I read a quote that hasn't left my brain.
I read it as I was working on the SHINE E-course: Somebody Needs You to Shine.
It's a simple but deep principle many people ignore.
Not disciplining myself to be better at sharing my skills, gifts and talents robs other people of the beauty, encouragement and inspiration I'm supposed to share.
Ego isn't driving this statement.
Rather, what drives the conviction is my firm, anchored-in-my-heart belief that each one of us have a specific purpose on this earth. And many of us, as Oliver Wendell Holmes eloquently said, will "go to the grave with our music still in us."
Are you on the fence on whether you should pursue your blog, art work, stationary business, creative workshops, or other creative ventures? Any dream for that matter....are you letting of them?
If you were meant to cure cancer or write a symphony or crack cold fusion and you don't you not only hurt yourself, even destroy yourself; you hurt your children. You hurt me. You hurt the planet. Creative work is not a selfish act or a bad for attention on the part of the actor. It's a gift to the world and every being in it. Don't cheat us of your contribution. Give us what you got.
-Steven Pressfield from the War of Art
Does that change your perspective on how you view your art, your work, the baby creation that is starting to unfold.
I know it's hard. I fight fear and self-doubt every single day. A lot of the days I think that it would be easier to stop and go back to the life I thought I wanted. I could sit down with you over a very large coffee and write down all of my fears and doubts and insecurities and mess-ups and failures and mistakes and on and on ad nauseam.
But you know what?
None of those things matter nor are they relative to the importance of keeping my eyes on the goal, getting better at my craft every day, improving, learning and remaining resolute about helping other creatives live what they dream about.
It turns out our insecurities don't matter much at all.
Insecurity hinders; it doesn't help.
Let's commit to supporting one another in this journey. It's worth it.
Keep going creative one. One baby step at a time.
Holding and hiding your gifts is wrong. We need you to shine.
Talk soon, K?
Melissa
The post Hiding Your Gifts is Wrong appeared first on Launch Your Creative Life.