Writing this article on my 46th birthday, and I’ve had to start over again a few times now. When I arrived in Amsterdam from Portugal, with just five boxes (two of them full of books), I saw it as a great metaphor for letting go.
It was an amazing feeling; I could be whatever I wanted to be. Only my boyfriend, now my husband, knows everything about my past. It was a great exercise to think and feel about what I wanted to start giving importance to in my personal story.
Creating your own story
A year ago, my husband passed on to the divine and I had to start all over again. This time felt more intense, more brutal, and scarier than ever. But once again, big questions came to mind: What do I want to be after this? What do I want to spread? What is important to me?
Because that's what it's all about, right? What parts of your story do you want to give relevance to? What do you say if someone asks you "tell me something about yourself"? Often, we are the ones who create expectations in others through the stories we tell about ourselves.
In 46 years, I have, like you, many stories, many lessons, and many experiences. But sometimes I forget some of them. I remember one time someone said they would love to take a course at the Disney Institute, and only then did I remember that I had done a course there too. Another time someone said they did radio for a few years, and I replied, "me too, for ten years" - something I had never said to anybody before.
Reinventing yourself
As humans, if we don't have the challenge in life to reinvent ourselves, we are more focused on repetition. Repetition is a very efficient way to save energy. So, it's good to start being more intentional about “starting all over again”.
What stories about ourselves are we telling people? Think about the stories that portray the dream life you want to have. These stories will become us in the eyes of others, because it's the only thing they know.
3 ways to start amplifying yourself:
- Ask what about you makes people curious.
- Write your best stories on a timeline.
- Write down what you want to be known.
Starting all over again
Starting all over again says nothing about the past, but it could be saying a lot about your future. Today I heard the phrase "exceptional like everyone else" - think about what you want to do and who you want to be, and do it your way.