I Spoke Up

Lately I’ve been struggling with comparison. I’ve been struggling with walking alone and feeling like I have to have it all figured out. I’ve been fighting against my incessant need for independence that will impress those around me. I’ve been struggling with performance. And I think that if we’re honest, a lot of us struggle with those things. Especially as women, we have been conditioned and trained into seeing other women as competition. We think, “If everybody else gets complimented there is not enough approval left in the room for me,” or “If everybody else is beautiful, there is no beauty left for me.” We can’t both be pretty, we can’t both be smart, and if there’s more than two of us, forget it, it’s over. So we walk around seeing everyone else —especially other women—as competition, secretly hoping that they are successful but not as successful as us so that we can celebrate them without feeling like we failed.   Or maybe that’s just me, but it’s a feeling tha...

Don't dance as if no one is watching Look honey, let them watch Those moves are sweet and too good to hide. Might not be J.Lo's, but they're just like you and you kill it you rock it you slay on the dance floor so who cares if your hips are lying? Don't sing as if no one's listening Listen baby, let them hear your voice thunders it reverberates its sound penetrates and its content is too important for you to just sit and hold it Because in the wondering, in the waiting, and in your constant "stand by" The world is waiting, the world is watching and your time could pass you by You keep holding the door open while watching others walk through it Thinking your only destiny was to see others do it But you're so wrong, I'm sorry but you're mistaken In your career choice as everybody's door stop. You've been waiting for this stage to pass when this place was meant to be your stage Your show where you move, you ...

Hypocrite: one who is satisfied with making a good impression  Authenticity starts with me. It starts when I lay down my BS and start actually living the way I say I am living. It’s really simple it just requires effort, something many of us prefer not to expend in creating change as much as we expend it complaining about the current state of things. Hypocrisy happens when we settle, or when we think it’s enough to give the impression that we are free or religious or holy. I regret to inform you (and me) that impressions and intentions are not enough. Not even close. There’s an old saying that states that “the path to hell is paved with good intentions,” and I dare say it’s a worse path to take there than that of simple, overt rebellion because all along you’re fooling yourself into believing that your intentions and impressions are actually getting you to heaven. They’re not. You’re literally in the same place as when you started. It’s like when you are driving somewhere wh...

What does it mean to be brave? I've been thinking about this a lot lately, especially since the earth-shattering Brave Love book entered into my life, and I have to say that courage and bravery looks different than I thought it would. The brave person is not devoid of fear, in fact, they are ones who may feel it more than others. The brave person is not impenetrable, in fact, only a truly courageous person would dare to be vulnerable and open themselves up to others. The brave person is not walking around in total self confidence, in fact their minds are often plagued by self doubt. The truth is, what separates a brave person from an ordinary person is as simple as a weak, "yes." What makes someone strong is not negating their weaknesses, it is acknowledging them so that they can be strengthened. To be brave, to be strong, is to choose not to run away. It's to dig your heals in just enough to start to grow some roots. There, good intentions finally become ac...