Why you need BOTH grit AND grace to move forward
You’re either burnt out or have it all together; that’s the two options, right?
WRONG.
I recently learned about a term called Cognitive Dissonance.
Cognitive Dissonance
“The test of first-rate intelligence is the ability to hold two opposing ideas in mind at the same time and still retain the ability to function. One should, for example, be able to see that things are hopeless yet be determined to make them otherwise.”
While this scenario may sound uncomfortable at first, it is one that has stuck in my mind.
Two things can be true.
It doesn’t make one untrue.
It doesn’t mean one is better than the other. It just is.
You can be sad, and hopeful…at the same time.
You can have grace AND grit…at the same time.
You can be knocked down…and be thankful it wasn’t worse.
So often in life, we try to categorize as if we can only feel ONE thing.
We are either grit…or we're grace.
But what if you can BE both? What if you can FEEL both?
What if..in fact, you NEED to be both?
If you only stand by GRIT to guide you forward:
You will be led to exhaustion, burnout, and toxic positivity.
You will inevitably, at some point, feel inadequate, if not constantly
You will be chasing achievement while letting all else fall to the wayside
Grit says you ALWAYS have to be on. Which in turn means you make no time for self-care.
Grit is the “pick yourself up by the bootstraps” with no room for the emotions that are necessary for our lives.
Grit is competitive, ruthless, and lonely.
If you only stand by GRACE to guide you forward:
You may be stuck in a lack of motivation
You’ll pause at decision-making, imposter syndrome and
You’ll be taking care of yourself…but stagnant, in fear of pushing too hard
Grace is necessary for our lives, no matter the circumstances.
But where does that lever lie between giving ourselves grace and then getting back to work?
We can indulge ourselves with grace to the point of giving up and justifying that we’re okay with it when on a deeper level, a bigger, more aligned life is our dream. A dream that can only happen with a bit of grit to go against the grain.
We need both grit and grace. There is no magical number of hours, days or balance of the two, but we certainly need the ability to flex between them.
In motherhood, In your business, In your mind and life…the balance keeps us grounded in self-care while working strongly towards those big dreams.
Grace says, “I am pausing to heal”, while Grit can simultaneously say, “There is something I can learn from this situation. When I’ve given myself time, I will pick things, pack up and move forward. “
Grace says, “I’ve worked too hard I’m taking a break or it’s been a hard day,” while Grit keeps you moving forward and takes tiny bites out of the overall picture
Grace says, “I’m learning, and I am good enough,” Grit says, “I need to push through this because I know what's blocking me”
Juxtaposition.
If we let GRACE sit at the table beside GRIT, something magic happens.
We find that we can be ambitious while still taking care of ourselves.
Let’s Connect
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I’m building a community of ambitious women who support each other in pursuing our biggest, boldest dreams, and I hope you will come along for the wild ride.
Take care of your dream and yourself XO, MK
