Over the course of my adult life, I’ve invested in nearly $100K in a variety of programs to help me be the best version of me. Whether professional development courses or my Masters degree to support my teaching career, fitness certificates and workshops to up level my group fitness tool kit, faith-based conferences and retreats to help me expand my understanding of The Bible and grow in my relationship with God, or business courses and coaching certifications to help me build and grow Shine, ALL have been worthwhile, and I’ve acquired much information that has been practical, useful and
helpful to me, but most importantly, others with whom I interact.
While all of these programs, retreats, trainings and degrees have given me tremendous knowledge, none of it proved useful or effective until I applied it.
There is a big difference between head knowledge and heart knowledge.
We often know things, yet we often don’t do them.
For example, we know we should drink water instead of soda, yet we follow our taste buds and down the Diet Coke. Or we know we should exercise every day, yet we often find an excuse like “I am too tired.” Or we know that a side salad is the healthier option, but fries are the “perfect side” for a burger. (For the record, ordering the turkey burger does not balance the nutrition content of the order of fries, sunshine.)
However, if you’ve ever passed a kidney stone because you were dehydrated and didn’t drink enough water, you can bet your bottom dollar that you’re guzzling the recommended dose daily. Or if your doctor prescribes high blood pressure medicine which she warned you about for the last year (which could’ve been controlled with a healthier lifestyle and weight management) you will be lacing up your sneakers every day after work. Or if you fatted out last season’s jeans, I can guarantee you will be choosing the side salad–dressing on the side.
You see, change is born either when you learn more information and you want to change or when you hurt badly enough that you have to.
This weekend, I experienced both.
I attended a 5-day conference led by Chris Lee (pictured above) and was forever changed. While I judged him immediately upon walking in–everything from his suit to his snarky sense of humor–he lead me through an amazing, yet oh-so-painful experience. Chris skillfully stirred up every one of my sensitivities, fears, annoyances and prideful emotions then helped me remove them so that I could share and receive love unabashedly and authentically–the way we were designed to live.
He extracted the facts, details, statistics, and scriptures that I’ve learned and memorized over the years and transferred them to my heart so I could feel and experience them rather than just know them.
After every session, I sat emotionally drained with tear-stained cheeks fumbling with wadded up Kleenex wondering how he was able to masterfully shift my head knowledge into heart knowledge. My brain and heart are still sore from the weekend’s experience.
I can’t describe how it happened, but all that I know is I am overflowing with gratitude that it did. I literally walked out of the conference room feeling 100lbs…lighter, yet muffin-topping over my jeans with joy, happiness, and love.
Curious, I approached Chris and he shared, “That is what you do with the girls and women you work with. I am one step ahead of you, and you are one step ahead of them, you just don’t see it or feel it the same because you’ve already experienced your own breakthrough in the areas you’re helping them break through.”
Powerful.
Profound.
Now it is time to put it into practice.
We know that we are all capable of change, and we also know that
what we CAN do is very different than from what we WILL do.
What will it take for you to change, sunshine? Do you need more information or does it need to get a little more painful (blood pressure medicine, rocky relationship, deeper into depression, next size jeans) for you to make the change that you need, and perhaps have been putting off for too long?
sunshine, what is your pain costing you, your family, your health, your relationships?
What results await when you make your own transformation?
Love? Freedom? Joy? Peace? Patience? Happiness? Adventure?
This is just the beginning.
Let’s chat.
Looking forward to helping you shift head knowledge to your heart. |
