I would like to welcome you on the road to my Avennyou. I am starting to write as a way of documenting my experience. I am leaving behind my fears, doubts, and past experiences in order to start something new; something I feel passionate about, something which has taken a long time to reach after a relentless quest.
Ordering thoughts is probably one of the only practices that calms me down, eases the apprehension, and allows me to see beyond the current struggle. Meditation could possibly be a counter method, but then again meditation is not exactly the first priority of a restless mind, is it? Documenting my experience is another means of making order and calming down the cunning gremlins. These same thoughts, plans and aspirations, which occupy the mind 24/7, need to find their place along with the tremendous flow of information to which we are all willingly exposed. And as much as this flow fuels our knowledge and imagination, I strive for it to be somehow more organized and in a context that leaves some cells available for authentic creativity.
So, organization is one reason.
The other rational for documenting is my desire to share my experience. This is primarily in order to fuel my self-motivation and keep it burning but also in order to reach other readers, be inspired by them, and hopefully allow others to find glimpses of resemblance in my journey.
There is a great deal of searching: searching for self-expression and to be seen by others, not only as a way to navigate the challenges of online interaction in social networks but also as a way to go back to our roots as productive, creative human beings who fashion something they believe in and give expression to their inner reflections.
Personally, I was deeply inspired by other women and their courage in letting themselves be seen, exposing their most vulnerable emotions, and sharing unconventional feelings and ideas. By bravely moving the boundaries of their comfort zone, these women have achieved great satisfaction while also inspiring, enlightening, and enriching others. These are writers, authors, bloggers, researchers and artists – each share their passion in the most authentic way possible.
Although I have great respect for those women who have succeed in climbing the ladder in the almost all-male club of global economy— each of them another fighter in the battle for equal gender representation—I am talking about those women who proudly use their unique feminine qualities, proving that these are no less important than those we were raised to think of as important and the key to success. "She made it because she has those male qualities of competitiveness, goal orientation and a rather unemotional kind of behavior." Isn’t this sentence familiar? Well, I am talking about those women who made it not despite of but because of their feminine character. Because they are emotional, vulnerable, detail-oriented, overthinking, multitasking, less competitive, and self-doubting and because they do need a supportive environment which accepts and appreciates that, for them, it is the emotional aspects which lead to outstanding performance, creativity and achievements. These are women who are "close to themselves" and "comfortable in their own skin" not as a way to please others but as a form of self-expression.
Thinking of Erika Leonard (better known by the pen name E L James), sitting and diligently researching the dark sides of BDSM sexual practices, letting her imagination carry her far beyond her comfort zone to a place where all her dreams of romantic conformity meet the outrageous reality of the different ways in which people practice emotional connections, and exposing it all in her bestselling trilogy Fifty Shades of Grey. Her ability to dig down and unearth the emotions involved, with the erotic scenes and all the details—best seen and appreciated by women—but most of all her courage in pursuing her imagination and sharing it so openly; that for me was great inspiration.
Thinking of Brené Brown, in her TED talk on the power of vulnerability, one of the most watched talks on Ted.com; I was greatly inspired by her vulnerable image there. She is an example of someone who not only researches and lectures but who is also prepared to showcase how personal discomfort can be overcome by pushing beyond your own boundaries. Her book Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead (2012) is a must-read for anyone in search of her true self and a more authentic and creative way of living.
Thinking of Shannon Ables, the creator and curator of "The Simple Luxurious Life (TSLL)," a blog which I merely happened across, making me think of how such coincidences shape our lives. I just love her writing and the way she combines style and fashion in her beautiful interpretation of a simple luxurious life. In her every day she practices that while "what it boils down to is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration" (Thomas Edison), still "that prerequisite inspiration is needed" (TSLL).
And while I think of these women—just three examples of many—I try to be courageous by saying: "I don’t know if my dream will ever come true, but I am sure as hell going to give it a try, and although there will be some very low places and consequences along the way, and although I have no clue what the last page of my journey will be, I will not write in retrospect but, rather, be brave about my struggle and share it along the way."
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