What You Need To Know If You Long To Be Seen
I have always wanted to be seen.
But then I was told that that was attention-seeking and that I should feel embarrassed about it.
And so I did.
I hid for decades.
Despite the inner hunger that craved to be seen.
That wanted to be heard.
That needed to matter.
Just for once.
But it never happened.
Not until I learnt that receiving attention was a natural human need.
One my mother didn’t know how to meet so she shamed it.
That was the day I decided to free myself from that shame. From her rule. From the oppression.
Was it easy? Hell no!
I had crippling inhibitions and self-doubt.
I was riddled with fear and shame.
I had tons of insecurities and a very warped self-perception.
But I did it anyway.
My calling felt too strong.
I wanted to give myself an opportunity I had felt deprived of for so long.
And I wrote an article.
It wasn’t my first article but it was the first article I asked to be published.
I didn’t know what I was doing at the time.
I didn’t know how big a publication it was that I approached.
I had no idea about any of it at all.
I just wrote and shared it.
And Tiny Buddha said yes.
That article gained me a large following.
I received dozens of messages and I had the most positive reception I could have ever hoped for.
And to be honest, I didn’t have any hopes or expectations.
I wrote and shared it for myself.
It was part of my healing journey.
I did it to reclaim my voice, my truth, my power.
But it spoke to people.
It touched them.
Because my story, unfortunately, wasn’t unique.
Today, I help my clients find their voice and their power.
It’s not attention-seeking.
It’s not self-indulgent.
It’s not a bit waste of time or a sign of covert narcissism.
It’s a healthy human need.
To be seen. To be heard. To be understood.
To seek and to receive attention.
And when we do, when we receive attention, our own and that of others, the hunger for it just disappears.
Because the need is met.
And the more healthily and consistently you meet that need, the more fully expressed and empowered you will become.
And that, that is a thing of beauty.
That is an act of love.
