Writing to you as I begin an 8.5 hour drive from middle of nowhere Texas, in the passenger seat of a 4-Runner, my laptop balancing crookedly on my knees, as I sip a gas station iced tea and pray my battery holds out long enough to press “publish”.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned from living nomadically for the past 2 years, it’s work with what you’ve got. If you’re waiting to have the best equipment, ideal moment, mood, environment, you’re going to be waiting a very long time. I had to let all of that go, if I ever wanted to fully live my vision of traveling AND creating. Don’t let anything stop you from creating the vision.
One of you asked a question last week that sparked this post and share. A question I receive often. And I didn’t feel called to answer it until yesterday, when I was actually moving through this very experience.
“How do you stay positive through the unknown, the waiting, the in-between?”
The short answer: I don’t.
The long answer:
In the past 6 years of consciously creating my life and experience, there has never been an “in-between” phase where I’ve held positivity and certainty for my vision 24/7. Never.
I don’t think that’s humanly possible. Or the point of our experience here.
Our vision requires us to expand into new territory. Something we’ve never done, felt, created before (the unknown). In order for us to step into new, we must let go of the old… the stories, beliefs, habits, identity that no longer aligns with our path.
The further we walk the new, the more the old comes up to be seen and shifted. Not enjoyable, not fun. If it was, everyone would be doing it.
The good news, though… If you’re feeling this way - like every doubt, fear, worry, doomsday story that has ever lived within you is bubbling up to explode (or a variation of it) - you’re doing something right.
This means you’re expanding into what you’re asking for. Congratulations!
Our emotions can be our greatest guides.
Without them, we would have zero to no compass for what feels good, right, off, dangerous, exciting, peaceful... That’s a lawless land right there. Not to mention that the “positive” can’t be defined or felt as though without the contrast and experience of the “negative”.
We came here to experience it all, friend. So, let go of trying to “stay positive” and instead shift your focus towards HOW you’re going to navigate the feelings you’re classifying as “negative”. More on that in a moment…
The past two days since getting on the road, I’ve been having BIG feels come up. Doubts, fears, what-if’s, all of it. I’m leaving behind Joshua Tree, which has felt like “home” and heading back to Austin where I lived from 2020-2022. I received the vision a few months ago to finally clear out my storage unit and move on. It’s time to close the chapter fully.
I don’t have a clear vision for where I’m headed next (other than Bali in February, join me?!), but I sense it is big and outside of my comfort zone.
I’m also in the midst of closing chapters in my business and shifting direction; my travels mirroring what’s happening in my work. I share more about this here.
I’ve been irritable, moody, on edge. Which isn’t fun for me or anyone around me.
So, I woke up today and had two choices:
One - Stay in the “ick”, stuck story. Scroll on Instagram for the whole drive, ignoring what’s surfacing and letting the energy seep into my thoughts, actions, choices, relationship (and reality).
or
Two - Create the space to meet the feelings and shift them, so I can come back to the truth and knowing that lives within my body - peace, trust, love - because that is the energy my vision (and your vision) lives in.
Option 1 is where we run into trouble. Where avoidance and “staying positive” manifests the very thing we are actually trying to run away from.
Option 2 is where our highest vision lives. On the other side of meeting our “negative” emotions, we find our true power and a deeper knowing that we can create anything. This is the energy that fuels our vision, not “staying positive”.
I chose Option 2. Phew.
Normally, I would move my body, get out in nature, have my full toolbox of practices and alone time to process, but this wasn’t an option today.
I’m in the midst of a 3 day roadtrip, in the car with my boyfriend Parker right next to me. 🙃
So, I chose to meet the feels in the way that I could… a mix of EFT tapping, breathwork, humming and meditation to accept what was coming up and release it. It’s wild what just 15-20 minutes can do.
You might be wondering, “Wait… what’s Parker doing during all of this?!” Like I mentioned at the beginning of this post, work with what you got.
My mental and emotional peace trumps any feelings of looking weird or awkward at this point. Communication also goes along way…“Put on your headphones, I’m moving through something.” 😂 Plus, your partner or whoever you’re worried about judging you will thank you for clearing the “ick” and coming back to yourself. And hey, you might even inspire them to look within, too.
Staying “positive” = befriending the “negative”. Over and over again.
There’s many many ways to do this and I’ll share my process below:
Step 1 - Create the space to meet your feels daily (or as often as you can) with curiousity, self-inquiry and awareness. For me, that looks like a quick check-in right when I wake up.
Step 2 - Explore them, befriend them, transmute them.
What works for me:
EFT Tapping
Breathwork
Meditation
Brain Dump Journaling
Non-Linear Movement
Somatic Journeying
Humming
Dancing
I compiled some of my favorite free resources in a playlist here. These are my ways, find yours. 🤎
Step 3 - Shift your focus back to your vision.
Journal or visualize the “best case scenario” of what happens next.
Create and listen to your personal Voice Memo Vision. (Workshop Here)
Connect back to your heart, your truth.
Surround yourself with reminders - a vision board, like-souled community, expanders, affirmations, a phone reminder - daily.
Step 4 - REPEAT REPEAT REPEAT. If you’re stretching into something new, you’ll need to come back to this weekly, maybe even daily. Your mind will always revert back to what is safe and comfortable and flag the unknown as “dangerous”, so create the space to feel and plant seeds for the vision DAILY. Repetition and consistency are your best friends. This isn’t a one and done practice.
If you’re moving through it right now, know that I see you. You are not alone. You are feeling things and that’s freaking brave!! Brave humans are the souls who create their dreams, not “positive” ones.
Trust that your feelings are guiding you exactly where you need to go to make it all happen.
I’m cheering you on, as always.
xx
Jenni
P.s. If this post resonated with you, consider sharing it with someone who might benefit, comment, subscribe, share the abundance, so I can keep sharing free content with you!
Resources to Support You:
Free Channeled Message: You’re At A Crossroads - 30-minute channeled message for navigating the in-between, liminal space, unknown and walking the path towards your highest vision. If you're experiencing the fear of the unknown, this will shift the energy for you.
Breathwork Journey: Release The Old & Rise - A 45-minute guided holotropic breathwork, meditation and reiki healing journey to clear old stories, beliefs, identities and rise into the new.
Voice Memo Vision Workshop - A 90-minute Guided Workshop, exploring the powerful practice of Voice Memo Visioning, a tool that combines 4 manifestation techniques - scripting, voice activation, visualization, and subconscious reprogramming.