If you are moved by the work that you do, then success is just an afterthought.” @gabbybernstein
@BreneBrown said something similar at this year’s #mom2summit when asked about how she reached the level of success she’s at today. Her answer was “20 years.”
Time. Failure. Wins. Editing. But not changing the core of the work itself. Because that work is coming straight from the heart. Life work.
When our work doesn’t have our heart, our products then reflect the confusion or forced effort. It may conjure excitement and energy in the early stages, as we’re excited too, but it’s not sustainable long-term. Because that heart work gets boring and laborious and lonely. Our heart, the source of the work itself, keeps that shit going.
But, how do we even discover what our heart’s work is (because I know you are asking yourself that question right now)?
That’s a tough one to answer because that’s a very personal journey for you and I. All I know is that our heart and core *has* to be healthy, stable, and maintained for our heart’s work to have clarity. It cannot blossom without clarity from the beginning.
When I was at my darkest place in life, only a little over a year ago, it was impossible for me to contribute fully to my heart’s work. My core was unhealthy and in pure survival mode. What I gave to my work was what I had to do to feed and house my family and I. I also had to get mental and physical health care or I would have literally stayed in bed during my “work time.”
If I had not laid a foundation of heart work 9 years prior, I would have…I don’t even know what I would have done. Honestly. Definitely not my heart’s work, I know that much.
When I started my work nearly 11 years ago, I did it from a place of connection with humans, creativity, and building freedom and opportunity for my family. AND OH HOW I AM GRATEFUL for those years of investment before I was pushed off a cliff. That investment kept my kids and me safe when the darkness appeared, and when the darkness got brighter, the work welcomed us back.
I know “success” is a subjective term, but for me, success was surviving that very dark time. And I owe past Amy’s heart work for that.
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