Getting Out of the Box and Living An Authentic Life

Let’s talk about living a boxed-in life, I want to start by sharing about Breonna Taylor and everything that has happened there. It ties in because there are some that are of the mindset that because you have an ex-boyfriend, who was a drug dealer, that is a reflection of you. 

I want to caution you that if we decided that all of a sudden, everyone who we've ever been associated with is going to be a reflection of us … wow, none of us would have really good ground to stand on. I'm sure we have someone in our path, whether a family member or a friend or someone else who may not be living in the way that some might think they should. 

That ties into living a boxed-in life. I feel that for so many of us, we're in boxes that other people have put us in. People have put her in a box because she dated someone who is now a drug dealer. We allow people to put us in a box and sometimes we do it to ourselves. We need to break the cycle and break out of those boxes that we are in. We still allow people to frame our lives. I'm not the same person I was when I first got married, life changes and we change in that process. We are constantly growing, evolving, and hopefully learning new things. We’re taking on new things and engaging in our personal growth, we don't stay the same neither does our personality. 

As a result, we shouldn't allow ourselves to have these self-limiting beliefs. This forces us to believe this is the only box that I am going to operate in. You don’t have to operate and function in that box! There is nothing that says that you have to stay the exact same person you were when you finished high school. I want to challenge us to think about those boxes that we need to bust out. They don't define us! They are not us. They're not even serving us anymore. That might be a little difficult because it might mean that we have to leave that circle of friends that we have because instead of letting us soar, they're trying to clip our wings.

The same applies in business as it does in life. Are you looking around at others who are spurring you forward, or are you looking around and you find others who are constantly tearing you down? If they're tearing you down, then you may need to find another circle of friends, another group of people who are actually supportive of what you're doing, who are actually encouraging you to take on challenges to do hard things. The truth is, even if it's imperfect, it's still going to be okay. When we're thinking about those things and the opportunities that exist for us, there's nothing to keep us in those boxes, but ourselves.

Sometimes that's our family. We learn from the past, but let’s keep it there … in the past. Let's leave it there. Ask yourself what boxes do you need to bust out of, what is holding you back from stepping forward and doing the things that you know deep down inside you want to do? You keep trying to push it away, but it keeps coming back. What is that thing? 

Start doing that thing! Don't let anyone tell you, you can't do it. It's yours to do and you CAN. You're being called to do it, so you're going to wind up doing it. If you decide to not do it now, trust me, it's still going to be there tomorrow, five years from now, 10 years from now. The difference is whether or not you've acted on it now, and seen the benefits of that or you wait another couple of years to act on it. 

Stop letting others define who you are, what you do, and how far you can soar. The sky's the limit and I want you to spread your wings. 

Kiva Slade is the CEO and Founder of The 516 Collaborative.

She is a Certified Online Business Manager® who partners with mid 6-7 figure business owners serving as their confidante, voice of reason and manager of all things operations, teams, and projects.

Kiva holds a Master's degree in Public Administration and has operated her own jewelry business. Her 20 years of experience run the gamut from Legislative Director for a member of Congress to chief encouragement officer for her teenage children.

In her free time, you can find her indulging in gluten free desserts, playing in the dirt in her garden, or with a good book.