Letting go is rarely easy. We usually think of things like relationships, friends or jobs, but letting go is a much broader skill to develop. Sometimes we need to let go of our ego, of certainty or of emotions that are dragging us down. Letting go is releasing something from your life that no longer serves you and not looking back.
As human beings, we’re wired for connection and many of us have developed a scarcity mentality. We’re so afraid of losing something that we hold on even when it’s uncomfortable or even harmful to us. We will stay in jobs that make us miserable because it is the ‘safe’ thing to do. We will continue to pursue careers long past the point where we are inspired to because we’ve already invested so much time and energy. We will allow ourselves to be mistreated or even physically harmed in relationships because part of us believes that we don’t deserve better.
We don’t stay stuck in these places because we like it. We stay there for a lot of reasons that all seem valid and even rational. Maybe we’re afraid to leave that job because we believe that we aren’t good enough to find one that really satisfies us. Maybe we keep pursuing that career because we have developed skills and a reputation that define who we are and we will be worthless without it. Maybe we stay in a relationship because we don’t’ believe we deserve better.
The bottom line is letting go is hard. Not only do we have our own emotions to deal with, but we worry about what everyone else will think. We don’t want to face painful emotions like loss or worry and we don’t want to be a disappointment or be seen as a failure by people around us. It feels safer to stay where we are than to take the risk that we mind end up feeling worse than we already do. But what if you could take the leap and trust yourself enough to know that you’ll be okay no matter what happens?
Imagine what if would feel like to have the life you really want. To live fully present and be able to share the unique gifts and talents that only you can have. To not have to carry around the burden of the ‘stuff’ in your life that wasn’t serving you. It’s possible. That could be you.
You don’t have to live your life chained by things that aren’t working or defined by a past that is just that, in the past. You have the keys to set yourself free and take the leap into not just uncertainty or vulnerability, but hope, excitement and possibility. Decide what you want, plan and make it happen. Get support if you need it. Be extraordinary, because you are! Let go and be you!