I had an intensely personal and honest conversation with a client last week about body image. We talked about how many of us place limits on ourselves if we don’t feel good about our bodies.
This conversation was so raw and real because of an experience we had last year.
She made the decision to grow her business by speaking on stage. She wanted to make a bigger impact by polishing her brand style to take her personal image and business to the next level; she was ready!
We made plans for a shopping day. She mentioned that she gained weight but was moving forward despite feeling self-conscious about it. In the past, she had a habit of putting plans on hold until she lost the weight, but this time she knew it would be different.
She was so proud of herself that she was facing her fears, stepping into her visibility and vulnerability by making the decision to speak on stage, despite being seen at her heaviest weight, this felt like a triumph.
We were all set, date chosen, plane tickets bought, ready to roll, right?
Well, a week later, I received an email saying that she cancelled her trip. She said that she just couldn’t do it.
She looked in the mirror, thought she looked fat and didn’t want to be seen this way. She was planning to spend more time dieting to get back to a size that made her feel more comfortable in her skin before she committed to the trip.
While this was an unfortunate turn, I understood; my heart was heavy as I wished her well.
Here it is a year later, she shared the lessons learned from that decision and how it was an important turning point in her life. While still around the same weight, she talked about the invaluable lessons she learned about self-love and acceptance despite the size of her thighs.
During our conversation, we talked about how her story was not unique, how countless women were sitting anonymously on the sidelines wishing to be seen, craving a deep desire for their spotlight, to be of service at a higher level, to share more of their gifts. But their current larger size may be holding them back from stepping out for a bigger opportunity.
If this story hits home and resonates deeply for you, here’s a tip sheet I recently saw and wanted to share it. Here’s to a year of practicing massive acts of self-love for breakthroughs in 2014!
With Love,
