So, here you are. You’ve crossed the threshold and left the ordinary world ready to face any and all tests and enemies you may encounter. You’ve accepted your mission and know that it’s time to rely even more on your inner voice as your true guide. You’ve committed to the lifelong journey of self-leadership so you can become the leader you want to see in your organization, your life, and your community. You are willingly moving forward, knowing that there’s no turning back.
You are unwavering in your commitment and have already started to take directed action through your newfound lens of self-leadership. You’ve been reflecting on what the hero in your story is up against and what actions they will take to ensure they come out victorious. You’re even starting to catch yourself having more awareness in moments where you notice your tendency to blame something or someone else. It’s in those moments that you observe yourself shifting the focus to what you can control, and deciding what the best version of yourself, your hero, would do. You are (mostly) no longer reacting to the impulsive nature to act immediately on your initial thoughts and instincts. And, you’re starting to see how fun this new shift in perspective is and how adopting this new way of being is actually an enjoyable process. You’re excited to continue the lifelong journey of going deeper into yourself to find the best answers.
What you may have already become more aware of since you crossed the threshold is that there’s a lot more to explore than you anticipated. You’re not only taking a closer look at your goals and desires, but you’re also willingly facing your fears and examining any reluctance you’ve had up until this point. You now know that every new test that presents itself and every obstacle that enters your path is an invitation to go into yourself even more. You already know your mentor is YOU; now, it may be time to take it a step farther and go even deeper — into your innermost cave — to find out what, if anything, is really holding you back.
When you’ve hit walls in your growth or you keep coming up against the same trials and tests, that’s an indication that you have more depths to explore. You may need to answer even more questions to find out who this character inside of you truly is and how you can make them part of your story by acknowledging the wisdom they have to offer.
I used to operate almost exclusively from a place of instinct and impulse. It wasn’t until I couldn’t suffer any more from the consequences of those actions that I realized something had to change. The weight of those consequences felt so heavy that it was no longer a load I wanted to carry. I recognized repetitions of hard lessons in my life, and I began to really question why I always felt like I had to learn these lessons the hard way. At one point, my decisions left me sitting in my cold, bare apartment alone with nowhere to turn except inward. Maybe you’ve felt that way at some point too? Faced with the consequences of your actions leaving you feeling cold and alone?
I needed an escape. I needed to be alone with these thoughts. I was fortunate enough to have the luxury to pack up and travel. I took myself and my passport and not much more than my thoughts and my journals. I was on a mission to try and better understand myself so I could improve myself and the organizations I worked for. This series is a product of that mission. I’ve worked this process that I’m sharing with you, journaling about my present existence (ordinary world) and my future self (the hero returning with the reward) for years. Through this process, I’ve recognized that I am not only my own mentor and the hero of my own story, I am also, at times, my own enemy. As I write about the trials my hero faces, I also understand that I am often also the antagonist getting in the way of the hero. This has helped me see that when tests arise, they are there so that I can gain more wisdom and become an ally to myself.
You don’t have to leave the country on a solo journey to find yourself. You can start from the comfort of your home or your favorite coffee shop. The important thing is that you don’t give up. You keep going deeper until you eventually operate on autopilot and find your own practice. Personally, I’m not giving up on it just yet, as I still find the value in going deeper — there’s more to resolve within me. There are more depths to the cave to explore. Maybe you will feel that way for a while too.
This method is available to you so you can see that you’re the hero, the wise guide, the enemy, and the ally. And that the tests and obstacles along the way are there to teach you more so that you gain the skills and knowledge you need to take on anything in your path and return with the ultimate reward — self-leadership. Because that’s all it ever is. It’s truly all it’s ever about.
Everyone will have opinions on how you live your life or run your business, so it’s up to you to determine what’s most important to you. Be so clear in your understanding of who you are and what you want that you’re unwavering in your direction, while also leaving an open mind for new and better information. As you begin to trust yourself even more (because you know yourself more deeply), you’ll continue to see things more clearly. My hope is that it continues to become even more obvious that what’s transpiring in front of you feels either very aligned with what you want or glaringly clear that it isn’t.
It’s important as you start this process that you don’t give up. Even when you experience discomfort. Especially when you experience periods of discomfort — that’s your sign to explore further and go to the depths of your innermost cave. Because what we’re asking of ourselves — true self-leadership — means going all in. Climbing into the darkness so you can clearly see the light. As you continue to level up, others around you will too.
If you’re ready to explore your innermost cave, I invite you to ask yourself the deeper questions. Do you really know yourself? Do you know why you operate the way you do? Do you know what makes you tick and why you’re on this journey to strengthen your self-leadership to begin with? If you’re ready to go to your innermost cave, prepare to take action.
So far you’ve listed out the daily habits you’ve committed to for the next 90 days. You’ve developed a story of a hero (YOU) overcoming obstacles. You’ve thought about what tests, allies, and enemies you might meet along your journey and the impact they will have along the way. This is all for you to prepare a future vision. A place that does not yet exist. Writing it out is hopefully helping you visualize what’s possible and feel more empowered so you can remind yourself that you have everything you need to accomplish what you want to. The next action step I encourage you to take is about getting to know your current self and your deeply held beliefs that make you who you are. To enrich your script, your hero’s journey, we need to know the main character’s backstory. Why do you do things the way you do? What are your superpowers? What’s most important to you? That’s what I encourage you to explore within yourself as you take this next step.
Take Action Get yourself a pad and paper, and ask your innermost self what your purpose is for doing the work that you do. What are the values you operate from — your deeply held beliefs about what you feel is right for you and what those around you should share? Why is this work so important to you? Why are these values important to you? As this character, the hero, looking at the purpose of your organization and your personal values, and then looking at the list of fears, how would the hero, operating from those values, address those fears? How would they handle the tests? The enemies? How would they work with their allies? Create the origin story for your character.
For example: My character understands the challenges most growing organizations face, where personalities collide and get in the way of company growth and executing goals. She also understands that leadership is a quality we must develop in ourselves so that, as John C Maxwell says, we can “know the way, go the way, and show the way.” The hero of my story is driven to find ways to help people and be of service. She also desires to be her best self by having self-awareness and practicing self-care. Her goal is to keep getting better every day and develop mastery in her chosen field (values). This is important to her because she believes that in order to make the most impact in the world, her spiritual duty, she must be committed to being the change she wants to see in the organizations she serves, in her community, and in the world (purpose). Her fears include not being perfect enough to share her wisdom and not knowing if her messages will be well received. Her hero side, operating from her values, knows that it’s her responsibility to continue to evolve into the best version of herself and master her self-leadership so that she may be of service to as many people as possible, so they too may evolve to become the change they want to see in their organizations and in their own lives for the betterment of their communities and the world. She believes her inner voice is her greatest teacher and that everyone on the planet is there to be an ally on this journey, even if they come disguised as a test or an enemy (core belief).