Remember when you were in school and in order to go on the exciting field trip you had to bring in a permission slip from your parents in order to participate?
Or how about when you wanted to get out of gym class, but in order to be excused you had to have a permission slip from your Doctor?
Have you ever raised your hand in a meeting hoping for the boss to give you permission to speak?
Imagine my surprise when a boss of mine had informed me that I didn’t have to go her her office every day and ask permission to take lunch. The job I had for years previously required us to get the ok if we ever had to leave the building.
Who knew? Certainly not me.
We are so conditioned to get permission for so many things in our lives, we oftentimes fail to realize that the only person that should ever be writing your permission slip is YOU. And the more you do, the more confident you will become in making decisions that are best for you. In fact, granting yourself permission will help make you a more confident person altogether.
I’m not talking about permission slips for lunch breaks or field trips though.
I’m talking about granting yourself permission to take on much more important things in life.
You know, those changes we longingly seek to make: quitting that job you hate, starting a new business, running away to get married, getting a divorce or enrolling in college.
How about those adventures we want to experience: climbing a mountain, running a marathon, auditioning for a play or living abroad for a summer?
How many times do we seek the advice and/or permission of every living person from our parents, to our spouses, our siblings, our kids, even our hairdressers and girlfriends?
We believe we are getting everyone’s best advice but what we are really doing is looking for that validation that gives you the “go ahead” or the warning of “why in the world would you want to do that?” And all those opinions do, is stop us from making the jump into our best lives.
I have been asking permission for most of my life too. And I have to catch myself from doing it over and over again. In fact, it just happened last month.
I needed to make a purchase for my business. It was way more than I was used to spending and it would mean I would be in debt for a while. I asked my husband, my friends, and just about anyone who would listen to see if they thought this was going to be a good decision. And what I realized is that I was doing all that “asking”, because I was afraid to give myself the permission.
I KNEW deep inside me it was the thing to do. Every time I tried to reason my way out of it, the thought kept lingering saying “You NEED to do this”. I eventually made the leap of faith, but I have to stop and wonder why I always feel like I need someone else’s permission to run MY business, and to run MY life?
Is it because we are so busy taking care of others we forget what we need?
Is it because we feel guilty when we have desires?
Is it because we have totally quieted that inner voice?
Is it because we need the validation of others to prove to ourselves we ARE worthy?
Is it because we have never been taught to put our dreams, desires, and goals ahead of others or at the very least as equal to others?
I don’t know for sure. But what I do know is that you are given one life.
You are responsible for how you live that life.
And if you are constantly waiting on permission from others to live that life to the best of your ability you are wasting precious time.
There is only one you. You have been created to offer the world something only you can and if you wait too long, it could be too late.
So here is what I am going to do. I am going to give you that permission slip.
Well, I am going to provide you with the permission slip. You have to sign it, giving yourself the permission to live your biggest, best, brightest life and share it with the rest of us!
What has your heart been calling you to do, or become, or experience?
What are those things that, it make your heart leap or nags at your soul when you think about it and just as quickly you dismiss it or put on the back burner?
What are those things that keep coming back up to the surface no matter how many times you stuff them down?
It’s time to listen, it’s time to act, it’s time to give yourself permission to answer your call.
Self-Permission Slip
Date:
Effective Immediately, I grant full permission to (insert your name)______________________
to (insert desire)_________________________. By recognizing and tapping into the desires and callings of the heart, I expect
(insert your name)__________ to take full advantage of all opportunities that lead to a life filled with self love, personal growth, fulfillment, joy, and abundance.
Sincerely, (insert your name)________________
Sherrie Dunlevy is an author, speaker and Inspirationista. For more information, to order her best selling book “How Can I Help?” or to hire Sherrie to speak at your conference, workshop or special event go to www.SherrieDunlevy.com or contact her at SherrieDunlevy@gmail.com
