Did you know that you can develop a deeper level of self-compassion through a  sacred business practice?

I recently hosted a series of interviews with spiritual and transformation entrepreneurs, coaches, and healers asking them about their opinions of modern marketing. Interestingly, one topic that came up time and time again was confidence.

Many expressed a desire to have more confidence in their business and marketing skills. They want more confidence in putting themselves out into the world to be seen and heard.

I've been meditating on this, letting a deeper understanding drop in.

It became clear to me that self-compassion has a direct correlation to self-confidence. And the way that we can obtain greater confidence is to develop sacred business practices grounded (and centered) in self-compassion. 

When we spend time beating ourselves up over mistakes and unhealthy past experiences, or we continue to repeat the limiting belief stories that keep our self-expression small, ultimately we are chipping away at our confidence. 

LIMITING BELIEFS SUFFOCATE OUR CONFIDENCE 

What can start out as a limiting belief about our abilities to run a business, can quickly turn into an embellished story about how our coaching skills aren't good enough (or we're not good enough), or that what we have to offer to the world doesn't matter or isn't valuable.

Allowing our minds to run with these detrimental stories and false beliefs slowly suffocates our self-confidence and can even be swallowed up by our shadow. This is dangerous. When our confidence is consumed by our shadow, so too are the talents, skills, and gifts that we're called to share.

Soon we're questioning if we should even have a business.

Sound familiar?

CREATE YOUR SACRED BUSINESS PRACTICES

If we don't keep our business practices sacred and protected, we can lose much more than our business. Become mindful of the sacred business practices you play with regularly. These practices should be fun, creative, rejuvenating, and focus on the present moment.  

Confidence, self-awareness, and self-love are essential components of compassion. What you might be wondering is how to start practicing self-compassion and self-love on a regular basis so that you can begin to integrate new messages and rid yourself of those old beliefs once and for all.

Fortunately, there are some steps you can take to cultivate self-compassion on a regular basis. Take a look.

FOCUS ON THE HERE AND NOW

Too often, we find ourselves looking at the past with longing or waiting for someday. It’s hard to love yourself and your life when you don’t appreciate what you have in the moment.

Centering yourself on the present, being mindful, and practicing gratitude are quick ways to cultivate an appreciation for what you have right now.

WORK ON YOUR GOALS

Setting goals that reflect your values will help you to feel you’re living a life of purpose. You’ll know you’re taking real steps toward growing as a person when you’re regularly doing things that will bring you closer to your desires. Proactively using your time rather than absent-mindedly going with the flow and putting out fires is quite empowering.

SET BOUNDARIES

Boundaries are an important part of self-care. Setting boundaries means you put yourself and your needs first sometimes. This is a healthy approach to business and life and ensures you have the energy to take care of the things that matter.

Saying no to toxic relationships, ending unhealthy client contracts, and not taking on unnecessary obligations will free your spirit and keep you from becoming burnt out.

Learn to say "No."

IT TAKES PRACTICE

If you've spent much of your life solely focused on other's needs (or thinking  your needs don't matter), it's going to take practice and gentle reminders for you to remember that your self-care, self-love, and self-compassion are important (and necessary). 

You may begin to see all the areas in your life where you have been neglecting  your needs. That's okay. In fact, that's great! You are becoming more aware of your blind spots and therefore can make changes to start putting your needs on the list and eventually, first!

Recently I had a painful realization that my needs weren't even on my list, let alone a top priority. I had not recognized how depleted I had become and frankly, how abusive I had been towards myself. It was inside this self-compassion conversation and commitment that I was able to see myself and tune into my destructive thoughts and actions. 

TAKE CARE OF YOUSELF

It can be hard to take time for yourself in this busy world full of obligations. This is especially true when you’ve gotten in the habit of putting yourself last on the list. To experience true self-compassion, you need to start giving yourself higher priority. You can do this by eating well, exercising, taking time for a hobby, pampering yourself, or any other activity that focuses on your wellbeing.

FORGIVE  YOURSELF

Most of all, you must learn to forgive yourself to truly love yourself. We all make mistakes. It’s part of being human. Some of those mistakes may be difficult to accept or challenging to understand why they happened.

Giving yourself grace, understanding and care regarding those things will show you that you’re still worthy despite your faults. This is a crucial lesson on the road to embracing self-compassion.

These are just a handful of examples of some ways you can easily begin your sacred self-compassion business practice. If this list seems overwhelming, feel free to begin with just one, the one that calls to you the most. This is a process that takes time, effort, and practice.