Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life; everyone must carry out a concrete assignment that demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated, thus, everyone’s task is unique as his specific opportunity to implement it. ~Viktor E. Frankl~
Friday 29 April 2016
11/100
I wrote the following letter in response to a dear one who wanted to know about using journals for coaching and leading and spiritual practice. While I am passionate about using journals in all sorts of ways, when I was writing to her, something more universal emerged. Since this project is all about sharing, here is Share No. 11. A letter and a work in progress.
Remember, no one will do this exactly like you do. No one. You’ll watch me and others you admire do what they do and it will be tempting to try and replicate. Learn from them, but do not create templates that do not accommodate your true self. The biggest piece of advice that I can give you has nothing to do with using journals or the specifics of leadership tools and principles. It’s this:
Know who you are and what you have to give away in this season.
Be fierce about what you know.
Your assignment may be your children for a season. That is no small thing. Settle in and love where you are. Perhaps your current task at hand is manifesting a specific product or showing up to a job that requires you to be focused on an action list in a focused way. All of those can be valid assignments.
Listen carefully and don’t act unless you know that you know that you know.
Don’t give yourself away lightly.
First and foremost ask:
What do I really have to give?
Take a true inventory of what you can give. And before you give, be sure of this:
A. That you’ve tended to your own soul.
and
B. That you taken care of your family, even if that’s just you.
One of the most important gifts that you will give the people in your sphere is knowing where you stop and start.
They will learn the most from you as you live out boundaries and health. They will listen to the words you use. They will observe whether or not you keep your word. They will watch the way that you do and don’t draw boundaries. Those are the most important pieces.
When you model how to show up to your life with integrity, you gain authority.
Show up to your life. Your current life. BE in your life.
Betsy
