Butterflies

How do you decide when you need to change something of significance in your life? Do you get a feeling low down in your stomach? Or is it a more mental, mulling-over process?

For me, it’s a full body experience. The pending change typically manifests as an idea in my head. It is then supplemented by a head-to-toe feeling of either excitement or anxiety, depending on whether it’s a change that I look forward to or one that seems frightening at first. If the latter, I tend to ignore the signals for a little while. I try to convince myself that I’ll get over whatever brain-butterflies I have and don’t need to listen to them.

But then something happens; the butterflies move to my gut. When they arrive, I know that they mean business. It is the sign that change is afoot, and I can either fight it longer (which, honestly, I often try to do) or I can accept it. I’ve realized that the longer I ignore the little creatures, the more furious they flutter, acting as if they are at odds with each other within the small pit of my stomach.

On the flip side, the moment that I decide to accept what the flaps of the wings are telling me, they relax. Rather than zip inside me in a nervous pattern, they beat solidly, strongly, and together. They lift me up.

I can tell you that my body has won out every single time I’ve made a significant life choice; from where to move to, which job to take, who to date, marry, when to quit said job, I have 100% listened to my gut. Not always when the butterflies first showed up, but eventually I did. And so far, they haven’t failed me. I’ve floated off of each and every cliff they’ve carried me to.

So I ask you now, what is your body telling you? And if you’re feeling butterflies, what’s holding you back from listening to them?

After effectively retiring in the fall of 2014 from her corporate career running operations for a high-growth healthcare start-up company, Meghan Bollenback reinvented her professional life by becoming a writer and creative in Washington, D.C.  You can join Meghan as she navigates this new stage by following her blog www.megbollenback.com, where she discusses the process of intentionally crafting a valuable and joyful career.