Colouring outside the lines

I often feel that the more apparently successful, and entrenched in our particular corporate path we become, the more risk averse we become to living our life.

We tend to slip ever deeper into the 'safe zone', diligently colouring within the lines, in order to avoid sticking out.

When we allow ourselves to become trapped by the perceived perfection of those lines we start to introduce self-limiting beliefs, and behaviours into our daily lives which leave us stuck playing out a significantly smaller (tho undoubtedly safer) life within those lines.  

Living rigidly within those lines, ultimately strips us of who we are, cutting off our creativity, resourcefulness and unique genius. Instead of embracing, and harnessing our unique creativity we allow the lines to define us, limiting not just our ability to innovate, and create, but also our ability to live our best life.

Your best life, is YOUR life, the one that calls you, that wont leave you alone until you do something about it, that opens doors, and feels right even when its pursuit sometimes fills you with terror.

Living your best life means you get to choose the colours, and the lines.

It is not about ego, or status, or indeed of chasing someone else’s perception of what that looks and feels like. It is about finding a path that makes your heart sing, and your soul come alive with crazy vibrant colour that spills right outside the lines and beyond!

It is about growing in both heart, and spirit, in order to allow yourself to experience all of life’s infinite possibilities.

So how do you stop colouring within the lines and reach beyond that to live your best life?

First of all slow down, and give your full attention to answering these three simple but ultimately life changing questions; what are the things that hold deep meaning for me? what are the things that fuel my purpose? what are the things that give me a deep sense of joy and satisfaction?

The answers to these questions are highly individual, and as unique as you yourself.

When you understand what you need more of at that deep heart level you can take the necessary steps to start to build that into your daily life. This is a concept referred to as 'centralising' in the 'How we choose to be happy' book by Rick Foster and Greg Hicks and essentially refers to making those things that feed your soul/creativity/happiness a central part of your daily life.

And finally, keep asking, keep visualising and re-visualising because your best life is not experienced as a single point in time, rather it evolves over time, and is ALL about the journey rather than any final destination.

The point about your best life is that it is yours, defined by your deepest self, and devoid of judgement, ego, or a need to conform.

What you do as part of your best life is up to you - it may take you to the other side of the world, or help you put down solid roots right where you are. Your purpose may be to raise well-loved, secure children, or to cure cancer. The thing about your best life is that it is not defined by the size of the goal, rather the depth of your commitment to it, and what you are willing to give of yourself in order to accomplish it.

Colouring outside of the lines in order to pursue your souls desire is not only scary but risky as well. You have to own your fears, and accept the risk of failure as part of the journey. It requires a total commitment to stepping outside of the comfort zone of your lines and fully experience the highs and lows that make your heart grow, and elevate your capacity for digging ever deeper in order to soar ever higher. In short, best becomes even better, and ultimately far more than you ever thought it could be.

Living your best life, changes you, it changes those around you, and from there the change spreads gently until it changes the world.

And in the end that is what each of us desires, to live fully, and joyfully, and to make a difference to others.

All of that begins with changing just one life - yours. 

Author: Deidre Dattoli

Deidre is highly experienced in the fields of executive coaching and leadership development, team dynamics and performance, offering a range of personal and group leadership training programs, customized training solutions, consultancy and coaching services.

Deidre is one of Griffith Consulting's key program facilitators.

For more information about Deidre, please contact us, today.