I used to think that passion-based success was for lucky people, and that I should just do what sounds sophisticated on my résumé. Mental blocks. Detours. Obstacles. They all came flooding in when I had that attitude, making me believe that I somehow wasn’t worthy of doing what I love.
Just as soon as I pitched that mindset over the Cliffs of Dover and never looked back, my obstacles became inspiration. Insight. Learning opportunities. Growing experiences. My obstacles became my journey, and my journey became beautiful.
It’s time to embrace the “follow your dreams” clichés we all know and love – and since we’re all in this thing called life together, I offer you some food for thought:
Obstacle: I have a hard time believing in my ability to BE what I envision
myself as.
Food for Thought: Being who you are leads to doing what you love.
One of the greatest lessons I have learned from yoga is detachment. You are not the pose; you are the effort. The way your practice looks, the way your body looks, and whether or not you can do a handstand has absolutely nothing to do with your self. To me, this is a metaphor for the rest of life.
Nobody is defined by what they do to make ends meet in support of their goals. You are an artist, not a server. You are a musician, not a taxi driver. You are your passion. Opportunities and abundance will be present in your life when you start communicating what you love.
“What do you do?” “I'm a [fill in the blank with what you wish to become].”
Forget about the rest. This is the new fake it til you make it.
Obstacle: Achieving my “lofty” goal seems impossible.
Food for Thought: “If you want something you've never had, you've got to do something you've never done.”
My past was based on safety. To transition out of a career I felt I should have, I had to move way out of my comfort zone and really allow myself the experiences that would teach me what I was meant for. Those experiences came in all forms – saying YES to starting a blog the same day I thought, “I should start a blog,” to starting to write for a yoga website, to providing free content to anyone who asked, to allowing myself a trip to Paris when I felt I needed time for self-discovery, and to a last minute yoga teacher training. My entire yoga teacher training program was based on the idea that you can’t teach what you haven’t yet experienced. And how can you build your toolbox of experiences without saying YES to life?
Obstacle: There are people in my life who constantly tear me down.
Food for Thought: “Surround yourself with the dreamers and the doers, the believers and thinkers, but most of all, surround yourself with those who see the greatness within you.” –Edmund Lee
I’ve learned this from clients, from yogis, and from critics alike… we are in this great exchange of energy together, and there will be people who do not want you to see you succeed. Finally, I have embraced the idea that it’s ok - and extremely important - to be picky about who you surround yourself with.
Fill your life with people who believe in you more than you believe in you. You have to find your cheerleaders in life, particularly when you’re laying the groundwork for something great. It was so important for me to really evaluate my support system and start to make less space for the people who held me back, or who didn’t believe in my dreams as much as I did.
I personally love this quote: “Don’t let someone dim your light, simply because it’s shining in their eyes.” Just be who you are, and don’t let the negativity of others rest on your soul as a wound. Save space there for the people who will appreciate what you have to offer, because, as I’ve come to learn, more of them appear when you start redirecting, diving into, doing, and being what you love.
So, what happens when we stop doing and start living? When we throw caution to the wind, and release the shoulds, coulds, and woulds of life? What would you pursue if you weren’t afraid? All of that stuff sounds so cliché, until you realize that feeling fulfilled really does come from doing what you love, and that simple thing – feeling fulfilled – ends up inspiring others. Let the light of that realization flood in. Living life to the fullest can be achieved by redirecting your path… and by giving a voice to the inner whisper you have felt (but have silenced) all along.
©Emily Hudson, WorldLifestyle
Just as soon as I pitched that mindset over the Cliffs of Dover and never looked back, my obstacles became inspiration. Insight. Learning opportunities. Growing experiences. My obstacles became my journey, and my journey became beautiful.
It’s time to embrace the “follow your dreams” clichés we all know and love – and since we’re all in this thing called life together, I offer you some food for thought:
Obstacle: I have a hard time believing in my ability to BE what I envision
myself as.
Food for Thought: Being who you are leads to doing what you love.
One of the greatest lessons I have learned from yoga is detachment. You are not the pose; you are the effort. The way your practice looks, the way your body looks, and whether or not you can do a handstand has absolutely nothing to do with your self. To me, this is a metaphor for the rest of life.
Nobody is defined by what they do to make ends meet in support of their goals. You are an artist, not a server. You are a musician, not a taxi driver. You are your passion. Opportunities and abundance will be present in your life when you start communicating what you love.
“What do you do?” “I'm a [fill in the blank with what you wish to become].”
Forget about the rest. This is the new fake it til you make it.
Obstacle: Achieving my “lofty” goal seems impossible.
Food for Thought: “If you want something you've never had, you've got to do something you've never done.”
My past was based on safety. To transition out of a career I felt I should have, I had to move way out of my comfort zone and really allow myself the experiences that would teach me what I was meant for. Those experiences came in all forms – saying YES to starting a blog the same day I thought, “I should start a blog,” to starting to write for a yoga website, to providing free content to anyone who asked, to allowing myself a trip to Paris when I felt I needed time for self-discovery, and to a last minute yoga teacher training. My entire yoga teacher training program was based on the idea that you can’t teach what you haven’t yet experienced. And how can you build your toolbox of experiences without saying YES to life?
Obstacle: There are people in my life who constantly tear me down.
Food for Thought: “Surround yourself with the dreamers and the doers, the believers and thinkers, but most of all, surround yourself with those who see the greatness within you.” –Edmund Lee
I’ve learned this from clients, from yogis, and from critics alike… we are in this great exchange of energy together, and there will be people who do not want you to see you succeed. Finally, I have embraced the idea that it’s ok - and extremely important - to be picky about who you surround yourself with.
Fill your life with people who believe in you more than you believe in you. You have to find your cheerleaders in life, particularly when you’re laying the groundwork for something great. It was so important for me to really evaluate my support system and start to make less space for the people who held me back, or who didn’t believe in my dreams as much as I did.
I personally love this quote: “Don’t let someone dim your light, simply because it’s shining in their eyes.” Just be who you are, and don’t let the negativity of others rest on your soul as a wound. Save space there for the people who will appreciate what you have to offer, because, as I’ve come to learn, more of them appear when you start redirecting, diving into, doing, and being what you love.
So, what happens when we stop doing and start living? When we throw caution to the wind, and release the shoulds, coulds, and woulds of life? What would you pursue if you weren’t afraid? All of that stuff sounds so cliché, until you realize that feeling fulfilled really does come from doing what you love, and that simple thing – feeling fulfilled – ends up inspiring others. Let the light of that realization flood in. Living life to the fullest can be achieved by redirecting your path… and by giving a voice to the inner whisper you have felt (but have silenced) all along.
©Emily Hudson, WorldLifestyle
