You are capable of so much more than you realize!
Sometimes we just need the support and encouragement of others to help us to realize it. Supportive people help push us out of our comfort zone so we can tap into the much bigger part of ourselves.
I witnessed a perfect example of this a couple of days ago and I’d like to share it with you here as inspiration.
Feel the Fear and do it Anyway
I was going for a walk in the forest in Whistler, Canada, when I heard a woman’s voice. At first, it wasn’t so much words, but the sounds she was making that caught my attention.
They were sounds of uneasiness and apprehension… Like when you’re doing something that scares you.
As I walked around the bend in the trail, I could see three people on mountain bikes coming down a narrow bike trail deeper in the forest. She wasn’t alone. There were two guys riding with her (clearly far more advanced than she was) – one in front of her leading the way and the one behind her calling out words of encouragement.
As they approached a narrow wooden bridge-like structure to ride over, I could hear her gasps of fear and apprehension mixed with cries of “I can’t! I can’t!”
But then I could hear the guys yelling:
“You can do it!”
“Don’t stop!”
“Keep moving!”
“Keep your head up. Look forward.”
Her cries and words continued as she navigated her way over the narrow wooden structure… But so did the two guy’s strong words of support and encouragement.
As she made it over the wooden structure there were a few seconds of celebration mixed with both big exhales of excitement for making it across, and groans of relief for it being over.
But the celebration ended as quickly as it started. The trail then continued up a fairly steep and very windy incline… and the guys weren’t about to let her stop there.
“Don’t Stop! Keep Moving!” they yelled supportively.
Sounds something like “Ahhhh… Ohhhh… Mmmm” reflecting her apprehension and lack of confidence in her ability, came out of her as she pushed herself to keep peddling up the steep winding trail.
“Keep your head up. Look forward!”
“Ahhhh… I can’t!
“You can do it! Keep moving!”
I could see she was really pushing herself and giving it everything she had, and on a couple of tight corners almost came to a stop.
She kept crying out “I can’t, I can’t!” … Part of her wanted to give up and stop.
But the guys, especially the one supporting her from the back, just continued to encourage and support her.
“You can do it!”
“Don’t stop!”
“Keep moving!”
“Keep your head up. Look forward.”
She was moving very slowly and shaking a little, but she didn’t give up.
Her will to keep going overpowered her apprehension and belief of “I can’t”.
The thoughts in her mind and the emotion in her body wanted her to give up. But something inside of her just kept going anyway. She was tapping into something much greater than the thoughts, emotions and beliefs that she was facing.
After not too long they reached the top of the trail. They all stopped… and then there was time for a proper celebration.
They all cheered, there were high-fives and hugs. The woman looked and sounded relieved, but more importantly, she was joyous and accomplished. There’s really something about an act of will where you push yourself to do something you were afraid of and succeeding… and it was obvious in the woman.
The Power of Support to Carry us Through Challenges
Growth and change can be challenging. When we choose to do things in our life, especially when their importation and meaningful, we often don’t realize what challenges and limits we’ll need to face and move through until that moment when we have to face them.
For whatever reason the woman chose to mountain bike, to grow in skill and confidence meant challenging herself. Which means pushing herself outside of her comfort zone.
The inner resources she tapped into through the experience I witnessed were always there, but the question is, would she have ever pushed herself in this way and connected to them if the two guys weren’t there supporting her?
Everyone is different. Everyone has different levels of confidence in their abilities, which can also vary with different situations and challenges. We can be confident in one area of life but not another. Someone might be very confident mountain biking but not very confident public speaking. Perhaps this woman was a great public speaker, but lacked the confidence mountain biking?
Sometimes people manage to build their skills and confidence on their own, but other times we need the support and encouragement of more experienced people by our side, because they push us to places we might not go otherwise… They also have the skill and experience to know how to take us there, because they’ve been through many of the challenges themselves.
Having support to help us achieve the important things in life is precious!
What are the things in your life where you need support?
Is it a new skill or sport? Is it your career or business? What about your health? Or understanding, healing and processing your emotions? Perhaps your spiritual practice or learning how to make meditation work for you? Is it having someone to talk to and have a mature conversation about all that’s happening in the world?
Be honest!
Where do you try to do it all by yourself, but in the back of your mind you know you need support? Perhaps, even more than need support, do you secretly want support?
Are you tired of doing on your own?
The Foundation of Support
There’s something even deeper that flows when we receive support, or when we give support.
Connection!
When the woman and the two guys reached the top of the steep winding trail, yes there was a sense of celebration, accomplishment and joy, but there was also a togetherness.
As much as the woman was joyous for having done it, the two guys were just as joyous at seeing her do it. It was beautiful to observe the warmth of connection they shared.
In the connection of togetherness there’s something so fundamentally important – a knowing that we’re not alone… and this touches the heart.
For me, just witnessing the whole experience was also a joyous experience that touched my heart, because our heart knows connection, and when we see it, we also feel it.
Take time to notice when you see a sense of genuine connection between people, how it gives you a warm feeling in your heart. That’s your heart responding to it’s true nature.
In a previous blog post – Human Connection And The Longing To Be Part Of Something Greater Than Ourselves – I talk more about connection as a fundamental desire and an expression of our heart.
Support and Inner Work
Supportive people help us flourish and realize we are capable of more than we know.
For example, meditation and the inner work required to reconnect to the power of the heart is an area where support is extremely precious.
What I’ve observed over more than 20 years of meditation, healing and deep inner work both personally and with friends, clients and students, is that those who had support went the deepest and had the greatest transformations.
Spiritual work, at times, can feel very solitary. There’s a lot of meditation and practices of self awareness, self inquiry and emotional processing that needs to be done… and to a certain degree it’s just you and your mind. No one else can do it for you.
But this doesn’t mean you have to do it on your own!
When you find people on a similar path, with similar aspirations for spiritual growth, then your experiences don’t feel so isolating. You even start to realize that you’re not the only one going through intense challenges. While your personal journey and stories might vary from others, many of the themes we have to work through are universal.
You’re not alone!
We’re all going through this human experience and learning to navigate the chaos of the world through the filters of our mind.
Support helps push you to keep going when you want to give up and run away. And like the woman in the story above, you are capable of far more than you realize!… You sometimes just need someone else who believes in you when you don’t.
And then some day and in some situation, you will be that support for others.
The work you do and the transformations you achieve are a gift to humanity!
You are capable of more than you know! Do you need support to help you get there?
This story I’ve just shared with you is similar to how I feel when helping clients and students to meditate, find stillness, understand their emotions and reconnect to their heart.
When clients or students tell me how they’ve finally been able to feel a sense of stillness and peace after years (or a lifetime) of stress and anxiety, it brings a deep sense of joy to my heart.
Like the two guys knew how to support the woman navigate the trail and push her to achieve more than she thought possible, with over 20 years of experience in meditation, self inquiry and inner work, I know how to support you to navigate the inner landscapes of your mind and realize you are capable of more than you realize.
The path to the heart is rarely a straight line.
If you’ve struggled to make your meditation work, find stillness and peace, heal and integrate your emotions, or connect to your heart in a stable and grounded way, I’m here to help.
In addition to creating various courses and offerings, where we sometimes work in groups together, I also offer support through private one-on-one sessions.
In a private session I’ll get to know you and understand where your challenges and limits are. We’ll work together to help you to identify what’s holding you back, and then create a personal strategy to reconnect you with the power of your heart.
If you’re ready to begin or continue your journey into your heart and feel called to work with me, please reach out.
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