Follow The Joy

Dan is a very wise man. Thankfully, I get to have insightful conversations with him when I need a little reminding of what I already know, or of what I desire to believe.

We just had a teary talk about the power of following your joy. I thought about turning on the video camera or the audio recorder, but in this case it would have interrupted our flow ... so I'll just recap.

I have doubts now and then.

Sometimes even fear.

Even with all the examples in my own life of how following my joy has turned out great, it's easy for me to still hear the voices from my past conditioning (and from current society) that say I should ...

I should grow my business this way ... I should do marketing this way ... I should do this to make money ... I should be following up with these certain people ... I should do this task that's next on my list ...


... Should whatever.  Basically, it's the message to use my analytical mind to figure out how and take responsibility and make it happen.

But my heart says to follow my joy.  And when I follow my heart, my decisions are easy and clear.

So how do I trust that following my heart and doing what is joyful will really lead to all that I desire?  By doing the tasks I feel like doing, by growing my business in my own way, will I really generate plenty of income and be able to sustain this joyful lifestyle?

I say: It's a trust game.  I need to trust the process.

Dan says: You can't play the trust game by just putting a toe in and then pulling it back out.  You have to dive into the lake.

Richard Bach (in Illusions) says: "it's like diving into a deep lake on a hot day.  There's the shock of that sharp cold change, the pain of it for a second, and then accepting is a swim in reality."

OK, so I need to jump in.  How do I do that when I still have doubts?

Wait a second here.  Dan, do you believe you are rewarded when you follow your joy?

Dan says:  it's more than that, I believe I am rewarded MOST when I follow my joy.

Oh.  That's what I've been missing.  I was thinking of all the ways I wasn't rewarded for following my joy, but that was also within the constraints of the conditioning I grew up in: the schooling, the corporations, etc.

When I think of the times I have followed my joy, I can see all the MANY ways I've been rewarded - more than just financially.

So now I continue on with my excavation of old email newsletters I've received from people, people I thought I should listen to, and unsubscribing from the ones that don't bring me joy. 

I am deciding in each moment what to do next based on what feels joyful. And the note on my computer monitor says as a helpful reminder:

I am rewarded the MOST when I follow my Joy.  Does this bring me joy?

Try it, dive in, and see. :)