Little known fact: I’m a big comic book fan. Growing up with a teenage brother and a slew of all-male cousins will do that to you. In particular, I love the X-Men. Storm, Beast, Wolverine, Rogue (oh, especially Rogue) – I was a big fan of all of them and their high flying adventures. But the one X-Men who consistently got on my nerves? Jean Grey. Here’s a little background for those of you not familiar with what I’m talking about. Jean Grey’s mutant power was telepathy & telekinesis and similar to Professor X, she was able to exhibit powerful mind control. But all too often Jean would fail because she didn’t know her own strength. It would go a little something like this: The X-Men would be fighting against some foe. Let’s say Magneato. He would do something to disable their jet, leaving them plummeting from the air in a free fall. Jean Grey would step in to hold up the aircraft with her mind. But then, without fail, she would start feeling herself getting weaker and would lose the ability to hold her team up from falling to their demise. This happened all. the. time. The only time Jean was able to really showcase her power is when she turned into the Phoenix and even then she wasn’t able to control it. It was a classic example of not knowing your own strength. Jean Grey didn’t understand her power and thus was never able to grab hold of it and wield it.

I am just as annoyed to this day when I see people out there who are not fully embracing their superpowers. Seriously, how many people are you disappointing because you’re not fully stepping up to the plate with what you can do. The world needs you and your unique gifts. And I for one am sick of people who are robbing their world of their voice. So let’s put a stop to this.

First things first, how to tap into your superpower:

1. Ask yourself what you are ah-mazing at? What do you do better than most other people?
2. If that is too difficult, think about what other people come to you for? What do they thank you for?
3. Identify your power zone. When do you feel unstoppable & most like yourself? What are you doing during these times?
4. What are you insanely passionate about? What problem are you here to solve? What gifts are you here to give?

Now here’s how can you start stepping into your power fully:

1. Embrace it. Stop shirking away from it.
2. Share it. Let us know what it is that you do. Brag a bit. Help solve our problems with your brilliant gift
3. Never doubt it.

That’s it. It’s pretty simple really. Now get out there and razzle dazzle us.

What are your superpowers? And just for fun if you could have a mutant superpower, what would it be?

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Today actually is my birthday so I am starting it off awesomely! I hope you’re doing the same. The days leading up to my birthday have been a whirlwind of amazing. The inaugural Fierce Leadership Summit was a huge success. I spent Sunday surrounded by brilliant, energetic, passionate women. I’m still letting the experience settle in and will be taking this week off (and maybe some of next week) to process everything & have some much needed rest.

See you next week!

You Are Expert Enough

How many times have you hesitated on moving forward on your creative dream because you felt you were not experienced enough? How often have you stopped dead in your tracks because you had convinced yourself you did not have enough skills? In short, how often have you felt like you were not enough to carry out your big, beautiful dream? Countless, I’m willing to bet…..

Read The Rest Here

Love Who You Are Now

One of the conundrums that this whole personal growth thing presents is that you can start to believe that the You that you are right now isn’t good enough. That you won’t be good enough until you’re living your passion or until you’re practicing mindfullness or until you’ve embarked on an exciting adventure. But in order to do anything great in life you must love the person you are right now, fiercely. Love your strengths and your quirks. Love your desire to consistently challenge yourself and love your quest to grow as a person. Love your ability to think up zany plans and out of this world dreams. Self love and acceptance is the solid foundation to the pursuit of any dream. If you can’t love yourself you’ll never persuade yourself that you are worthy of more – you’ll never gain the courage to tackle your big dreams. Worse still, you may talk yourself out of pursuing them. Love yourself so much that you believe you can do anything.

Believe in Yourself

We’ve got to put an end to this negative self-talk thing. That bitch that lives inside your head telling you terrible things about every single thing you do? Ditch her. Think of it this way: would you say any of the things you tell yourself to anyone else? Well then why would you treat yourself that way? When others pay you a compliment believe it. Say thank you and repeat it in your head. Don’t dispute it, don’t convince yourself they are just being nice. Just accept it. Believe that you are wildly beautiful. Believe that you are incredibly strong. Believe that you are creative beyond your wildest dreams. Believe in yourself.

Unleash Your Inhibitions

You know that thing you’re dying to do but you’re holding back from? Do that thing. Release your inhibitions. Stop thinking about what people will think. Take that pole dancing class or start speaking your mind. Give into some of your desires instead of pushing them deep down inside. Maybe you think it’s too bold or you’d look silly or people would judge you.  None of that matters. Just get out there and do your thing.

Love yourself. Unconditionally. You’re the only you you’ve got.

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Want more love? Check out the story I wrote for Ophelia’s Webb: Love Has Other Plans

Registration for the Fierce Leadership Summit is now OPEN! Snag your ticket & join 150 women as we redefine leadership on our own terms www.fierceleadershipsummit.com #FLS2012

I’d love to hear your thoughts and stories on this. What have you done to create your own opportunity in the past? Did it work for you?

Now it’s your turn! Have you ever dealt with a situation where your loved ones did not fully support your Dream? What did you do? Were you able to come to an understanding? I’d love to hear about it!

One of my goals for this year is to make more videos. I’m committing to making 1 video a week for you guys. If you have a question or topic that you’d like me to address, be sure to send it my way or you can bring it up in the comment section below.

And if you’ve missed my first 5 videos of the year, you can check them out on my YouTube channel.

“Almost always, the creative dedicated minority has made the world better.” – MLK

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bestrated1/371032725/

Kindness

I want to be more kind to myself. I want to honor my ideas instead of bashing them. I want to cut out the negative self-talk and self-deprecating behavior. I want to believe in myself and all of the amazing things I can do. I want to fill my body with whole, natural foods. I want to run and stretch and laugh and cartwheel. I want to smile lovingly at myself in my mirror. I want to stop mulling over things in my head and instead take action when I feel anxiety creeping me. I want to be kind to my mind, kind to my spirit, kind to my body, kind to my soul.

Flow

One of my big awakenings from 2011 was how good it felt to just show up as myself. It felt good not to tuck parts of myself away or apologize for certain parts but to just be me fully. I realized how much easier life goes when you just have faith and let things flow. I want to continue mastering that in 2012. I want this year to be a year where I simply do the things that are important to me. I want to release myself from all of the shoulds and conditions and expectations and just let my true self flow out from my pores.

And you?

What is your theme for the year? How do you remind yourself of your theme so you can continue moving forward? Or do you set resolutions?

If one of your themes for the year is around finding your passion or getting unstuck around your big idea, there’s still time to join us in this round of Group Coaching. The next groups won’t start until April/May of this year!

Need some help planning out 2012? Check out my posts on my Annual Review process – Part 1, Part 2 – and on Making Positive Life Changes.

Annnnnd if you’re really ready to hit 2012 running sign up for one of my Polka Dot Groups. You’ll get clear & courageous with a supportive, collaborative group of awesome ladies like yourself.

Christmas is hands down my favorite holiday. I have a large boisterous family and Christmas is often the one time where we can all come together. This Christmas is a bit different for me because I’m spending it with my husband’s smaller, quieter family. I’ll admit that I’m a bit disappointed to miss out on the big Blades Family Christmas but I’m also excited to start new traditions with the Wylie Family. When it comes down to it, Christmas is about love so whether I’m with my immediate family, my new family-in-law or just my husband, it’s going to be grand.

What are your favorite holiday traditions? Old or new?

Whatever you’re celebrating this month, enjoy it! Happy Holidays All.

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Are you ready to step more fully into the deliciousness that makes you YOU? Join me and 4-6 other awesome, like-minded women in the Polka Dot Groups!