The Flex of Enjoyment

There's a lot of talk about 'being' and 'doing' in the coaching world. The idea is to balance them; to find stillness and value in just being You. From self-acceptance -- knowing you're at once enough and not too much -- doing is born: challenging yourself, creating, moving toward something.

I've been doing a lot of being lately. From the outside, I probably seem as though I'm just as busy as always. But from the inside, I feel less gripping and more flow. I am allowing myself to be pulled by my attractions rather than pushed by fear or the drive to perform. My coach says, "go in the direction that the horse is already going." I love this. And I've realized that my horse is just enjoying a beautiful meadow right now; grazing, looking out over the vistas and enjoying the views. I've been climbing, forging new trails, for a long, long time, after all.

This Eldership business -- the place I've recently found myself -- is all about being. This doesn't mean that I -- or anyone else who has come into the place of Eldership -- has been turned out to pasture. It just means that it's time to enjoy what's here, right under my nose. I think this is what they mean by "Gratitude practice." But why do we have to practice gratitude? Is this just another way to work? Does gratitude have its own workout? Is this how we disguise doing to look like we're just chillin'?

I used to never allow myself potato chips -- especially not at home. I did not want them to be a staple, a snack in the cabinet. But more and more, I buy them, keep them in the cabinet and bring out my salty treat as I'm cooking dinner. I'll maybe even split a beer with my partner. This is the embodiment of a "guilty pleasure." But why is this a guilty pleasure. Why can't it just be a pleasure? Sure there are many a pleasures that can and do turn into addictions -- and addiction gone unchecked, well, we are well versed in what can go wrong there. But isn't anything pleasurable potentially addictive? Can we stop badmouthing pleasure and just enjoy?

I've been thinking a lot about receiving lately. What does it mean to truly receive? What is it I want to receive? Better yet, what is it that I am already receiving? Love, beauty, abundance. Receiving is about filling your cup, a cliche that is all over the place. But if you think about what it really means to fill your cup, it requires being. Only in being, can one absorb all the goodness that is already here. Gratitude is really just noticing, acknowledging and appreciating all this goodness that we are swimming in. It's about perspective.

Building capacity in leadership is not just about being able to handle more work, more challenges -- it's about being able to fully absorb and appreciate the beautiful life that is already here. This is the biggest challenge of all for me. I can handle more work. But can I handle pure enjoyment? Can you?