20 years ago, I took an instructor's course to learn how to
help people create what matters most. Despite my shyness and
inexperience in such work, the course was extraordinary.
We worked late into the evening then bounced up next morning to
start again. We worked with creative tension. We watched Martin
Luther King's "I have a dream!" speech. We coached each other in
creating what mattered.
I loved it all—except for one exercise.
At the end of day two, our facilitator Kallenn asked us to stand
and declare, "I take a stand for my own greatness." He passed
the mike to a woman in front. She popped up, and proudly
proclaimed her greatness.
I sat six rows back, my gut tying itself into a thick, painful
knot.
I did not know why I didn't want to do it. But I didn't. When
my turn came, I hauled myself up and mumbled the words, but I
felt like a stranger to my own heart.
Instead of going for dinner, I sat overlooking the lake, and
scribbled in my journal. I was confused. I wasn't sure what
greatness was, nor that I had any to stand up for.
As I dug deeper, I discovered I was angry about not practicing
what I preached. An ex-teacher and leadership coach, I'd run a
mountaineering school in the Rockies for six years. However, I'd
drifted through my last two years then, then left, dispirited.
I realized I didn't feel greatness because I'd let my spirit's
flame burn too low.
I wanted to feel greatness. But, I feared admitting it, I might
have to stretch for something out of reach. Besides, who was I
to proclaim greatness?
ACCEPTING MY OWN GREATNESS
I sat, watching the lake and pondering my questions. When I went
back to class, I was aware of my contradictions, but somehow okay
with them.
I dove into the work. I applied myself with vigor. I struggled
to grow. Slowly, I felt a shift. Something opened in me. As my
vision for my life and work became clearer, I felt my inner flame
sputter to life.
At the end of the course, Kallenn asked us each to make a closing
remark. When I faced the group, I felt nervous, yet excited.
"Two days ago," I said, "I told you I took a stand for my own
greatness, but I lied. I didn't feel greatness. Since then,
I've realized greatness is not about ego, or power. It is about
bringing into the world what truly matters to me. Greatness, I
see now, is in us all, but unacknowledged, it dies. Realizing
this, I can now say honestly, "I do take a stand for my own
greatness."
As I sat down, I felt like I owned my own heart.
HELPING OTHERS ACCEPT THEIR GREATNESS
Since then, I've helped thousands learn to create what matters
most. And because I work at expressing greatness, I know why
it is so difficult, at times, to do.
We often fail to acknowledge our greatness for fear of what
others might say. Denying our hearts, we invest our energy in
lesser things. We withdraw from our own power. But not offering
our gifts to the world is riskier than putting them out.
Marianne Williamson said, "Our deepest fear is that we are
powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that
most frightens us. We ask ourselves ‘who am I to be brilliant,
gorgeous, talent, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the
world."
Accepting our greatness, we live into our authentic power. By
creating what we love, we give gifts only we can give. By
contributing to community, our lives become meaningful. By
bringing greatness into the world, we leave the planet better
for our presence.
RELIGHTING THE FLAME
"There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening,"
Martha Graham told a young dancer, "that is translated through
you into action, and because there is only one of you in all of
time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will
never exist through any other medium and it will be lost."
It is not our business to judge how good our gifts are, nor how
valuable. It is not for us to compare our greatness to other's.
It is our business to let vitality flow through us into the
world. We need to keep the flame of our creative spirit bright.
I haven't always done so. But when my flame flickers, I recall
how empowered I felt taking a stand for my own greatness, and how
vital I feel when I create what matters. That opens me, again,
to the possibility that lies. undiscovered, all around me. If
I'm tempted to hold back, to ignore my greatness, I recall
Goethe's couplet:
"Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power and magic in it."
Remembering that my greatness is unique, I choose to give my
gifts to the world, and let whatever happens happen.
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