I started thinking about how often I’ve written about embracing myself, accepting myself, allowing my authentic self to shine through.  Each time I’ve written about these things, I’ve had the most positive intention in mind: self-acceptance leads to understanding the self where we can learn to perform at our highest and then help others to do the same.  That is ALL true and I stand by that.  But I’ve never looked at the concept of self from an ownership perspective.  Owning ourselves and taking responsibility with the understanding that the outcome lies in our actions is a different thing.  I can love me all I want and that may not be enough to call me to action for what I need to do.  I have to create the focus needed to hone the discipline that cuts out the noise and makes the steps clear.  That is a powerful shift.

Again, I stand by everything I said regarding embracing self and allowing the authentic self to come out.  We can’t move forward with any type of plan if we don’t know who we are, it is that simple.  I’ve also said before that we need specific intention—I used the example that we can’t hope we get to Bali by booking a ticket to Florida.  Now, the key in moving forward is in the discipline and the steps we need to take to create the vision.  Embracing is about respecting and honoring the vision and accepting who we are or what we need to do to get where we want to be.  Owning is about the action and the discipline required to get there.  Embracing is accepting who we are, owning is the follow through. 

I mentioned a few days ago that I want to help people get back to themselves.  What does that mean?  I want people to learn to hear that inner voice and trust it.  I want people to know who they are and not be ashamed about it.  I want people to feel the pull to step out of their comfort zone and actually do it.  I want people to know that they aren’t crazy or unrealistic to have the drive to become something else.  It doesn’t matter what stage of life you’re in, if you have a calling, then it is time to follow it!  That calling is yourself (your higher self) and we have to learn to cut out all the other crap that tells us we can’t do that for whatever reason.  Getting back to yourself means hearing your voice and doing what it says, trusting the intuition and, again, taking the action. 

There is ultimately only one person responsible for where you end up in your life: you.  The same for me. I am responsible for where I end up.  Talk is a helpful tool, but talk without understanding and not accompanied by action gets us nowhere.  That is the other subtle difference between embracing and owning.  It’s nice to be warm and fuzzy and cozy—and, again, we do need that to a degree—but the follow through is what gets it done.  Take the steps toward yourself.  Love yourself, yes, but love yourself enough to do what you say you will.  Be gentle with yourself, but be gentle enough to hear the truth.  Be aware of yourself, but be aware enough to be honest about what you need to do.  That is how it happens. The life, the dreams, all of it.  That is how it comes true.  We got this.