Who is the person in your life who loves you enough to tell you the hard truth?

One of the hardest conversations I had came from not one, but two different people who’d never met each other—my coach Mike Fabber and one of my besties, Marcia.

Fabber told me to stop playing small. Marcia said to stop hiding. And both said (in separate conversations) that I need to “stop giving a shit about what other people might think.”

And they’re both right.

I’ve been reluctant to talk about what I’m doing these days since it’s so radically different from the corporate work I was doing. Yes, I occasionally dip a toe in the water with a short story or brief post about it. But I’ve been unwilling to pursue sharing it with the same passion that I pursue when doing it.

Michael took it a step further and said that me being afraid of what people think results in me (unintentionally) denying people knowledge of my existence, and consequently, the help my services offer. He was right, and dang it, I hate it when he gets to tell me “I told you so!” (Because he absolutely loves to do that!)

Both encouraged me to pursue my passion and share my gifting, and said I need to be willing to put myself out into the world about what I’m doing with my coaching and my Splankna.

How did it land? It absolutely resonated with me for three reasons:

I prefer it when people are direct with me.

They spoke 100% truth.

What they said came from a place of love and encouragement for my growth.

The people who love you enough won’t let you stay hidden.