Rebuilding: The Value of Returning to Your Heart
Photo by Getty Images via Unsplash
I feel like I'm starting over right now.
Not completely, of course. But there's a quality of beginning again that's been present in my work the last year or so. And some days it feels exciting—full of possibility and creative energy. Other days it feels like I'm living in a house while renovating it.
If you've never experienced that—renovating while living in the space—it is quite a thing. Inevitably nothing goes according to plan. Everything takes longer than expected. Some days feel bright and sunny, like you can see the vision coming together. And other days it feels like you're further and further away from the finished product.
Dust is everywhere. Tools are out. Half the rooms are in transition. And you're just trying to make dinner in a kitchen without working appliances.
This is what building or rebuilding a business can feel like too.
The Trap of Living in the Gap
Here's where we get into trouble: If you live in that renovation and wake up every day comparing the work that's been completed to the final vision in your mind, you will suffer.
The same is true for your business. If every day you compare where you are to where you want to be, you suffer.
Now, this isn't bad. Comparing is actually a great coping strategy the mind employs—a way to save you from feeling a certain experience. The mind thinks if it can keep you focused on 'there' (the outcome), instead of 'here' (the mess), you won't have to feel the vulnerability of being in process. You won't have to feel the fear of failure, the wash of shame, or the uncertainty of not knowing how everything will turn out.
But here's what happens when we live in that space: The mind begins to attach to the vision. It employs the someday strategy. Only when I have this will I be okay.
For business owners that tends to be money. So the mind tells us to get to six figures or ten clients or land a larger speaking event as quickly as possible. Because life will feel so much better then. And the hunt to achieve is on.
But when we fall into that trap, we also limit access to true inspiration. (Read more about that here if you missed it.) Taking action from this place means fueling from lack. It comes from "I don't like where I am and I need to change it to be okay."
And that gripping, controlling energy? It actually blocks the very thing you're yearning for. The mind squeezes that energy. It doesn't let it shine.
Returning to Your Pure Intention
The more you can settle into this truth—nothing's wrong, everything comes in its own timing, let me return to the pureness of my heart—the less gripped you will be. And the more you will be energetically aligned with what you most desire.
So what does it look like to return to the heart of your work?
It means remembering who you are and why you were called to this field to begin with. Having that as your grounding keeps you connected to truth—to what's enough.
As soon as we go to the mind for answers and respite, we lose that grounding and enter the programming of "not enough."
When You Stay Connected to Your Heart
When you stay connected to your heart and pure intention, it's easier to see more clearly. You can hold the vision for possibility lightly, while also appreciating where you are now.
You move from getting mode into receiving mode. And that is an entirely different operating system.
Maybe you aren't making the amount of money you'd like, but you recognize that you're okay in this moment. You have a roof over your head, food in your belly, family and friends that support you, and creativity to guide you.
In this state you see progress—instead of judgment. You align more with the present. And that is the place we feel Life's nudges... inspiration... intuition.
Living in a renovation, waking up each day seeing that you aren't where you want to be—that's ripe with suffering.
Living in a renovation noticing the progress—what has changed, what relationships have blossomed, the decisions that were made, the creativity that's taking shape—this is abundant. And that abundance frees you to experience even more abundance.
The Invitation
So if you're in a season of building or rebuilding right now—take care of yourself. Don't let your mind punish you with stories about how you should be further along and how your life will be so much better when you're making $$$$.
What if your life is good right now? And what if what's really preventing you from living within that freedom is your perspective? That's it.
Living with an open heart is the answer. Simple by design… but not easy in practice.
Let yourself connect with your why. Drop into your heart and let it shine. Let it outshine your mind. Then see how Life wants to use you.
Be a beacon. Hold steady. Keep taking action—and know that your open heart is a wide-open receiver. It's okay to attune to your next move. And the move after that. And after that.
You don't need a full-blown plan from the mind when your come-from is connected to flow. And your heart will tell you when you're plugged into that or into control. Both are helpful feedback.
The dust will settle. The vision will come together. But right now, in this moment, can you find the beauty in the half-finished rooms? Can you trust that everything is unfolding exactly as it needs to?
And, can you let yourself enjoy this experience—the one you have right now—because now is all you ever really have.
I'm practicing this too. Right alongside you.
With lots of love,
Amber
