Category Archives: personal growth

Beliefs as Obstacles

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How are we held back by our beliefs in ways we don’t know?

Lately I see the need and benefit of revising my narratives in multiple life domains.  I have told the same stories about certain people and situations for many years, unwavering tales of personality, action, inaction, motivation, and interaction that have largely defined many of my relationships. 
I will be necessarily cryptic here for privacy, and I think my point will still come across.

In the beginning of anything—life, dating, parenting, work—we have formative encounters and experiences that shape our views and behaviors in that realm.  The longer we live, the more our beliefs in each domain intermingle and influence those in others.  We make meaning from our perceptions in real time, integrating current context and past experiences, consciously and sub/unconsciously.  Our worldviews about risk/reward, cost/benefit, justice/mercy, love, responsibility, accountability, and myriad other ideas form early, implicitly at least as much as explicitly.  What’s more, we rationalize everything, justifying opinions and positions with apparently sound and reasoned logic, often not recognizing the irrational, emotional, relational, and sometimes delusional origins of our beliefs.  The most confident, articulate, and clever of us convey our rationalizations so convincingly we persuade not just ourselves, but many of those around us how right we are. 

“I’m not good enough.”
“He’s a narcissist.”
“She always plays the victim.”
“Everything I love gets taken away eventually.”
“All men hurt women.”
“No one can have it all; we must choose between family and work.”
“Anyone who votes for xxx is crazy and a danger to society.”

How true are the beliefs expressed in these statements?
For each one that you may not believe, how many do, wholeheartedly and unquestioningly, even if unconsciously?  How does this impact our interactions with the people and contexts around us?

What statements and stories do you profess consistently?  How true are they, if you are honest?  How have they served you?  How do they not?  What would happen if you revised or refuted any of them? 

This all came up for me this weekend after a two-day workshop on character development and backstory by Emily Golden and Rachel May of Tenacious Writing and Goldenmay editing and coaching.  Focusing on backstory, the workshop demonstrated the relationship between a character’s ‘internal goal’ (the thing they most want in life) and their ‘internal obstacle belief’ (the thing they think will get them to their goal but is actually the barrier they must overcome).  It reminded me of how Nancy Duarte describes the most effective presentations as mirrors of the Hero’s Journey: We are called to adventure and initially refuse.  We are comfortable where we are, why move?  Events then ensue that force us to stand up and engage.  Yet we are still reluctant.  We are shown what could be.  We believe for a moment, then revert to what is—that which we know and have lived—no matter how dysfunctional or destructive.  It takes repeated encounters with what could be, support and challenge from those we trust (or not), to make us see that we must change our mindset, outlook and behavior.  It takes time, effort, disruption of the status quo, and often no small amount of pain.

The value of fiction is that it mirrors humanity in ways that allow us to see myriad human foibles with empathy and compassion.  It’s the protagonists who must overcome their own internal obstacles—we root for them and rejoice in their triumphs at the happy endings.  We want them to succeed, to discard delusion and open their eyes to truth and reconciliation. 

How often do we allow ourselves to acknowledge and have grace for our own flaws?  How can we get more comfortable with self-honesty and -exploration?  How can we better embrace and exercise the vulnerability and courage to recognize how our stories about ourselves and others no longer serve us, and embark on, commit to, the journey of work to revise them for the better? 

The ultimate reward, the worthy triumph of this work is connection, as always.  The better our stories, the more understanding, mutual respect, harmony, and collaboration we can achieve, the better all our lives could be.

Wasteful Assumptions and What to Do About Them

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“What is something you see others doing and you think, ‘I understand completely why they are doing that, but if they knew what I now know, they would do it differently’?”
–From 30 Creative Writing Prompts for Memoir or Non-Fiction

Assumptions.
We all make them. It’s human.
Too often we are wrong.

Because we cannot possibly know what’s in other people’s minds all the time.
We all assume more than we realize or admit that others think, feel, and perceive the way we do.
And when they don’t, there can be serious and painful disconnect.

I see relationships go sideways all the time because we assume without verification.

THUS:

Ask and clarify.
Do it from your own perspective, without judgment.
Be curious and open, and try to stay connected.

