Take The Leap
A segment of the weekly newsletter is a weekly theme. The theme is an invitation and encouragement meant to help the reader better connect to themselves. Going forward, I’ll be sharing more about the theme in a blog post. Please note that the selected themes can be reflected upon at any time and are not limited to the week the themes are shared and published.
Theme: Leap of Faith
We continue the build from Versions of Self to Trust to now Leap of Faith.
According to Dictionary.com, “leap of faith” means “A belief or trust in something intangible or incapable of being proved.” There is trust, surrender, and hope involved in taking leaps of faith. To trust is to know, without knowing, that you will land where you need to land. To surrender is to soar without resistance. To hope is to believe not only in yourself, but also in the workings of the universe.
Here’s the thing with leaps of faith: You can always come back to what is known; you cannot come back from the unanswered questions of “What if?” that lie in the murkiness of Unknown. There is comfort in knowing, but growth happens when you push the limits and boundaries of what you known into the unknown.
Part of taking a leap of faith is running toward the next best version of you. Hype up this new version and trust in the growth that is happening. You are worth it and your dreams deserve all you’ve got.
Practices for Reflection
Start by taking a moment to breathe and ground yourself. Then, reflect on any or all of the following questions:
What does “leap of faith” mean to you?
What leaps have you taken and what have been the outcomes of those leaps?
Where are you being called to take a leap?
What are the pros and cons of your next leap? Does it serve you to leap or stay?
Can you trust yourself to know when it’s time to take that leap?
Personal Reflection
When I think of the one thing that prevents me from taking leaps of faith it’s fear. What if I come crashing down? What if I fail? How can I leap into this when I don’t know what I’m doing? How can I leap into this when I have no model for how this is done? The fear from doing limits me from believing in myself. Heck, fear stops me from trusting in myself to rise up to become the next version of myself. Fear will always be there and perhaps fear is that indicator that what I’m thinking about leaping toward matters a lot to me.
Past leaps of faith have taught me that if I crash, I get back up and pivot. If I fail, it’s proof that I tried something new and put myself out there; the greatest lesson is in coming back after failing and continuing to show up for myself and for my community. Not knowing what I’m doing or how to do something should never be a limiting factor because learning always happens along the way and the path I walk is one that, hopefully, paves a way for others to come along behind me and eventually alongside me.
Leaps require trust, surrender, and a healthy dose of hope. I cannot fly if I let fear hold me down. For as much as I find comfort in the knowing, I’m more afraid of choosing to stay in that knowing instead of living a life full of curiosity and possibility.
