"Learn to work harder on yourself than you do on your job. If you work hard on your job you can make a living, but if you work hard on yourself you'll make a fortune."
                                                                - Jim Rohn

The hardest and bravest work has been facing myself. I've learned things in therapy and in coaching then immediately start in doing the “work” which entails reading, slowly becoming aware, reflecting, and making adjustments. I wish it was simple but it's taken patience, grace, forgiveness, a whole lot of self love and continuous consistent effort. Making changes is hard. Breaking patterns is hard. Learning to be tolerant of pain is hard. 

These changes have not only changed me but changed the way I show up especially with parenting. It hasn't happened overnight, in 6 months or even a year but it has over time. Even now I'm still doing the work and making adjustments. I've come to understand you'll continue learning about yourself. Life has a way of revealing parts of us we didn't know were there. Different situations, relationships, challenges, disappointments, and seasons can bring things to the surface that we may not have seen before. When it shows up, be kind and gentle with yourself. 

Keep learning about your strengths, your weaknesses, your patterns, your triggers, your blind spots, and the parts of yourself that are harder to face. Looking inward is neither comfortable nor easy but can be incredibly rewarding. The goal isn't to become perfect. It's about remaining willing to learn, grow, and make adjustments as life continues to shape you. 

Here are a few reflection questions:

What and who brings out the best in you?

What brings out the worst?

What patterns keep showing up in your life? 

Where do you need to grow?

Who knows you well and has earned the right to tell you the truth?
*And when you think about that last question, notice who can tell you the truth in love - someone whose honesty doesn’t make you question your worth or doubt yourself, but instead adds to your life, makes you better, and calls you higher.

And perhaps the most important: What are you going to do now that you are aware and know?

As John C. Maxwell says, “To grow yourself, you must know yourself”