METHOD:

  1. BREATHE.
  2. Master the “I” statement. Describe how you feel, what you think, when something happens–about the thing that happened or what was said, not about the person who did or said it.
  3. Stick to the FACTS. “You said xxx,” not “You insulted me.” “Your voice got louder,” ahead of “You yelled at me.” We call it semantics, dismiss it as unimportant, to our detriment.
  4. BREATHE.
  5. No name calling, mocking, or other attacking language.
  6. Give time and space for response. Get comfortable with uncomfortable silence.
  7. BREATHE.
  8. Be prepared for defensiveness and attack in return.
  9. Self-regulate. Keep calm and cool.
  10. BREATHE.
  11. Ask Open and Honest Questions in follow-up, if you get that far.
    What is an OHQ? “The best definition is that the asker could not possibly anticipate the answer to it.” Curiosity is both friend and teacher here.
  12. Beware all of our self-delusions.
    I may ask you why you do something. You may answer honestly (and vice versa)–and in the end very likely we are each/both expressing rationalizations for our own irrational reactions to our world based on all the baggage we bring to the situation.
  13. BREATHE.

Still, when we show up to one another in this way:
Present
Open
Grounded
Kind
Loving
Smart
We are far more likely to work out our differences and disagreements, understand one another better, and come to resolutions faster and with a lot less pain.

RISKS:

–This is an incredibly vulnerable method of communication. Disclosing feelings can feel unsafe–guage your counterpart and adjust accordingly.
–No matter how soft and loving we approach, we may still be met with lashing out and rejection.
–We may be seen, even attacked, as weak and whining, among other things.
–We may not be heard and we may not get what we want. Then again, consider the likelihood of these things if we approach with aggression…Maybe it’s different, but at what cost?

COSTS:

–Energy: Attention and self-regulation. In the impending train wreck of an emotionally charged moment, applying brakes to the quick, cutting comeback and slowing down to really listen to hear the other person takes tremendous effort, sometimes heroic self-control. I find myself pacing my breath just writing this. It is a simultaneous exercise in acute self-de-escalation and critical external attunement.
–Outcomes deferral: This depends on how we define our goals. Transaction without regard to relationship likely does not succeed with this method. But if transactional gain can wait, and relationship connection fosters smoother negotiations in the future, then we may see this communication method as investment rather than cost.
–Lack of appreciation: We may see this communication practice as taking the high road, an attempt to elevate conversation out of drama and ad hominem. And it may come across as anything from aloofness to arrogance, among other things. We must be ready to delay gratification in multiple ways.

BENEFITS:

–Greater relational integrity, connection, and resilience. To come through conflict with fewer wounds and less resentment makes us more likely to enter hard conversations more willingly in the future, thereby avoiding ‘assumption fester’.
–Stronger self-awareness, self-regulation, and attunement and communication skills with repeated practice
–Greater relational depth, meaning, and trust
–Leadership by example: observers learn by watching, see that a different way is not only possible but better.
–A Better World. Open, honest, and timely communication, without judgment and grounded in love and connection above all, sets the stage and plants the seeds for positive relationship ripples that radiate in all directions and dimensions.

My friends, it’s all so much easier said than done.
And nobody does it perfectly.
Perfection is not the goal, or even relevant.

Conversations to clarify assumptions and resolve conflict are not a competition to see who is better or right. They are opportunities to learn, grow, and connect. Done well, relationships evolve to where such hard conversations are needed less and less, because wasteful assumptions are nipped in the bud by the efficient clippers of frequent, open, and honest questions.

Imagine that.

Then do it, yes?

Uninhibited

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I effuse.

Anyone who knows me will tell you so. They will describe my facial expressions, gesticulations, profanity, and hyperbole. I feel strongly and express accordingly. I posted yesterday about how it’s all elevated and amplified (though still regulated) recently: I hug stronger and longer. I praise freely. I call people ‘love’ with accelerating frequency. And I talk about love, sex, and relationships a lot more. I attribute much of this to my now two year-old romance audio immersion.

American culture is such a paradox. At the same time that we hypersexualize both men’s and women’s bodies from a young age, we also harbor a collective and insidious Puritanical streak that shames sexuality in general, and for women in particular. I thought I had overcome the latter years ago. But these two years of spicy romance consumption have shown me my blind spots, for which I am eternally grateful.

