A Guidepost Refresher

Revising The Resources

So, to finish up this year’s book, I thought it would be good to revisit the ten guideposts, and their posts, and see which one or ones have stayed with you, have stood out for you, have been change agents for you in one way or another.

When we gather next week, we’ll share stories of how you have journeyed with the insights or practices and where you would like to be going with these next year.

Guidepost #1 – embodied authenticity

Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we’re supposed to be and embracing who we are.

If you check back over this post, what do you notice this time around?

Guidepost #2 – embodied self-compassion

One of the practices from this guidepost (which focuses on shame, blame and self-judgement) is the Square Squad – remember this?

The Square Squad

This is from Dare to Lead, (BB), in case you were wondering. Take a small square of paper and write upon it the names of four people who you can call on to be your Trusted Someone when you are in the midst of a shame shit storm (this is a technical term, Brene uses it all the time).

Call them and tell them (or ask, maybe) that they are your Trusted Someone so when you find yourself flailing, wailing and overwhelmed they will know what is happening and understand what is needed. You may want to talk together first about what empathy feels like for you (for example, “I know it seems cheesy to say ‘you feel isolated’ when I’ve told you I am lonely, but that is all I need to feel heard”) – what DO you need to feel heard? AND, you may want to pause to consider how you can open to receive the affirmation when it is offered.

Put the square sqad piece of paper in your wallet/ phone case so you can call someone straight away when you need them.

FINALLY, practice the last part of shame resilience every day – connect with the flow of compassion, breathe deeply, exhale slowly, relax your shoulders, unclench your jaw (and anything else you have clenched) and feel your feet planted on the earth.

How has the square squad helped you/supported you over the past year?

Guidepost #3 embodied emotional resilience

This post is all about feeling the feels – where has this been challenging? Where has it helped you deepen connection with yourself or another? Where have you noticed more awareness of feelings and your reactions to them?

Guidepost #4 embodied gratitude

This guidepost links gratitude and joy – grateful people are also joyful people who live with an abundance mindset (or at least, not a scarcity one). I reflected on this in light of the Wisdom of Your Body – as in, your body knows what’s happened to you to create the fearful, scarcity mindset that you live from.

What happens in our thinking is intimately connected to what happens to our physiology, and the influence is bidirectional.

The Wisdom of Your Body

Has this one shifted for you at all?

Guidepost #5 – embodied intuition

Brene and I had slightly differing understandings of the nature and function of intuition, and she links it with trusting faith. I enjoyed exploring where faith and trust become the same thing, and what it means to trust without expectation of particular outcomes or guarantees. This post has lots of places to pause and ponder and some great practices – did any spark something for you, or any of those practices fit for you?

Guidepost #6 – embodied creativity and letting go of comparison

This post was so much fun, reflecting on the energy of creativity and what difference it makes if we are living in the opinion of others who may or may not value our creative endeavours. I was fascinated to find the blend of creative erotica- sensuality and the generative energy of pleasure in all its forms. One of the practices was to eat a chocolate biscuit – this might be worth trying again!

Guidepost #7 – embodied play

I wrote this post while I was on holiday, and it was a delight to put together, not least because there’s a cool coffee shop in Twizel with a bookstore in it which has some excellent titles – I came across a book from the School of Life entitled “Mind and Body” – mental exercises for physical wellbeing, physical exercises for mental wellbeing. How fortuitous! I loved learning about how play is a survival skill for humans and just today I learned that bumble bees like to play with a ball even when there is no reward for it. Play is so much a part of the way the world works…has play come into focus differently for you?

Guidepost #8 – cultivating calm and stillness

Some challenging concepts in here for those who feel more comfortable doing, moving and thinking than being, watching and breathing….probably most of us struggle to embrace calm and sink into stillness. It can feel like dying, like the most boring thing imaginable or like a complete lack of purpose. And yet, even the whirling dervishes spin around a still point…. how has a relaxed body and a calm mind come to be a sign of laziness or purposelessness or boredom? And how have the practices of breathing with Theresa, or lectio with Thich Nhat Hanh, or the body relaxation meditation helped you release the busyness of mind and body?

Guidepost #9 – making meaningful work

The slash work identity was such a helpful and permission giving perspective in this guidepost – I’m a resources for spiritual growth curator/minister/enneagram coach…what are you? Has this post opened up new avenues for you to explore at work or to incorporate your out of work skills into your sense of identity, recognising the gifts, skills and talents that you have to offer and enrich the rest of the world?

Guidepost #10 – making a song and dance of it

Embracing who you are seems to involve embracing awkwardness, accepting a certain amount of embarrassment and letting go of the idea of yourself (the image) in favour of being your self (wholly, fully, messily). Have you done any more singing and dancing recently? Have you enjoyed a good belly laugh more often? Or sought out funny things to snort over? Check and see if there’s been a shift toward this for you….

And that’s it!

Looking forward to hearing your stories as you reflect on the way the guideposts have shaped your journey this year, and looking to the year ahead, wondering which ones will bring you more fully into your growing edge?

See you soon!