Shine Some Light on Your “Negative” Qualities

What if you were given the EXACT body and personality needed to fulfill your full potential?  What if every last part of you was of intentional design?  Yes, I’m talking even about those parts of yourself and myself that we hate or want to disown sometimes.

…Like I will never have a flat lower belly or super skinny arms – both characteristics I’ve come to believe are signs of being thin, and of course, skinny = happy, right?  (I am kidding, of course.)  Or my big calves, bunion, big cheeks, whatever…the list could go on if I wanted to nitpick.

But what if I approached my appearance and personality from the angle of things I LOVE?  I love that I tan easily, I have a nice figure, and my great big smile inspires smiles of others.  I have long legs and arms good for cuddles, hugs, and athletics, especially water sports that I love so much.  And those great big calves help keep me grounded.  Who knows, without them, I might fly away!

What about taking it one step further to internal qualities?

– I have a huge heart.:  Yes, that huge heart has gotten me majorly hurt at times, but it also allows me to connect with people and help them feel safe.

– I have an active imagination / My mind can be kind of “crazy.”:  While my creative mind sometimes can drive me crazy, it is also the hub for an endless stream of ideas and an ability to write, communicate, and relate to people.

– I can be forgetful and sometimes messy.:  If I was an artist, I would be creating some incredible abstract paintings – full of color and life…and darkness at times – and I would be wearing 1/2 the paint.  Truth is my life has been pretty, ugly and everything in between…and you’ll seldom find me without my hands dirty.  There are too many sandboxes to play in!

I suppose that each and every one of our qualities can be looked at in positive or negative light.  So those sometimes flabby-looking arms…well, they also give really good hugs.  And that not-so-flat stomach…will some day hold a little baby in it.  And today, it’s a sign that I’m healthy and perhaps even that I am full – of love, power, and light.

I challenge you to take a few moments and do this exercise today, and see if you can take a feature or quality that you sometimes rag on and give it some TLC.

1.  Choose a quality or characteristic that you see as “negative” or you don’t like about yourself.

2.  Take a few moments to sit with that quality and see if you can think of any reason it might have been given to you.  Does it help you in living your purpose in any way?  Does it support your full expression somehow?  Does it help you connect with others?

3.  Journal on it.

4.  Give yourself some LOVE!

I’ll be honest with you, at times when things have gotten hard for me, I have seen even my beauty and big heart as negative qualities.  I went through a long time when I had been hurt over and over again, and all I wanted was go unnoticed.  Being noticed meant getting attention, and getting attention inevitably meant that some of it would be negative or by people who would want to bring me down out of jealousy, fear, or hate.

Today, it takes a lot of courage and continuously developing confidence to own my beauty and my heart.  Now I’m not trying to be conceited here.  I know that I am no Giselle or Mother Theresa, but I am ME!  It’s not about comparison but instead knowing that I am me, and the most powerful choice I can make everyday is to CHOOSE EVERY LAST BIT OF ME.  I can CHOOSE to be beautiful AND SO CAN YOU!  I can choose to be smart, funny, strong, and anything else.  I can also choose to be weak, defeated, and ugly…so why not choose the things that make me feel good?

You see, we create who we are.  We have the first and final word.

I invite you to join me!  Which YOU are YOU CHOOSING today?

PS: Join me HERE for future musings like this.

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