Early in my career I met a woman patient who was very open about her sex practices. She had both male and female partners, sometimes multiple at a time. I can’t remember whether her practices were protected or not, but she had no active sexually transmitted infections while I knew her. Looking back, I’m sure my words centered around health risks and relationship safety. But if I’m honest, I judged her. I was young in career and life and could not relate to her behaviors and practices. I am sure she felt my negative moral vibrations, and I regret that to this day. Somewhere along the way I let go that judgment and have since made intentional efforts to make it safe for patients to tell me anything. As long as it’s consensual, lucid, and mutually satisfying, I want you to do whatever you want and enjoy your sex life as fully as possible! There is no standard, and my wish is for all partners to feel maximally fulfilled.

Romance novels have opened my eyes to diverse practices and experiences that I did not know to consider before: polyamorous, dominant-submissive, and asexual, among others, and all of the social, emotional, and relational implications thereof. I have shared my transformations of awareness and openness with patients and friends, and the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Both men and women get curious and then share their own experiences–desires, inhibitions, disconnects, accommodations, sacrificies, epiphanies/discoveries, etc. These days I talk even more openly than before and with anybody about libido, erectile (dys)function, emotional and carnal connection and their intersection, menopause, penile implants, and anything else that matters to someone’s sexual health. I thought I was uninhibited before and Whoa Nelly, watch me now. Based on conversations with fellow spicy romance enthusiasts, my experience is anything but unique.

Romance narrator Victoria Connolly addresses American purity culture, growing up in and now healing from it. She has invited listeners to share their stories; the voluminous response reveals the prevelance of experience and the value of acknowledging and naming it. See her Instagram post and comments c. August 12, 2024: “‘It wasn’t until I started reading primarily spicy romance that I finally got fed up/brave enough to ask him if it’d be okay if I touched myself or used a vibrator during sex because I’d like to come too.’ | If your story sounds like this, you’re in the right place. | Just share the book in the comments that rewired you forever. The one that made you believe you deserved pleasure.”

I mentioned the Quinn app in my recent Women Elevating Women post. Quinn describes itself as “a mobile app and website where you can listen to audio erotica… spicy audio stories, guided masturbation, dirty talk, and more. The audios on Quinn are designed to help you get there, but they also involve fun and interesting plots.” The New York Times reports, “Apps like Dipsea and Quinn have become popular destinations, particularly for some women who find them safe spaces to explore their sexuality.” Hallelujah!
Readers of this blog know my deep admiration for romance narrator Shane East and his strong allyship of women. His second ever Quinn audio dropped two days ago and has already been played more than 3500 times. Asked, “What inspired the move to create on Quinn?” he answered, “[Quinn] came to me after hearing my work. After discussing things with them and checking things out on the site, seeing what I would like to put out there and gathering a script and audio crew to help me do that, I decided to go for it. I’m all for anything that enables women to own their sexuality without the judgment or shame that can be handed out by others. I’m here of course for everyone being free to own their sexuality and desires in a judgment free, safe and accepting way; however and with whomever they like. Speaking of women specifically though, historically they have been repressed by societal restraints and patriarchal ideology for so long that I think it’s wonderful to be part of something — be that romance books or something like Quinn— that utterly goes against that and gives women (in particular) ownership of what they want. I think it’s fantastic to have the[m] out there.”

*sigh*

This is all such a good thing, all of us embracing our whole, wonderful, beautiful, sexually awake and aware selves–every person of any gender, both individually and in community. Life is simply too short to repress such important and fundamental aspects of identity and connection. Fiction in general and romance in particular help us receive perspectives (as opposed to taking them, as David Brooks writes) other than and different from our own, and empathize with the full scope of human emotional and relational experience.

Inhibitions are not empirically harmful. Restraints can serve us sometimes. And when they outlive their usefulness, shedding them elevates us, frees our spirit, and allows our whole selves to emerge in full glory and actualization. I hope this evolution of collective openness continues. The more we can eliminate shame and empower everyone to own their sexuality, foster deep and meaningful connections fully in mind, body, and spirit, and simply embrace all that makes us our whole human selves, the better all of our lives will be.