Calling all my current and former people-pleasers!!! How do you feel at the thought of being the "bad guy" in other people's eyes? Do you recoil and cringe at the thought? I did. I sometimes still do. The thought of my side of the story not being heard before an opinion is formed about me is uncomfortable. Speaking the unwelcome or inconvenient truth makes me squirm. My fight or flight is triggered and I often choose to avoid saying anything that would make people dislike me.

Here's the problem with that...I stay squirming and uncomfortable. When I choose to hold things in or attempt to people please I abandon myself. Everytime. I tell myself that you can't be trusted with the truth, or even worse-that I can't. When I do that I tell myself that my value and integrity aren't as important as your opinion of me. I'm done with that.

Welcome to my "bad guy" era. I am stepping into a new phase of life. I'm now willing to let people think what they choose without trying to convince them otherwise. I'm not convincing people that I'm right, I'm not oversharing, overexplaining or overextending. How you receive me is not up to me. I've realized that I have values, that they are important to me, and that some people won't understand that. I'm willing to be misunderstood. I'm willing to be disliked if it means being honest and living in my truth.

Being kind doesn't always mean being nice. Sometimes the kind thing is the truth and sometimes the truth isn't pretty or nice. Sometimes the truth hurts. But the truth is always the right answer. I'm not talking about BRUTAL honesty. I'm talking about leading with love. Loving someone enough to say the hard things. I've had a hard time with this but a new era has dawned. I'm so thankful you're along for the ride!!

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