When I came up with the idea for this week’s post, something strange came over me. Something bizarre came over me. I couldn’t help but ask myself…
“Just what in the blue hell kind of language are you about to use, Ryan?”
Let’s not get it twisted, I am writing this article in American English. I’m using proper spelling, punctuation, and grammar.
I mean, it’s not like “Steve’s” email from last week.
Let me start with a question: who are some great men from history? I’m not just talking about men who have done great things, but great men.
Who are some great men from history? I’m not just talking about men who have done great things, but great men.
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One who comes to mind right off the bat is Neil Armstrong.
Armstrong was a professor, astronaut, test pilot, and nerd. Of course, I mean that nerd comment with all due reverence.
Oh, and he took that giant leap for mankind back in 1969. Y’know…in case you forgot.
I’m pretty sure that while the eyes of the world were on him, that both he and Buzz were welling up with tears inside those helmets.
Let’s look at Barack Obama. You’ve heard of him, right?
While president, he was considered the Uniter in Chief. From his calm professionalism after the Bin Laden raid to his rousing speeches during his campaigns, he knows how to nurture crowds of people better than any politician in my memory.
But I will never forget the emotion he showed after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting.
Today I want to talk about energetic balance. I want to talk about the yin and yang.
{insert record scratch sound effect here}
Don’t look at me like that. I’m serious. I believe it’s important to talk about.
Okay y’all, put your confused dogs away. Let me ‘splain.
Before I get started here, if my magical friend and podcasting partner Emily is reading this, all I’m gonna say is it’s not change, but transformation. #insidejoke
I mean this is all your fault. If I’d never met you I would have kept hiding and denying…
And if my coach Lisa is reading this; yes, I’m gonna go get complete. Stop looking at me like that.
Anyhoo, where were we before I started avoiding the point of this article because I don’t want to sound like I’m out of my element?
Oh yeah…masculine and feminine energy.
Let’s start by listing some common feminine traits. This is not a complete list by any means.
- Empathy
- Creativity
- Compassion
- Nurturing
- Gentle
- The spark of life
- Intuitive
- Loving
- Friendly
Again, that’s broad brush central.
Now, let’s list a few common masculine traits. Again, not complete.
- Logical
- Assertive
- Confident
- Passionate
- Strength
- Leader
- Provider
When I look at those two lists, I see a stark difference.
The feminine qualities are all right brained, the masculine all left brained.
Make no mistake, all great people know how to balance their masculine and feminine energies. They know how to make those two sides of their being work for them in harmony.
I know many assertive, confident, passionate, and strong women who light me up every time I see them. Those traits are attractive as hell to me.
But our purposes here today, let’s look at the great men of history.
First off, let’s look at King George VI. His life was dramatized in the 2010 film The King’s Speech.
Side note: the word King shows up in my articles a lot lately. Reckon why?
The King had a terrible speech impediment. And as Great Britain was on the verge of war in 1939, he knew he was going to have to address a terrified nation on this relatively new invention called a radio.
George enlisted the support of a speech therapist to help him get over this affliction.
I’m just going by what I saw in the film. I may be old, but I’m not THAT old.
From the masculine side, I see a lot of strength and leadership in his character. And I see a ton of nurturing and compassion for his beloved Britain.
But most of all, he saw something he wanted to and needed to transform, and he got supported in transforming that.
And even fictional great men come to mind here.
President Jed Bartlet from The West Wing was a great character. But for purposes of our argument, let’s call him a great man.
Certainly, he possessed leadership, assertiveness, and strength. But I’ll never forget the second season finale called Two Cathedrals (aka, the finest hour of television I’ve ever seen.)
There’s a great flashback scene between a 16-year-old Bartlet and a much younger Mrs. Landingham (Bartlet’s presidential secretary and longtime mentor.)
Young Bartlet was challenged by Mrs. Landingham in something. And he tapped into his intuition to answer the challenge.
I even see this in myself.
I am courageous. I’m strong. I’m growing more confident and assertive by the day. I’m passionate. I’m a leader. All generally considered to be masculine traits.
But I’m creative (I mean, I am a writer and novelist.) I’m compassionate. I’m loving. And I have a very strong and well-tuned intuition.
Make no mistake, all great people know how to balance their masculine and feminine energies. They know how to make those two sides of their being work for them in harmony.
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In other words, I have balance between my masculine and feminine.
You may be asking what are some ways that you can find that balance?
My only coaching here would be to get present. Get present to your thoughts, feelings, and any body sensations you may have.
Get present to the here and now.
What’s guiding you? What’s your pull? What’s your direction?
Where are you naturally heading?
Really! It’s that simple. Finding balance is all about the natural flow of life. It’s about letting your natural wonder take over.
This isn’t rocket science. It’s not molecular biology. It’s as simple as getting connected with who you really are and letting all sides shine through.
If this is something you’re interested in learning about yourself, let me know. I’d love to connect!
Shoot me an email at [email protected] and we’ll support you in finding that beautiful balance so that you can uncover your greatness.
I’ve learned something valuable about myself in writing this. I went into this article with an idea of “why am I writing about something I obviously know so little about? Why write about this?”
But I believe I was fighting my natural flow. I was fighting my truth.
I do have this balance in my own life even though I couldn’t see it.
I wasn’t present.
It’s all about ease and flow, dear reader. There’s your balance.
Photo by Ratha Grimes