Who Said You Should?
We grow up following a script we didn’t write, measuring ourselves against a success blueprint that shaped our actions and decisions from youth into adulthood.
The career ladder. The relationship. The productivity. The possessions. The ‘enough’ that never is enough.
Most of us don’t question it until something breaks in the plan. And breaks us open in the process.
What’s Running the Show?
I call it ‘The Good Life Checklist.’ Beliefs and traditions passed down from generation to generation. This is the way we do things. This is what we believe.
The resulting patterns of thought — I need this, I want this, I’m a failure if I don’t (fill in the blank) — keep so many on the treadmill of striving, moving and acheiving. With hardly a breath available to just be. Never mind, choose for yourself, as your self.
Eventually every role, every label, every ‘should’ becomes a box, and your identity dependent on keeping everything afloat… in all areas of life.
Threshold Moments – After the Spell Breaks
For some of us, there comes a time when the spell breaks. Often through divorce or unexpected loss, the aftermath of a health crisis, or a growing weariness with the life we worked so hard to build.
The questions start, slowly at first. What did I actually buy into? Who am I underneath the layers of “this is what one does?”
I’ve spent years tuning into the words, beliefs and inherited success prescriptions that were installed long before we had a voice, or a vote.
Live For Yourself – Unravel the Shoulds
I write and speak about extracting our spirits from the collective opinion field, strengthened by rules and words so commonplace that no one notices their impact. I do this for myself, first, and for anyone on a quest for personal sovereignty and self-authority.