Episode 15: Your Future Self
Be Your Future Now
You don’t have to wait until you get the title or make the salary to start BEING that person. Be that person now - and you’ll get ‘the thing’!
Listen Here:
(The notes below are only a brief summary of what is discussed in the podcast. Be sure to listen to get all of the goodness! If you would like a full transcription of the episode, please send an email request to: angie@angie-robinson.com. We’d be happy to provide that!)
We start the episode off with a question. Are you ready?
Right now – are you who you ultimately want to be as a leader?
Do you have the role you want? Do you have the responsibilities you want? Do you have the type of team you want to lead? Do you have the seat at the table you want? Are you as confident as you want to be? Do you lead meetings and present the way you want to? Are you influencing in a way that you want? Are you connecting with your teams the way you want? Do you have the work / life integration you desire? Are you getting the results you want?
(There is a caveat – you don’t get to say “I don’t know”. I don’t know is just a way to stay in confusion and delay feeling a feeling or making a decision.)
Really ask yourself – are you who you envision yourself to be as a leader?
If you say – yes – congratulations! That’s awesome - - - and the challenge is to decide if there is another way to push yourself.
If you say no – which is probably the majority of you ----why not??
If we were all sitting in a room together and talking about this – some of the reasons you would give me are things like:
Not enough experience yet
I need more development programs
They won’t give me a chance
It’s not the right time
I’m not sure how to…
Or you might be saying things like:
I don’t believe in myself
Others don’t believe in me
I’m not good enough
For the most part – those are just thoughts. But let’s say that they are true – because you believe them to be so.
What I want to share with you is that what is going to help you BECOME the leader you want to be is to start being that person NOW. That’s right!
Watch for your brain offering you thought: “I’ve never done that before”. That is our brain wanting to live from the past – because with the past is certainty. We know what we have done and not done. Living from your past is predictable and comfortable. It’s safe. But – when living from the past - you will stay stagnant. You won’t move forward. And that can be uncomfortable. That can lead to buffering behaviors – like overworking, over-trying-to-impress, over people-pleasing, overeating, overshopping etc.
But the future is a creation. It requires new and inspired thoughts. It requires visualizing and imagining. AND - it requires you to get uncomfortable with the uncertainty.
So I want you to think about your Future Self.
This might sound a little odd to you – but think about it - we all think about our future self. We think about that next role, or maybe the next company we could work for. We think about what that next vacation might be like, where we might live in retirement, what it will be like to be married or to be a parent. It’s all arbitrary and made up – but a practical concept – because we plan for our futures.
Thinking about your future self is really about developing a relationship with yourself.
So I want you to think about your future self as that leader you want to be.
Ask: What’s different? Where do you live? Where do you work? What is your role? Who are you leading? How are you showing up? What kinds of conversations are you having? Who are you influencing and how? How much money are you making?
If you need to – you can look at someone that you admire – that you aspire to be. But – be careful with that. You can never be another person – and you don’t want to. Being yourself is where it is. But – if it keeps you a starting off point – that’s okay.
From that future self place – what would you say to yourself now? What would the you who has already done the thing tell yourself?
We think that when we achieve that result – then we behave like that person. But that isn’t how it works. You have to have the thoughts that create the feelings to drive the actions now to create the results you want.
You have to lay your foundation.
So ask your future self what she/he would do. Maybe she shows up with confidence. Maybe she makes decisions without judgment and disbelief. Maybe she has the uncomfortable conversations and uses her voice. Maybe she believes in herself and doesn’t rely on others to make her believe.
Or if you are imagining someone you admire – ask what might they be thinking and feeling? It’s probably not things like “I’m not good enough” or “I’ll just wait until I….” Those thoughts don’t generate the type of feelings that spark action.
This might feel strange and uncomfortable. But I promise you – it’s a skill worth sharpening. You have everything you need within yourself to become the leader you want to be. You can have your own back – be your biggest cheerleader and be the creator of your own magic.
Try it. See how you show up. See how your mind shifts. You can even start with things like what your future self might be wearing, or how they show up in a meeting or how they hold themselves accountable – and start doing those things now. Wear the clothes now. Show up in meetings that way now. Hold yourself accountable now.
When you show up NOW as the way you want to be - - this will open up the possibilities. You can more easily step into those things you want to be. You are already being that future you – the rest is a no-brainer!
What do you think?
What would your future self tell the current version of you?
How can you start being your futures self today?
Relevant Links
Episode 11: Bringing Light to Limiting Beliefs
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