Encyclopedia Britannica’s definition of old baggage aka belief is: a mental attitude of acceptance without the full intellectual knowledge required to guarantee its truth.
BELIEFS ARE NOT FACTS
Common Old Baggage:
- I’m not worthy of…
- I’m only worthy when…
- I cannot be loved as my true self
- I cannot have what I actually want
- I am underving of love…
- If I do what I want others will be unhappy
My business goal was transforming the quality of people’s lives by teaching them the foundational skills of intimate human connections. I finally understood that inherent to reaching my goal was releasing my association of career advancement with a collapsed home life. This led me to get reacquainted-yet again- with the most important relationship I’ll ever have, the one with myself.
Shortly after identifying what was holding me back, I made a commitment to a daily practice of prioritizing my mental health. When we are fully conscious of who we are and attuned to our self-worth; we are unstoppable.
My full time job is my mental health. I am most interested in mental health for without it, we can lose life. The quality of our life is directly related to our attention to our mental health.
Elizabeth Gilbert
In 2020, I hired a business coach, began group therapy, and like a sign from the universe; beautiful human connections and opportunities started presenting themselves to me. Collaborations with businesses in fields I didn’t know much about knocked at my door. Meaningful friendships were created and bloomed despite not being able to physically be near one another. Tami Holzman the Queen Connecter thank you for being such an integral piece of my growth and holding my hand through so many new-isms.
If there’s anything certain in this human chop salad we call life, it’s change. If we have a longing for something that never goes away, listen to it! That is a power greater than yourself guiding you towards what you always knew was meant for you.
Let go of the old and follow your heart to the place where anything is possible!
Rumi once said, what you seek is seeking you.
There is an inextricable bond between gaining something extraordinary and releasing old versions of ourselves. It’s simply part of the process to the crazy amazing new chapter of our life.
My question to you is…
WHAT MUST YOU LET GO OF TO LIVE YOUR BEST LIFE?
Biggest Hugs,
Irene Abbou
Irene is the creator of the Happiness Within Reach program which coaches driven men and women to open their hearts to self-love while forming deep and meaningful interpersonal relationships with others. She is an ICF, ACC Certified life and business coach who holds two certifications from the University of Pennsylvania on Positive Psychology and is trained in the Gottman Method for Couples Therapy. She is also an Amazon best-selling co-author of the book How To Be Crazy Amazing During Difficult Times.