Lisa for Real

2.3 The second time around

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I have always had what I would describe as some version of beginner’s luck. Not in everything, but in enough things to notice a trend.

The first time I do something, it is really good! But then when I do things the second time around, the results aren’t quite like the first.

This happens constantly with cooking or baking, playing games, creating, and so on.

As I am embarking on this second year of daily blogging, I’m naturally concerned that I’m going to fail – either I’ll get bored and stop or my writing will somehow take a nosedive.

I have to remind myself, just because it feels like “been there done that” doesn’t mean it’s actually true. Things happen a second, third, tenth, hundredth time all the time. Every Monday is the start of a week, and I’m not over here giving up because I’m clocking in yet another week of my life.

Time is a constant – there is no stopping it. What if I were to approach my daily blogging that way? Seth Godin says he blogs everyday because it is a new day. That is definitely a great way to see it.

2.2 Being okay with being okay

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Over the last year while writing my daily blogs, I have often used a specific track on the Insight Timer app to get me in “writing mode.” Sometime during the year, the app introduced a “daily check-in” feature where they ask to choose my current mood. The options are Great, Good, Okay, Bad and Awful.

I have selected “Okay” 99% of the time.

The first 10 times that I selected “Okay”, I didn’t think anything of it. But as I continued to select it, it started concerning me.

I was usually logging into the app before writing, something I love to do. Was something wrong with me because I was choosing Okay all the time? Shouldn’t I be feeling Great or at the very least Good if I was just about to start writing? Shouldn’t I be grateful to be doing something I love?

As I continued to select “Okay” over several months, I became okay with being okay because it was true! I toyed with the idea of choosing Good to see if I could trick myself into upping my mood.

But really, “Okay” was the most accurate way to describe how life was going. In our house, we had a bunch of tough stuff happen in 2021. And while I have really enjoyed my creative work, it wasn’t enough to override all of the other emotions happening in my body.

There is probably a way to trick the mind into upleveling my mood but I was not so interested in that. I didn’t want to pretend to be good or great. And I don’t think that being okay is a bad thing. It doesn’t mean that I am not enjoying or appreciating life.

How we feel is separate from how thankful we are.

And having that tension between the two is okay.

2.1 The REAL you

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“The world needs the REAL you” is one of my truths and the final one in my series.

The world needs the version of you who was born into this world. The one who was always meant to come out and be expressed.

The world needs the version of you who is here because of and in spite of your challenges. The version of you who has been forged through the pain, anguish, anger and frustration.

The world needs the version of you who carries that intergenerational knowledge. The wise one whose ancestors worked to bring to this very moment.

The world needs the version of you who is on purpose and seeking to fulfill it. The one who knows their worth and values and boundaries deep in their bones.

The world needs all of these versions of the REAL you and your truths. Don’t hide her anymore for the regret in doing so is greater than the fear of what others may think or do because she exists.

365. Get inspired and nauseous

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“We need to seek those moments where we are so inspired we want to throw up” is one of my truths.

This truth always makes me smile when I read it. Maybe it’s because my four year old brain thinks puke is funny. Or maybe it’s because I am so inspired by the sentence itself that I feel nauseous.

You might want to know – why do we need to pursue inspired moments? Because what is life for if not to do things that light us up! (Or make us nauseous.) If we want meaning and purpose in our lives, we’ve got to follow inspiration.

Everything I have pursued that has been worthy of the pursuit has made me want to throw up. Things that truly inspire me cause my body to clench up, my throat to get a tickle, and my stomach to do flip flops.

The world needs more people lit up by life. When we are lit up, we wake up in all kinds of ways. We look for more inspiration. We want to make the planet better. We care about people beyond our circles. Seeking those inspired moments makes us better people, citizens, allies, mothers, friends and so on.

364. Standing in my power

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“We are all knowing, all empowering, all being” is one of my truths.

As I get older, I stand a bit more in my power. I can only do this because I have come to know myself more. And when we know ourselves, we become confident. Even in knowing I’m not the best in something gives me confidence in how I approach that thing.

We are all knowing. We know what is best for us. May Yeung shares this as her truth in my interview with her in All The Things (Season 1 Episode 10). Nothing is more valuable than knowing what is best for us.

We are all empowering. We have that power within us to take life by the reins. I truly believe it is within all of us though sometimes it takes a bit more work and digging.

We are all being. In more or less words, this means – I believe we are human. We have the ability to be present with ourselves. To express and witness our humanity. To be with each other.

Unlike some of my other truths which I wouldn’t universally apply onto others (they can make that decision), this truth, I would. The three parts of this truth are how I see potential in individuals and in humanity as a whole. Anyone who comes across my path has infinite potential. Our experiences may make us feel and believe otherwise but if we can shift our beliefs, we can stand in that power.