Does anyone else look at LinkedIn and feel like they should be doing umm...more? Something more... impressive? Or post-worthy?

I have a confession to make. I sometimes feel that way.

Today I was reminded of something. I sat in a coffee shop and spent time with someone. I helped them put into words what they most wanted to improve in themselves and why it was so important to them. The things they currently do and don't do that work against their sincerely held desire to change.

Together, we then explored what was holding them back - again putting into words the things that were keeping them stuck and unable to move forward in all the ways they wanted to. The fears that drove the 'default' behaviours they so wanted to change.

We then got to the crux of things. The real heart of the matter. The things they believed, those #bigassumptions that were shaping the way they saw themselves and the world around them. The beliefs holding those behaviours in place, that one 'jenga block' belief, that if named (or made"object" in Kegan's words), and gently observed and challenged and safely tested, would finally bring their painful stuck-ness unstuck, and help them achieve the things they most want to achieve.

I will never tire of the sheer joy of being with someone in those moments of gentle exploration, helping them put things that lie just beneath the surface into words, helping them start to 'see' a whole set of data they had previously not seen, and from there create a whole new set of possibilities. What a privilege.

So I was reminded that maybe the little hidden things, the not-very-sexy but beautiful one-on-one things are where you are meant to be, and it's OK to not be changing the world. Maybe it's OK to be OK with just making a small ripple in the life of a person one day in a coffee shop. Maybe that ripple will ripple out beyond that encounter.

Thank you to my friend (you know who you are). You probably think I helped you today, but by being so up for it, so ready, so open and so willing to look at things that can be hard to look at, you really helped me see that what I bring is enough. For today at least :)