Since I’ve relaunched, committing to do the inner-work has become my one of my central messages.

In order for me to make my ideas blossom, I need to get clear about what’s going on inside me, work to overcome my self-imposed barriers, and strengthen my core being so that I can contribute my share of goodness to the world.

While the innermost self isn’t visible to the eye, it’s just as important, if not more than the external trappings that everyone sees. What looks good on the outside (youthfulness, attractiveness, fitness, success…) captivates society on a whole, but impact, true impact happens when we give from the innermost, positive aspects of ourselves.  

That’s why I’ve subconsciously prioritized my inner-work and placed it on my internal to-do list.

I define inner-work as ongoing, improvement interactions you have with yourself no matter your age, stage of life, or size of bank account.

Consider the importance of committing to work on your innermost self. If you refuse to commit, how will you

• Take action to make your ideas blossom?
• Become more of the person that you were created to be?
• Impact the world?
• Have great relationships with others?
• Become more focused?
• Refine the roughest parts of you?
• Come to understand your purpose or direction in life?

I hope I’m not sounding all preachy. I hate preachy, but I think you know it’s true. When you’re not conscious of your innermost self and don’t work through all of the stuff that occupies it, you may end up in a less than desirable condition. And who wants to be complacent, disinterested, disengaged, and perhaps __________? (fill-in-the-blank)

I’ve referred to this condition as living by default and it’s far from my favorite state of being.

Living by default meant that my life was possible only because I had a heart, lungs, a brain, nervous system, stomach, liver and other body functions. The dilemma was that while living by default was truly a gift from God, if life had no meaning or purpose, it was a gift free from responsibility.

Simply put, living by default was an absolved life with no meaning, purpose, or direction.

By examining your innermost self, you’ll discover the inner-work you need to do.

But you have to be committed and willing to do the work, which is hardly ever simple or easy.  

So here’s a suggestion.

Take stock of your innermost self to gauge the inner-work that you need to do so that you don’t end up living by default. And when you have brilliant ideas that you’d like to see blossom, taking stock can help you address the questions I mentioned earlier plus

• Gear up for challenges and other roadblocks that may encounter.
• Muster up the wherewithal to change so that you move forward in life.
• Attract the right people and/or circumstances to assist you along the way.
• Make decisions that align you with your goals.
• Help you show up and be present.

I’ve come up with a simple process. Go ahead and try it, if inner-work remains at the top of your to-do list.

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7 Steps to Take Stock and Discover Your Inner Work

1. Choose an aspect of your innermost self that you’d like to reflect on such as your

• Emotions
• Energy level
• Social energy
• Mental well-being
• Thought patterns
• Sense of purpose

(There are, of course, more aspects of your innermost self that you may want to consider. I only touched the surface with the list above. Feel free to choose something that I haven’t mentioned.)

2. Examine the aspect by rating it on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being the lowest and 10 being the highest.

• In most situations, I would rate my emotions a _____ because they drive me in the right direction or drive me astray.
• I would rate my energy level a _____ because I’m usually up or down, vitalized or dispirited.
• In most situations, I would rate my social energy a _____ because I’m either good or not so good at adjusting my focus to attend to those I’m engaging with at the moment.
• I would rate my mental well being a _____ because I’m resilient or not so resilient when life gets tough.
• I would rate my thought patterns a _____ because they’re usually positive or negative, optimistic or pessimistic.
• I would rate my sense of purpose a _____ because I’m focused on fulfilling the reason I exist or not so much.

Grab the PDF of the above exercise.

3. Decide which aspect you’d like to enhance or change all together. I’d focus on those aspects that you rated on the lower end of the scale (1 to 5).  Focus on only 1 or 2 at time so you don’t overwhelm yourself.

4. Devise a M.A.P.or a Method to Achieve Priorities to carry out your intention. Your M.A.P. can be behaviors that you practice, or a checklist of actions you regularly implement.  I recently started a bullet journal as a way to become more focused on making my ideas blossom. I guess you can consider it my M.A.P. 

5. Set a time frame to work your M.A.P. It takes about 21 days to establish a habit or see change in your behavior. I’d at least give yourself this amount of time to carry out your intention.

6. Check in with yourself regularly to assess your progress. Journal writing is a great way to check-in. And if you’re trusting, talk with your trusted adviser or accountability partner about your process of taking stock and ask them for feedback or to hold you accountable.

7. Celebrate your success at the end of the time frame. Change is hard, especially because you’re probably hard on yourself. Well, how about motivating yourself with a reward when you’ve accomplished the goal of your inner-work?  

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Take stock of your innermost parts that are in abundant supply or are in need of  replenishing. If you’re serious about making your ideas blossom, not living by default, and impacting the world, you’ll make the effort. Consider the suggestion that I’ve shared in this post and let me know how it turns out. And yes, leave your comments below or on Facebook or Twitter using the hashtag  #takestock. Email me at zoe@gonegirlgo.com for a personal exchange and I’ll be sure to respond as quickly as I can.