Remember all those zany things you loved to do when you were a kid? Imagine if you had not been sold on the idea that as an adult it wouldn’t make you money so;; forget about pursuing your dream! There’s a rock star in me that I can’t hide. I have often times judged her, criticized her and totally shut her up into lock down which she undoubtedly always escapes from and causes absolute mayhem in my life. Lesson learnt do not lock up the rock star singing and dancing diva queen that lives inside me! Why should I? It’s crazy how far down the list fun is on a woman’s list of priorities. Some of the things we love the most we simply ignore, or stop doing all together and then wonder why life is so boring, lacks luster, passion and pizzazz!
This morning I was doing my 6:15 am work out with my fitness coach Samantha Fox Olson who is this spitfire sassy blond with the absolute best attitude. Here we are, six women in her yoga yurt in Hawaii sweating our asses off doing exercise with weights all before 7 am and she’s cracking jokes about sticking your booty out like you’re mooning someone. I mean we want to die sometimes, you know pushing past the comfort zone and here she owns it, really rocking her passion. This woman is the most passionate woman I have ever met on helping women love their bodies! That’s what we all have to do - OWN it! Own your passions, brag about them, brag to everyone who will listen to us about what we love to do and what we are passionate about, great at and what lights us up! No more, lock down! Promise me!!!
This subject of owning it is very dear and close to my heart because if you have yet to meet me I am 6’ 2” and it’s something I have struggled with my whole life. When you meet me for the first time, you’ll quickly understand why. I am a striking 6’2”, slim, slender, sleek and I can be glamorous if I choose. If I put on a set of heels, I stop traffic. Now I enjoy that but when I was younger let me tell you I had a hard time with my height. Everyone, all the time would notice me. I use my height to my advantage now but, as a kid people thought, I was bulimic because I was so skinny and people made fun of me. To be quite honest nobody wants to be seen and noticed all the time. Well when you’re 6’ 2”, you have to get used to it. Now I know what you are thinking, “Vanessa I would trade in your problems any day!” Right? Well think about it carefully. I don’t think you understand what 20 plus years of hearing people ask you the same question over and over can do to a person. If I had a dollar for everyone who asked me how tall I was, I would be a millionaire several times over!
What I realized is that people were just so shocked when they saw me that they had to say something, they were compelled to say anything while talking with me and the first thing that popped into mind was to ask about my height. In my later 20’s when my boobs and behind grew in, I enjoyed my physical body MUCH more. Teeny tiny shorts were in and I was Barbie with a brain!
Then I started to OWN it. I remember working as a bartender. I had a tank top made one year on the beach in Seaside Heights, New Jersey and I would wear it at my waitress and bar tending job. It read on the front, “Don’t ask,” and on the back, “I’m 6’ 2,” and it was an instant conversation starter, everyone loved it!
Later I came up with some funny comments I still use and pass onto tall women everywhere I meet. When people ask me if I play basketball, I tell them very straight faced, “No, I play miniature golf.” There’s about a one-second pause and always followed by an eruption of laughter! It’s an easy icebreaker, then all kinds of conversation opens up. Why? Because I own it!! Now I have fun with it and a fun fabulous woman is like a big bright sparkling Christmas tree full of presents underneath it - irresistible - you can’t help but come up close and want to unwrap all the goodies under there!
Own what you’ve got and it will all work out! Think back to when you were a kid all the things you loved to do. Those things never change. I have a wonderful younger sister named Cristina and as a kid, she was this wild child. I mean just wild. She was unkempt and used to breed moths in her jewelry box! Her room was a mess, she was always in clothes that didn’t match or were torn or dirty and I was constantly trying to catch her and clean her up. Well fast-forward 20 something years and she is a nature adventure guide! She and her boyfriend Ben take tourists on epic adventures into the wild country of New Zealand and British Columbia, Canada. My sister doesn’t spend hours in front of the mirror. Each morning she spends hours on glassy mirrored lakes, hiking in the most pristine mountains and is living her dreams in the great outdoors. She was always kind of wild as a kid and it totally unfolded into this amazing career.
So look back to your childhood. What did you love to do that you simply maybe don’t do anymore? Is your life lacking luster and fun? If you don’t know, what your passion is in life it might be because you’re locking that rock star wild child in the closet! Stop it! Let her out!!
You’re job in life is to answer that call and to enjoy your life! My dad was an artist and he used to say all the time, do what you love! He died broke yet he lived with a smile on his face. He left us with a beautiful legacy of incredibly stunning masterful paintings. He owned it. Do you know what it is that you’re hiding on the down low? Why is it that women are so terrible at bragging about themselves and what they are good at doing? Taking a stand for your passion and your joy, your calling is the next step in allowing God or the spirit to unfold all of the necessary pieces for you. God will provide all of the next steps for you but you have to show up and own it and have fun with it! Let that rock start diva out, maybe she’s a painter, a dressmaker, a farmer, a gardener, a baker, a baby clothes maker. I don’t care what or who she is, let her out to play!
Give her the time of day and in that creative exploration, magical things will unfold. One of my favorite books is written by Julia Cameron called, The Artist’s Way, and in it she recommends each week setting aside some time to explore. She calls this the artist’s day, where you just allow yourself some time to go and let inspiration strike you, let it hit you, play, explore, see and feel. Go on an adventure and let your creativity out. I recommend taking your creative self out for an adventure regularly, let your little girl out to play!
Your Life will be filled with laughter and happiness when you are showing up and owning your gifts and kablamos everything you need to continue the unfoldment will appear. If you still have trouble, just do a little wheeling and dealing with God. Ask, “Hey God if I am supposed to do this thing show me, show me a big fat sign that I can recognize immediately please and thank you!” Then make sure, when the sign shows up - you act on it!! Don’t ask for a sign and turn the pizza guy away, open the door let him in and eat the pizza!