There are eight billion people in the world who are constantly reminded of our differences. I happen to think we have more in common than we do differently. At the most basic level, we all want love. Not just any love, however. Love that sees us for exactly who we are and who we want to be. The kind of love that inspires us to think we can do better and be better. It makes us strive to be for both ourselves and the people who we love that love us. How does such transformative love find us?
For me, the answer lies in working on myself. This work is critical, but messy and, at best, uncomfortable. Understanding what makes me tick was the first step. I am peace maker which means I will say yes for the sake of keeping the peace when what I want and need to say is no. Learning to set boundaries was absolutely essential in learning to say no when it was in my best interest. Developing and learning better communication skills was also paramount in the kind of love I deserve in all aspects of my life becoming reality. Communication that has love at the forefront, so everybody involved is able and encouraged to be themselves freely.
How did I do the work to be able for healthy, transformative, love to find me? I had to admit that I was responsible for my inability to communicate my needs and wants properly. Admitting that opportunity to gain experience on how to do that had been sparse in my life was freeing. Also, admitting that I was sometimes scared of real, honest, communication was key as well, because I wanted to be loved so badly. To address that I started following experts and leaders who were living with all the kinds of love I wanted. That meant listening to podcasts and audio books from these people and implementing their wisdom in my life. More on that, another day, but I wanted to share my journey with the kind of love I deserve, in all aspects of my life, with all of you to give you hope it is possible for each of you too.