I Was Humiliated….

Have you ever been humiliated before?

Like when you’ve been expected to know how to do something you’ve never done before?

I was just 4 years old when my family moved to Israel for several months. My parents immediately enrolled me in a local kindergarten where only one other student spoke English. The teachers didn’t speak much English either. And I certainly didn’t speak any Hebrew.

Very shortly after we arrived, there was a holiday celebration at the school that included a dance performance by all of the girls. Dressed up in a little, poofy, blue skirt with a little, poofy, blue thing clipped to my head, I was ushered out into the middle of the group and expected to dance with the others.

Except…

…I didn’t know what to do.

I didn’t know the steps.

I didn’t know the music.

I didn’t even know the language.
It was humiliating to be so unprepared.

Right then and there I vowed to NEVER not know what I was doing EVER again.

That decision, made unconsciously by my four-year-old self, profoundly influenced my life over the years. It created in me a deep need to be “a master before I begin” to avoid feeling humiliation and shame.

Guess how that worked out…

Remembering that moment and identifying this source of my perfectionist ways gave me the opportunity to CHANGE my story about needing to be perfect before putting myself out there.

Now what I know for sure is that taking action and “getting out there” is WAY better than “being perfect.”

Progress requires taking risks and making mistakes.

Moving forward is messy. This hasn’t been an easy story to adopt, but it’s been wonderful.

Embracing imperfection and being willing to look silly, sound uninformed, or not know what to do next is necessary if we are going to grow and evolve.

And sometimes… it’s actually fun!

Have there been times in your life when you didn’t participate or try something new because you were afraid of being less-than-perfect?

Whether that’s being brave enough to try speaking a foreign language we’re just learning…
or trying something new in our business…
or approaching someone we’ve never met…
living life requires risking embarrassment and imperfection.

Would you like to let go of your story about needing to be perfect or better or more than you are so that you CAN get out there, grow, evolve, discover and have a blast?!

If this challenge feels familiar and you would like some support to change your story, get on my calendar. Let’s connect to see how we can get YOU dancing to the music in your life. Even if you don’t know the steps, the music, or the language.

It is possible.

Love & Lightness,
Natalie