I wrote that in this space two years ago. And in that time, I have truly transformed my life from the inside out. I mean, I write this week’s column from that same little pond outside Greenwich, CT that I wrote last week’s.
Our greatness lies in what brings us joy.
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I knew I wanted to share about joy this week, but I honestly didn’t know how. That’s probably my biggest stop in many things – I don’t know how. And trust me on this, I’m working on this with my coach. Poor Lisa and I have gone round and round on this.
I believe that joy only comes when we drop our masks and our facades and show the world our truth. Joy comes when we’re real with the world and with ourselves.
What brings you joy?
I believe that the older we get, the more we forget about joy. The more we forget about just what makes us joyful. I believe our greatness lies in what brings us joy.
Joy doesn’t always show up in wild giggling and dancing. But I truly believe that joy is deeply entrenched in staying connected with our inner child.
A perfect example of this is the English singer Joss Stone. I have to say that I was pretty much gobsmacked to learn that she’s only 31 years old.
I’m not able to figure out the timeframe of this, but my assertion was that she was quite young during this performance. Perhaps still a teenager. This was for a tribute to Aretha Franklin that aired on BET.
Joss performed the iconic song You make me feel like (A Natural Woman.) Perhaps Aretha’s best-known song.
The song that was written by and performed originally by a hero of mine, Carole King.
It’s pretty obvious that Stone was overwhelmed with nerves and emotion before she took the stage. She was only about to sing one of her hero’s most important songs – with her hero sitting in the front row.
Joss turns in a legendary performance. She sang with confidence and she commanded the stage.
By the end of the song, she simply transformed.
Joss went from powerful, confident, and sexy, to a bashful, star stuck little girl in the blink of an eye. She could barely speak to Aretha before she runs off stage.
To me, that’s joy. It was the perfect example of putting your soul into your art. And as far as I’m concerned, that’s the height of joy.
Living a life with soul and with passion, that’s joy. It may not mean you’re laughing, and dancing in the rain (but it might.) To me, it means you’re living your life without a care in the world.
I think so many of us care too much about what other people think about us. We’re so worried about what people think about us that we don’t let our joyful truth ring out.
“You’re not the man I fell in love with”
Another example of this is the recent film, Disney’s Christopher Robin. Talk about a disappointment! I wanted to love that movie so much, but I merely liked it.
Long story short, it’s the story of Christopher Robin some 30 years after leaving the Hundred-acre wood. Leaving behind the comfort and the love of the motley crew of Tigger, Eeyore, and that silly old bear.
But one thing really stuck out to me in this film. Christopher has a career and a wife and daughter. And he forgot how to be a kid.
He forgot how to be joyful.
And his wife calls him out on it. Essentially telling him “you’re not the man I fell in love with.”
I think so many of us care too much about what other people think about us. We’re so worried about what people think about us that we don’t let our joyful truth ring out.
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Thanks to reconnecting with Pooh, and a battle with some Heffalumps, we get Christopher Robin back.
We all want joy. As I wrote two years ago, it’s the holy grail, Y’all.
So…it’s time. It’s time. It’s time to go on a diet. It’s time to start a joy diet!
“Ryan, what the heck is a joy diet?” Well, I’ll tell ya, dear reader.
Or is this Ralph from Iowa? In that case, that boy may need to go on an actual diet. You’re getting a little chunky, buddy.
Oh God…did I just body shame a fictional dog? What’s wrong with me?
Moving on.
Maybe it’s time for a “Joy Diet”
What’s a joy diet? Well, these are simply some ways that you can inject your life with a little joy. That’s it.
I recently took on a joy diet in my life. And I haven’t been at it long, but it’s starting to yield results.
Here are some of the practices I’m taking on. Feel free to try these yourself.
- Going live on Facebook every day for a week reflecting on one thing that brings me joy. And remember, this isn’t necessarily about what makes me happy (happiness and joy aren’t the same). This is about what makes you feel like you! Or, what makes me feel like me.
- Listening to music simply to listen to music. Oftentimes I’ve got music on when I work out or when I’m writing. I just want to listen to music to feed my soul.
- This one is important to me. I want to have a really deep belly laugh every single day!
- This may be more important. I need to have my emotions brought to tears every day. Tears of happiness, joy, or even grief.
This is a partial list, to be sure. But I think you can get a lot of value from this.
So, let’s start injecting our lives with a little joy!
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A quick reminder that I’m accepting applications right now for my group coaching program – Own your voice, own your life. It begins on September 12th, 2018 at 7pm Eastern time. It’s an 8-week, four-session virtual group coaching program designed to support people in owning their Voice. From being able to speak up and say the bold thing at the office, to becoming a more effective parent – it’s all about how you own and use your voice.
You don’t need a live microphone to change the world with your voice. All you need is one person to listen to what you say.
If this interests you, register at royalheartscoaching.com/voice. Or if you have questions, email me at [email protected].
There’s a moral of this story, believe it or not.
What brings you joy…is your soul. If it doesn’t light your soul on fire, then it won’t bring you joy.
And make no mistake, your joy is your greatness!
Photo by bruce mars on Unsplash