The Quality of Joy
Your Gift
- You bring a sense of utter joy into every space you walk into. The thrill of being alive is yours to experience on a daily basis. Along with the highs, come the lows, and the experience of life that is your birthright includes a very rich, broad spectrum. You feel things more than most humans do, and are regularly present to all that the moment has to offer. You are a delight to go exploring with, and a pleasure to sample new things. You continually delight at what life has to offer.
Predictability
- Predictably, you will learn that the cost of your gifts are a lot to bear. Feel the highs of life means that the you will also feel the lows, and as you are trained by the world around you that sadness and anger are not as acceptable as joy and laughter, you will retreat to the comfort of bliss to stay safe. Predictably, you will vacillate between fleeing from the downer parts of life, perpetually remaining childlike and childish in your relationship with life, and wallowing in the sadness and anger when it becomes too much to avoid. Around you, people will tend to learn one important lesson: Sadness and/or anger are not acceptable and should be avoided at all costs. “Let’s keep things happy!”
Possibility
- You represent the possibility of us finding joy in all parts of this crazy existence. That joy doesn’t necessarily look like gregarious laughter. It may be finding the joy in experiencing deep, clean grief for a lost loved one. It may be finding the joy that comes from the purifying flames of our own anger. When you do the work to overcome your fears about the darker side of the emotional spectrum, you light the way for all of us to experience the parts of life we are most afraid of. By expanding your own range and capacity as a leader, you hold space and give permission for all of us to do the same.
Common Experience Coming of Age
- You likely wondered where childhood went and why everyone was in such a hurry to grow up. The natural joy of a child is your birthright, and adults, and your maturing peers, were likely confusing to you. “Guys, why are we suddenly finding reasons that playing tag isn’t awesome?”
Consequences of Owning Your Gifts
- Seeing the light in every moment can be obnoxious, especially when people are in a place where they want and/or need to be feeling the darkness of life. When you let yourself fully express your joy, people may have a tendency to initially dismiss you as fanciful or silly. Full expression requires not only a willingness to share, but also to be responsibility for our impact as we do so. Part of your journey may involve owning the way you can come off, so you can be intentional about it (rather than at the effect of it).