Dear Friends,
“Argue for your limitations and they are surely yours.” I remember reading those words decades ago in one of my favorite books, Illusions, by Richard Bach. It resonated deeply then and continues to pop up as one of those seemingly never-ending lessons.
As I’ve been working with my brilliant and talented coach (advisor, wise man, medicine man, savant, guru, comedian, and inspirer), T.K. Coleman, I’ve realized I’m still hanging on to some limiting thoughts, and they have surely become mine! After one of our magical sessions where I feel I’m an observer of our conversation, I found myself recounting all the limiting statements I made in that and previous sessions. That’s what happens when you finally find the coach aligned with you: you take organic action following your time together. When that magic happens, where I described feeling like an observer, I can detach and take in what’s being said as if it’s someone else, because it’s so much easier to give others advice on how to change something that's not serving them!
The subject of self-imposed limitations appears often during our Soul Series sessions. As they move toward being their favorite version of themselves in all areas of their life, using the tools that have transformed me and thousands of others over the years, the participants realize they, too, can break free of those limitations. And, awareness is the first step on that journey of transformation.
Some of my limiting statements were:
I’m in complete flow and bliss when I’m coaching, but I don’t like marketing; I’m not good at it.
I have a stack of books I’ve been wanting to read for a year. I either don’t make time or I scroll on my phone between pages!
Why can’t I speak Spanish? I’ve taken so many courses over the years!
I can’t cook. I don’t like to chop anything, even for salads. DoorDash is my friend.
And those are just a few!
As I thought about it, I had one of those transformational moments. I thought about how annoyed I get when loved ones say, “I’m not good at this,” or “I can’t do that.” Those are only true as long as I—or you—argue for them to be.
My relationships are long and deep—that’s marketing! All I have to do is connect with my contacts, share about my offerings, and the business comes.
Ever since I visited my sister, reading has become a regular activity in my home once again. I went to a small chapel at St. Anne’s church campus, and a woman whom I had witnessed trying to enter the locked main entrance to the church asked me if I spoke Spanish. Instead of saying no, like I usually do, I said I spoke a little Spanish. She asked, in Spanish, if I knew when it would open. I told her (in Spanish!!!) that the woman in the office could help her and to follow me. She understood. I spoke Spanish! Of course, that was a motivator for me to go back to studying and practicing with hope and joy!
Just in this past week, I’ve made simple, delicious salads, a perfectly seasoned frittata with onions, peppers, and topped with sliced avocados. Don't even ask me the concoctions I’ve created with ground turkey breast, black beans and brown rice! DoorDash is a lot poorer this week, and I feel richer in so many ways.
What limitations have you been arguing for in your life? Are you willing to look at them differently? Ask yourself the questions I asked myself, appropriate to your self-identified limitations:
What if I do share about my coaching that I know, from years of feedback, positively impacts others?
What if I begin again the pleasurable pastime I’ve neglected?
What if I have learned to speak some of the language I love?
What if I could cook?
Let’s join hands and kick our limiting beliefs out the window! Let’s make our new mantra:
I can, I will, I do!
With gratitude,
Amy
Amy Ayoub
President, The Zen Speaker
info@thezenspeaker.com | thezenspeaker.com
P.S. - T.K. Coleman is with the famous and fabulous The Minimalists. You can find his consulting services at theminimalists.com/cc.