Encaustic Painting in Big Sur
Identify Your Natural Gifts
Maybe your friends admire you as the world’s best mix CD maker. Maybe you have an uncanny ability to come up with exactly what everybody owes when a large group splits the dinner bill. Perhaps you’ve always been a speed reader and can dash through three books a day with perfect comprehension. Or you can cook a gourmet meal with whatever is in the fridge, with no shopping list, no recipe, and lots of creativity. Maybe you’re ridiculously skilled at memorizing every song lyric you’ve ever heard or you can whip up the meanest cup of coffee or you’ve got the world’s greenest thumb. What comes naturally to you? What are those gifts? Are you utilizing them to your full potential?
No One’s Going To Give You A Medal For Doing What’s Hard
So often, we spin our wheels spending our time doing what we think we should do, rather what fully utilizes our gifts. Chances are, if someone had counseled me to ask that question honestly when I was younger, I probably would have avoided medical school. The classes I had to take to become a doctor were the exact opposite of what came easily. Writing has always been as natural and easy as breathing to me, whereas calculus, physics, biochemistry, pharmacology- forget it! Taking those classes was like pulling teeth from my authentic self. Sure, I could do it. But my new motto in life is “Just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.” Sure, if I worked hard enough, I could make straight A’s in math and science. But was I a natural? No way! So I spent twelve years struggling to accomplish something that didn’t come naturally to me. Why? I’m not really sure. I think I thought life was supposed to be hard and that doing what comes easily was a cop-out. But I find that life feels so much more authentic and my mojo is much more jazzed if I’m spending my time doing what comes naturally to me- writing, painting, being a Mom, and counseling clients about how to get their mojo back.
What about you? Do you engage in work and activities that come easily to you, or are you always pushing yourself to stray far from your comfort zone? I used to do that. I think I wore my martyrdom as a badge of honor. Why would you do what comes naturally when you could struggle forth, like a soldier in battle? But that’s how your authentic self gets worn down. If you’re never giving yourself mojo shots from your authentic self, it’s no wonder your mojo weakens.
Find Ways to Incorporate What Comes Easily Into Your Life
Try boosting your mojo by identifying what you’re really good at, how you really love to spend your time, what allows you to stop struggling and start being YOU. Once you’ve identified what that is, can you figure out a way to spend more of your time doing what you’re good at and less time struggling to be something you’re not? In my past life, I used to do a lot of surgery- hysterectomies, C-sections, tying tubes- stuff like that. While I was good at it, operating always totally stressed me out. I thought I was supposed to be a surgeon. After all, I trained to be a surgeon, my patients expected me to operate, and it’s what an OB/GYN is supposed to do, right?
What I realized is that I can craft my life any way I choose. What did I like most about being an OB/GYN? What was I best at? Talking, relating, listening, being fully present for my patients, inspiring them to seek better, healthier lives. So I quit operating and focused my practice on what I’m good at. And I started Owning Pink, where I get to virtually talk, relate, listen, and be fully present while helping Pinkies find their mojo. I’m so happier since I chose to change my life.
What about you? How might you alter your life to reflect your most authentic self? Be creative. Think outside the box. Write about it in your journal. Meditate on it. You never know what might happen when you let your authentic self come out to play…. Now go find your bliss, Pinkies!
Doing what comes naturally,
Lissa
