Ohh, this is SUCH a juicy topic. Permission is something we don't actually need, but SO many of us feel we do. I know that I used to want it. A lot.
Because, of course, there isn't really anyone who is stopping you from doing your Thing, from being as famous as you want to be, from standing in a super-bright spotlight, from doing exactly what you want to do the way you want to do it (given legal parameters of course!).
And yet we ask—and look—for permission
I am always happy to hand out permission slips to Business Celebrities. I can do it all day long (and sometimes I do). What matters to me is that the Business Celebrities who 'get' permission quickly realise that they didn't need it. They certainly didn't need it from me anyway—all they needed to do was give themselves permission.
And therein lies the problem—if you are the person who needs to give you permission, you might get stuck. I know for sure I can be super-critical of me—I know I can always do better (that old classic)—and I can also be pretty persuasive at talking myself out of stuff...
So where are you right now? Doing your Thing in that HUGE way you want to be? Going crazy with what's possible? Or wondering why no-one's heard about you yet (while doing nothing about that!)?
If you give yourself permission to do your Thing, you're actually giving yourself the best present ever.
Just because you know your Thing doesn't mean you're doing it...
I know that I knew what my Thing was long before I did it in a big way. I knew I saw 'Things' but I sat and waited for someone else to point it out and then share the marketing steps to take so it turned into a business people wanted. I didn't give myself permission to do my Thing right away.
And then there's the size of your Thing (no sniggering in the back!)
Because you probably need to give yourself permission to think bigger. And I mean HUGE. You need to be able to think MEGA MEGA MASSIVE about your Thing if you want to. It's not just about a little bit of permission—it's about the ongoing permission to take it a step further and jump bigger.
There's also the permission you need to give yourself to take a break sometimes. Or simplify. Maybe you gave yourself so much permission already that your Thing's got too big and messy and complicated (been there). You might need to give yourself permission to change your mind, or change your goals.
If you started out wanting world domination and changed your mind along the way as it was tiring you out, give yourself permission that that's OK.
We often think we need to 'fit' with other people's expectations and that we need their permission to do it their way. Not true. When it comes down to it there is no one permission-giver out there telling everyone what to do. In fact my experience is that I used to think there were so many people giving me permission that I got confused as to which permission to accept first. Phew. Too much permission makes business celebrities frazzled.
The only person who can truly give you permission to do your Thing is you. So tune into you. Work out what you want, don't listen to head chatter that says you can't, you can. Get that rubber stamp out and put 'Approved' on all your Thing plans and dreams and get on with them.
We can't wait for you do your Thing the way you really want to.
Want to talk more about this?
Thanks for this reminder, Lucy! I recently gave myself permission to start integrating more of what I learned in my previous business into my current business, and it’s creating huge shifts in the right direction for me.