Sometime in mid July 2010 I asked my friend @LisaMilesBrady to write a guest post for this blog. Lisa is a powerful writer and amazing coach so I knew the post would be good and it would cause a stir (in a good way) within this community.
It did.
I remember getting unsubscribe notices just because of the title. While I never set out to offend anyone, I do talk a lot about authentic voice and this was Lisa’s voice.
I’m revisting the post today because I think a lot of us struggle with many of the things Lisa talks about in the post.
Consider what she has to say. Voice your thoughts in the comments – create the conversation…
Here ya go:
This is a Guest post by Lisa Miles Brady (first appeared here on July 30, 2010)
I spent almost the entire month of June feeling like I could vomit.
(What a way to introduce yourself, huh?)
Why?
Oh, I wish I could tell you it was because I had some mysterious illness.
Or that maybe I was expecting another child.
But no.
It’s not anything exotic.
I spent the entire month carrying a barf bag because people I didn’t know, were actually reading my blog!
(I know…the horror!)
Are you serious, Lisa?
Yep.
Totally.
My blog was entered into the 2010 Best Coaching Blogs contest and I was getting traffic from not only my peers, but people I didn’t know.
Now a thinking person would say, “Well, wasn’t that the point, Lisa?”
Well… yes…and… no.
I wanted new readers. But I was afraid of what would happen when they showed up.
(I want to vomit now just thinking about that!)
Tired of the nausea, I reached out to EPW, the LYT maven, and asked her when the feeling would go away.
Her response: “When you get past feeling the urge to vomit, then you have to go get more stuff that scares the crap out of you. But, you get used to it. 
”
I thought: Are you freakin’ kidding me? Are you telling me that living my truth will always freak me out.
Yep.
Eventually, I did settle into it.
I wrote a couple of controversial posts about race.
And lived to tell about it.
A person I have long admired tweeted about my post and told me he was becoming a fan.
Once I came off the ledge, we actually had a conversation and he gave me some business counsel. I was feeling really good.
And then it happened.
Frank asked me to guest post.
You ever notice that when you finally find your groove, something changes?
The relationship moves to another level.
The client you’ve been dying to land asks you for something you’ve never delivered before.
You reach a new level of income in your business—one you weren’t sure you’d ever see.
Without fail, the Universe kicks in and gives you another FGO. (Fucking growth opportunity)
Damn.
When the fuck will this get easier?
News flash: It won’t.
Even after years of personal development work.
Even though you may have a library full of the best self-help books around.
Even though you’ve been through hell and back.
Even though you’ve been blogging for (fill in the blank) years now and writing almost all your life.
Even though your “unknown” blog was recently named one of the top ten best coaching blogs of 2010.
You’ll still be scared.
Why?
Because as long as you are committed to living full out, following your path, doing what you came to do, it will be scary.
What’s the moral of the story?
Stop trying to squash the fear. Don’t push through. Don’t ignore it.
Try this instead.
Make friends with your fear. Yup. Friends. Invite it for dinner, a beer, or to shoot some hoops. Talk to your fear like it’s a real person. (My fear and I have coffee a couple of times a week.) Treat it with respect. Invite it to the party and onto the dance floor.
Because, darling, if you’re living your brilliance, it’s here to stay.
Your Turn:
What about this whole idea of “make friends with your fear”? Does it ever get easier for you? If you read the post when it first came out – what has changed for you? What do you do on a daily basis to “live your brilliance”?
Let’s chat below…
artwork: miki
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