With an overcrowded to-do list here, a cluttered purse there…
With a half cooked pot of Spaghetti, because you realized you hadn’t spoken to a family member in a week and leapt out of your moment and into someone else's for fear of not meeting expectations.
With a tear stained coffee cup at your desk, because another client, our authority figure, decided you were not enough... at least, that’s how it felt because you were so tired that e-mail just nearly broke you to pieces.
There is enough noise in a woman’s brain on a day-to-day basis just trying to wear her many hats - and not the cute sun hats, either.
Hats like: CEO, Girlfriend, Wife, Mom, Daughter, Friend, Neighbor, Not for Profit Chair, Caretaker, Designer...
As women try to balance their hats like a sad, strange juggling act, we also try to stay “plugged in” and be a good example for our species on the internet.
So, we get online, immediately to be bombarded with contradictory messages. Not to mention when we watch TV, or hang out with (also, sadly overwhelmed) older women, sometimes masquerading as well-meaning mentors.
How are we supposed to succeed in a way that’s unique to our own DNA while feeling like there’s an invisible bar being set, that moves so much it’s like a game of limbo?
With the rise of feminine empowerment movements, the spicy and seductive “feminine energy” craze and more women in power (or so it seems), we are on paper, more empowered than ever....or are we just more in the spotlight, being picked at like an extraction during a facial?
I, even as a confident woman, am always second guessing myself:
Did I talk about work too much?
Am I seeing my family enough?
Why aren’t I having sex everyday?
Because I’m not married, am I wrong?
Am I too masculine?
I bet I should lose weight.
Skinny, nice girls get married.
Something is wrong with me.
These are thoughts (just some) that rampage through my mind while running a media business and writing my heart out.
Though, I often pause to feel the warm and fuzzy feeling of making a difference, more often than not I am plotting my improvement process like a murder documentary.
How can I be better?
How can I make more money?
How can I get 'skinny enough' and happy enough?
Should I have a different career?
What will my partner like about me if I change, oh I don’t know, everything about me?
Today, I claim ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. Are you with me?
YOU are right, just as, and right where you are.
THE person you are with loves you, and if you don’t truly believe that, ask. If it’s time to recalibrate, recalibrate.
YOUR business, or career needs you in your superpower, not hers.
YOU are doing enough. Trust me.
Today, I challenge you to put your blinders on. Take a social media fast from competitors and negative accounts. Pause from watching TV for 7 days.
I’d like for you to spend 15 minutes rewriting your beliefs about your not-enoughness. Like cleaning out your closet, it’s time to decide what no longer fits. Notice how your body and mind feel with the excess space created from much less social media and no TV. You’ll feel a slight withdrawal, then a surge of energy and empowerment.
About the author:
Gabrielle Garrett is a journalist, author and media consultant who has helped thousands of humans find their voices. She runs an all-star team of men and women who ghost write and publish books for some of the brightest minds in the country.