Can you be TOO AUTHENTIC!?
Photo credit Jenna Anderson
“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.”
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
By Cameron Harrington
Overly Authentic?
One of the most beautiful things in this life is a fully expressed human being. Allowing emotions to move through your body is magnetizing!
Have you felt drawn into another’s joy, their energy lifting you up and away? Has another’s heartbreak brought tears to your eyes?
Through our emotional expression, we share ourselves and become vulnerable, and through this open window into the soul, we connect with others.
I remember a day when I was shamed for my overwhelming excitement. In my Junior Year of high school, I was told, “Chill out, Cameron!” We had just gotten tickets to Beastie Boys, and I was allowed to go! I can still feel it now. I was bursting out of my skin with excitement and liberation! Imagine it, the overzealous part of myself, jumping around and screaming. My excitement and expression was too much for the crowd I was with. A decision was made at that moment, my unchecked level of excitement and joy were not “cool.”
Needless to say, I was more malleable at this stage in my life, trying to discover my expression in the world and desperately wanting to fit in. It was at that moment that I succumbed to social conditioning. I am embarrassed to say that I quickly fell in line. I remember that I would feel my excitement, it would begin bubbling in my stomach and flowing up through my throat.
Instead of letting it fly! I would catch it, grab it and tame it.
I trained myself not to let excitement show in an outward expression. My squealing and dancing around even stopped in private as I would practice the “correct,” more mature ways of responding. (Side note: I did allow this part of me out around my girlfriends. I get now that we were just too much life energy AKA. Shakti for those high school boys to handle!;) Either way, in public spaces, I listened, I chilled, and I pushed down my excitement.
Eventually, “chilling out” became one of my personality quirks, which helped shape what Dr. Joe Dispenza calls “My Personal Reality.” However, what many of us have experienced and now neuroscience confirms, our brains and personalities are malleable, and we can change any part of our personality that we desire. So while taming my exuberance may not have been the best place to focus on neuroscience magic, there was a silver lining. This lesson gifted me my “street smarts,” which this bubbly blond needed!
I trust that I brought in all of my teachers for some seen or unseen reason. Still, I must question who is authentically me when I take off the coat of chill. What other parts of myself have I tamed or turned down?
This question is where my quest for authentic expression began. The journey has not been smooth, but easy journeys rarely create the best results. Over time, I have found the right teachers, coaches, training, and personal work to help me along the way. Through this experience, I have uncovered understandings of myself that I could never have fathomed without the bumps and bruises. These gave me strength and clarity that seemed out of reach before. I rest back knowing that the most challenging times in my life have been launching pads into a deeper connection with myself. “Chill Out!” remains part of who I am but doesn’t get to dampen my vibe like in the past.
Today, when I express my vitality and excitement, it is with my permission and serves as a portal to share my authenticity. Our newest mini-course: Authenticity, begins next week. Save your spot and meet like-minded people to practice Authenticity!
Let’s practice bringing Joyful Excitement into the world!
Cameron and Patrick help clients create powerful breakthroughs and embody their authentic selves with their combined 40 years of experience in business, wellness, and personal development.
Discover how we can support you with a FREE 30-min mini-coaching session.
The practice for Joyful Expression:
Do you know that song that gets you going?
Play it!
Close your eyes, smile, feel the beat, and move your body.
After a few moments and with your eyes still closed, notice your movements.
Do not judge. SIMPLY FEEL!
Notice one movement that feels great.
Take a mental picture of this feeling and movement and commit it to memory.
Bring this side of you out into the world…
It’s hard to access your authentically joyful selves at times, but you have just created an embodied road map. So when you are feeling numb, bored, or just more neutral than you desire – Bust a move! Let the movement bring you back to your joyful expression of you. (I seriously just used this practice to finish this article;)
Practicing authentic expression CAN NOT be practiced in a vacuum. This work is best within a safe community. “AUTHENTICITY” is a mini-course that will help you uncover and affirm the parts of YOU that you have been hiding away. Your VOICE and expression are a gift to the world, join us and let us get to know you!
Register for “AUTHENTICITY”, a mini-course starting Tuesday, June 7!
