We are mysteries to ourselves. We know more about current events, our Facebook friends, and our pets than we know about ourselves.
May I introduce you to yourself? I think if you get to know you—you will really, really like what you find. But we’ve been lied to by religion and told: “to deny ourselves,” and that “no man can really know his heart.” We learned the terrible acrostic JOY—Jesus, Others, You. We have sacrificed our souls at the altar of self-denial and wonder why we feel so empty, so lonely. We are strangers to ourselves.
For some of us, there will be a day of fateful reckoning when we realize we have ignored the one person that cares the most about us—ourselves. And a crisis of the soul will take place. And we will go searching for ourselves in all the wrong places. We will fall. Hard. And many of us will continue to ignore the most important person in our life. We substitute our job, sex, a search for youth, success, our children, and a thousand other things rather than muster the courage to face ourselves.
I dare you to ask the question, “Who Am I?” and be courageous enough to get to know who you are. It will be the single most important thing you ever do.
I began a search and started asking this question almost nine years ago and I’m just now discovering who I really am. I have always been a late bloomer. But what if through my wounds and wanderings I could help you not go through a crisis? What if I could guide you to some questions and introspection that could give you freedom and even more importantly—meaning? In my new visual study God, I Have A Question…or Two, I make the statement that good questions lead to freedom, and the right questions lead to meaning. Asking the question “Who Am I?” may be the most meaningful question you ever ask.
I have taken every personality test known to man. I am an Achiever in the StrengthFinder evaluation, a 7 on the Enneagram, an “I” off the charts in the DISC, an INFP on the Myers-Briggs, and an Encourager on the SHAPE profile. All of these have helped me ask very good questions about myself. As I piece the puzzle together, I am unlocking the mystery of who I am. I am discovering what gives me meaning in life.
I am highly conscientious, I tend to worry, I am easily overwhelmed by things like bright lights, strong smells, coarse fabrics, or sirens close by. I am made uncomfortable by loud noises. I am deeply moved by the arts and music—often times to tears. I am very aware of good manners and of those who do not use them. I have a strong sense of protection of my family and I’m a defender of justice. I feel others emotions as if they were my own. All of these factors and more influence how I react and more importantly, how I overreact. They are all clues to who I really am. They are also strong indicators of my future health and longevity.
I am a Highly Sensitive, Creative Empath.
If I am acting in my sweet spot—I am an encourager.
This knowledge has transformed my life. It has given me something to live for. SOMEONE to live for. Myself. I’ve found as I continue to get to know and love myself, I naturally encourage and love others more effectively. And my life becomes more vibrant and alive. Full of meaning and fulfillment.
That’s why I carefully researched and am releasing God, I Have A Question…or Two this week, why I gather people at re:Create, re:Quest, and re:Write, why I wrote my memoir, why I do One-on-Ones, why my 2015 re:Create talk is: Be Who You Are Not What You Do, and why I’m planning to write re:Quest: A Rite of Passage for the Second Half of Life in 2015. It’s why I design gatherings and resources to encourage people to be who they really are.
So let me ask, Who Are You? That is the RIGHT question, and asking it of yourself and embarking on this search is the most important thing you will ever do. Ever.
