Invisible Valuables

Christine and I have interviewed over twenty women for the Women Who Succeed Podcast. We are inspired by these women and their inner strength in the face of challenges. Women can look inward and call on our strength of spirit to sail through rough waters. Then we reach outward to share our insights and experiences with humility and pride. However, in these uncertain times, what can we do when we feel like we are floundering?

Today, my horoscope (yes, I read my horoscope, admit it, you peek too) read, “The most valuable thing may be invisible.” The words “most valuable” and “invisible” got me thinking. It reminded me to look inward for what is most valuable. To gather strength from the resilience, intelligence, and resourceful nature that as women we have accumulated over our lives.  

I have heard life’s challenges compared to punches in a boxing ring. A life event comes along as a blow to the stomach.  Reeling and doubled over, the boxer needs to draw on her inner strength to continue the match. I need to put a name to these assets. Tagging them reminds me to touch base with them and the events in my life that have helped me build up my stockpile. I can visualize my resilience as a time I went up against a challenge and persisted.

Back in 1998, when my son was diagnosed with autism, after my first bout of denial, I looked for any information I could get. AOL was a just a ping pong sound on our house phone line modem and “googly” described a funny pair of plastic eyes. I used my intelligence and resourceful nature to learn about autism. Much of what was out there was scary, but I read books and talked to teachers, doctors, and other parents. In addition to keeping up with an active toddler, I took him to special therapies and advocated for intense educational protocols. My challenges may be different now but I say to myself, “I did it then, I can call on that resilience, intelligence, and resourceful nature that I learned then to stay in the match.”

We are grateful these strong women shared their life experience. They used their inner strength to look outward with patience, kindness, and confidence to tell us about their journey.  We can remind ourselves if they can do it, so can we, but for me their messages are like road signs. Their stories remind me to look at my own journey and like a treasure hunt find the valuable deposits stored up in my inner self.  

There is a song Never Give up on You, performed by Lucie Jones. She sings, “If you could see how far you’ve walked, You would see that all’s not lost…Now you can see how far you’ve walked, The mountains climbed, the oceans crossed.” So back to the original question, “What do we do when we feel like we are floundering?” Look for the invisible valuable things.