Are you the same person you were aged 10, 20 or 30?
Ask this question of someone and you’ll generally get two kinds of answers:
- Absolutely yes - while on the surface, much has changed, there is a core part of me that is constant, never-changing
- Absolutely not - so much has changed; been learned; experienced that I’m a million miles from the person I used to be
In the work I do, we explore the tension and inter-connection between these two positions.
Taking the first stance, it offers a reassuring constant in our lives. Somewhere beyond the realm of personality, there is a still point, of consciousness, pure energy, that can’t be harmed, changed or defiled.
Not everyone resonates with that more spiritual understanding of our essence, but most people get it, at some level: that we’re all connected, and part of something bigger than ourselves.
It reminds us that beyond the noise, there is a stillness that we can all connect with.
And then to the second…
I would describe this as the longing for the journey home.
This longing becomes our individual journey into a more expansive, fulfilled experience of life.
It often happens around mid-life and it encompasses an awakening and curiosity for life, direction and legacy.
It can take many forms, both inner and outer:
- The ignition of a passion to make a mark in the world and the creation of something
extraordinary and unique as a consequence
- Embracing self-discipline and mastery in the pursuit of inner peace
- Exploring and dissolving blind spots to be more aware of what drives you
- Freeing yourself more from the ceaseless grip of ego
- Dropping or transcending fears to be more visible
- Expressing more of yourself authentically and openly
- Entering a more mindful and compassionate relationship with yourself and others
Earlier in this piece, I mentioned a tension between the spiritual perspective and the more generative perspective.
In the spiritual perspective, we see that everything is perfect as it is. Life has got our back. We are on a journey and we don’t really have our hands on the wheel.
In the second perspective, we are that and we have the free will to direct our attention and energy to creating what lights us up and makes a deeper imprint from our time on earth.
If this sounds too esoteric, I invite you to consider these questions for yourself:
Why am I here?
What imprint do I long to leave in my wake?
What lights me up?
What holds me back from being the fullest expression of myself?
If I imagine myself looking back at the end of my life, what would I want to be saying about the life I have lived?
If you're curious to explore these questions in the context of a coaching conversation, let me know. I’ll happily make the space for you to dive more deeply into this topic.
Photo by name_ gravity on Unsplash