What value do you add to the world?
I have the privilege of attending a Mastermind group every week lead by my friend and business partner, Alicia. If you aren’t familiar with Mastermind, it is an opportunity to come together to brainstorm and goal-set, specifically if you are an entrepreneur, freelance worker, or remote worker. We share our challenges and successes in a supportive environment and share feedback, insights and inspiration. It is quickly becoming one of my favorite parts of the week!
A couple of weeks ago, someone asked what value I feel I add to the world through what I do. This question hit me and struck up a beautiful conversation in the group. I replied that I listen to the feedback of my students and clients to try to understand my value; that I am still working on receiving positive feedback without feeling shy or downplaying a compliment.
A friend in the group eloquently asked me what my answer would be if I didn’t look for my value from an outside source, but rather from myself. What value do I think my work adds to the world? It took me a moment to answer and when I did, this is what I realized:
The value that I add to the world through my work, is the same value that I have received. If yoga didn’t exactly save my life, it gave me life. Let me clarify. Yoga has been a constant in my life since I was a teenager in some capacity or another. There were certainly years where I barely rolled out a mat. But the teachings were always there. I had incredible teachers who showed me what it meant to connect to myself and to others in a healthy way. I learned to love my body, to move it, listen to it and care for it. I learned to observe my mind and to quiet it just enough to hear what was beneath the surface. My passion for yoga runs deep because it has been with me for almost 25 years. It is my most constant practice and companion. Yoga is more than just a “job” or a hobby. It is engrained in my life. It makes me a better partner, mother, friend, and daughter. It helps me live as my highest self.
If one person who takes practice with me can feel a glimmer of what yoga has to offer, what it has given me, then my job is done. That is my purpose. That is my value. That is what I can add to the world, to continue to share the gifts of this life with passion, joy, and deep gratitude.
So, I ask you:
What value you add to the world?
Who are you when you strip away exterior labels or ideas? What lights you up? What are you passionate about when everything else falls away? What do you do best?
When you know this, you can transform that into knowing and owning your value. Your value is more than what you put out into the world. It is the ‘why’ behind the ‘what.’ When you value yourself and, in turn, what you do, you are living as the highest and best version of yourself.
Don’t know where to start? Overwhelmed at the idea of figuring out your value?
If you’re feeling overwhelmed by this, don’t let it discourage you. We are conditioned to not see our own value. Start somewhere, start small.
What are three compliments that you have received in the last year? Sometimes it does start with listening to what others value in you. Maybe you are a great hostess. Maybe you helped someone organize their closet. Maybe your smile and presence was the light that helped someone make it through a hard day.
Now take the “gold” from those compliments. What is it that they are saying that is of value to you and the world? It is these things that point to your purpose and a deeper essence of who you are.
Now, own it! It is not enough to hear it from someone else. The real work comes when we stand in our light, own our “gold” and share our value with the world.
I am beyond words grateful that my life, with all its facets, has led me to this moment, my amazing family, the home we’ve made at the end of the road in Panama, to meeting Alicia. And opening La Colectiva, to something as simple as an hour on Tuesday morning, where Mastermind and the wonderful humans who participate helped me see and truly feel the value that I add to this world.
If you are curious about Mastermind, or even want to host your own inspired group for your community, click here for a free guide on how to start.