Effin Good

If you saw my recent post on Instagram, you’ve seen this quote before.  I just love it.  Partly because it’s a little edgy and I’m a mom of three young kids, and I like a little edge now and then.  But mostly, I love this quote because it reminds me that it’s okay to try something new, and to be – and this is the kicker – just okay at it.  To be good enough. 

To do something before we’re ready.  To put something “out there” while we’re still a little unsure about it.  To try our best, and let our best be enough.  Even if that means that later, looking back, we see how truly horrible our best used to be.  That’s all a part of the process, a part of life.  If we wait until we’re ready, until everything is perfect before we begin, we’ll never do a damn thing.  And that’s not the life I want.

As much as I like the idea of perfect, I’ve yet to encounter a single thing that is.  Bloggers, podcasters, parents, partners, friends, co-workers, children… Every single one of these people started something before they were ready.  Before they knew they could do it.  We have all done things that we didn’t know how to do, figuring it out along the way by failing, and failing, and failing, and then just barely succeeding, and then practicing and practicing, until we became proficient. 

Years more practice made the thing – whatever it was – something we felt confident in doing.  Something we handled with ease. 

Or not. 

Some things we will never conquer, never know everything about, never get perfect.  But the more we try and fail and try again, the more we put things out there without the guarantee of other people’s approval, the better we become.  When we act with thoughtful intention and allow love and honesty to lead the way, we open up a true freedom and the space to let our own unique weird awesomeness shine. 

This kind of honesty requires being vulnerable about who we are.  About our flaws.  Our mistakes.  Letting down the perfect pretense to reveal the universal truths buried inside all of us.  But if we can muster that kind of bravery and authenticity, if we can allow ourselves to embrace our own beautifully imperfect good enough, our lives and those of the people around us can be transformed.  That’s the kind of growth I’m looking for.

I’ve come to realize that perfect doesn’t allow me to take risks; and in so doing, it snuffs out any chance for growth.  It becomes a reason not to act, an excuse.  It is paralyzing, and it steals the joy of the journey.  

I recently listened to a podcast, on Jenny Blake's Pivot Podcast show, that spoke to my soul.  (You can find it here.)  Petra Kobler was being interviewed about this exact topic, and she said, “We connect through the cracks.”  

We connect through the cracks.  

I thought that was such a powerful way to put it.  It’s through our common, imperfect experiences that we connect to one another.  Feelings and frustrations, ebbs and flow, depression and exhilaration, this is the stuff of real, honest, hard, breath-taking life.  Perfection has nothing to do with it.  It’s all about good enough.

If this resonates with you as much as it does with me, please hop on over to my graphics page and download one of my *free* wallpapers!  I’ve got the “effin” quote as well as a safe for work version, if that’s what you’re looking for.  Either way, I hope you find some value in this idea and make space in your life today to be just good enough and, maybe, find a little edge while you're at it.

Until next time -

grace + love,

B