I’ve been writing this month about being honest. I’ve talked about honesty when it comes to your spouse or partner, your friends and co-workers and even your children. I decided to save the best and most important one for last – Honesty with yourself. The only way to be truly honest with anyone else is rooted in how honest you are with yourself and about yourself.
We all have those programmed scripts that run through our heads about what others believe we should be or do. Yes, some of those things are necessary in the adult world, but not all of them. Living any portion of your life as a lie is damaging to you more than you may even realize. It has the ability to slowly and surely crush your spirit to the point that it’s hard to even recognize yourself one day.
Do you remember what your dreams were as a child? What you wanted to be when you grew up? I’m not saying that it’s suddenly time to start your career as an astronaut, but there was a passion you had behind those dreams. Are you doing anything in your life today that is even in the same zip code as those dreams and passions? If you’re like most people, the answer to that last question is probably a resounding “no”.
Take a few moments to really think about what your passions are in your life, no matter how far in the distant past they may be from you today. Think about living the life you’d want to live right now and not the one everyone else said you should choose. Notice how it makes you feel to explore those passions again. Did you get a gleam in your eye or a surge of exhilaration? You just found who you really are!
To be clear, I’m not advocating you picking up and leaving everything and everyone behind. No matter where you are in your life right now, you can find your way back to your true and authentic self. You can incorporate your passions into your life now with some creative tweaking. You can even get your family involved in helping you come up with ideas and have a natural base of moral support from them.
The whole point of rediscovering who you really are is to find out what honesty really looks like and regain the foundation of how to be honest in all areas of your life. It’s very difficult to be honest with others around you when you’re not giving yourself the same courtesy. Begin with yourself and the rest will follow suit. As a mom, you have the opportunity to model one of life’s biggest lessons to your children by taking this huge step. Be their Hero of Honesty, and they will see the path that they should walk, as well.
Photo Credit; Thinkstock
