GROUNDING YOURSELF IN AUTHENTICITY

By Christy McCaffrey

What does it mean to be authentically true to yourself? Well, it starts with connecting to and better defining what feels authentically true for you. From a young age we are bombarded with, and oftentimes overwhelmed by, the opinions and ideas of the world around us. And sometimes, amidst all this, it can be really challenging to grasp what it is that is true and authentic to us when we feel so much pressure to either fit in or to gain the approval of those whose opinions matter most to us. But that is exactly why it’s necessary to create some inner self-awareness and to gain a better understanding of what is true for you so that you can begin to separate your own wants, needs, and desires, from the wants, needs, and desires of those around you. When you begin to create some inner space for yourself you can better identify what feels true and aligned for you. Connecting to this authentic space within yourself will allow you to create a deep awareness and appreciation for what makes you uniquely YOU, and it will help you better understand how valuable it can be to ground yourself in your own truth.

This can take some bravery and might seem a little scary at first, but if you take the time to ask yourself some important questions you will gain more clarity around who you authentically are and thus will begin to feel more confident and comfortable with owning that authenticity. Taking time for yourself to reflect on your dreams, goals, and desires can help you to step away from the pressures of the world for a moment and allow you to gain a clearer perspective of what it is that really matters most to you.

Some valuable questions to ask yourself would be: (jot down your answers in a journal or on a piece of paper)

1.    How do I want to feel on a daily basis?

2.    What is my greatest hope, dream or vision for myself?

3.    What activities or creative outlets make me feel most alive and excited?

4.    If I were to remove any fear, doubt, or any other obstacle that might stand in my way, what is the truest dream I have in my heart for my future?

5.    What unique gifts or talents do I have to offer the world that could benefit someone else in a positive way?

6.    What are my favorite qualities about myself? What are my greatest strengths?

7.    Who or what makes me feel most supported and free to be myself?

8.    What values are most important to me when it comes to friendships or relationships?

9.    How can I cultivate more self-love and self-care?

10.How can I best show up for myself and move towards my authentic dreams, goals and desires?

 As a young woman, there is truly no better time than now to begin to cultivate the practice of introspection, taking stock of what matters most to you and getting honest with yourself about what it is that you need to do, feel, or experience that will ultimately help you feel more supported from within. Gaining a clear connection to your authentic desires and needs will ultimately help you begin to build a solid foundation of inner strength. From this strengthened place, you can then begin to step up as your own greatest cheerleader and support system. This new perspective will also offer you a greater level of confidence and better prepare you to handle any challenges that might come your way.

It’s important to keep in mind that your dreams, goals and desires are naturally going to shift and change just as you too will grow and evolve as a person. Therefore, it is important to remember to be gentle with yourself and your dreams – allowing yourself the space and time to grow and allowing your dreams the space and time to take shape. What is meant for you will always find you if you remain open and committed to an authentic path. Remaining true to yourself will always guide you in the right direction.

What does it mean to stay grounded in authenticity? It simply means to commit to making yourself and your ever-evolving wants, needs, desires, dreams and goals, a priority. It means owning the fact that who you are is absolutely, brilliantly, and powerfully unique and that your willingness to show up as your authentic self is one of the bravest, most powerful and rewarding things you will ever do in your life. Your unique authentic truth is something the world desperately needs and can endlessly benefit from. Taking care of yourself, honoring what is true and authentic for you and remaining committed to an ongoing journey of introspection will allow you to live a life of deep purpose and joy and will naturally guide you towards achieving your most authentic goals. This life is yours to create and staying grounded in your authentic truth will ensure that you will cultivate a life that you are genuinely proud of. Stay true to yourself, stay authentic, and most importantly shine your own unique light into the world!

 

About the author, Christy McCaffrey:

Christy is a wife, mom to 3, non profit director, speaker, podcast host and writer/producer born and raised just outside of Philadelphia, PA, where I live and work today.

Be The Good podcast

Project Scleroderma

Wisdom Work podcast

 Christy McCaffrey website

WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH – SEVEN TRAILBLAZERS IN HISTORY

In celebration of Women’s History Month, we are featuring women to know in history who have paved the path for girls and women today. Below you will find exceptional women and some of their notable career highlights – the list is not comprehensive, but rather an overview of major career accomplishments by historic female trailblazers.

Sandra Day O’Connor

  • First female to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States (elected 1981)

  • In 2009 she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by then-President Barack Obama

  • Known for being firm, but just as a justice of the Supreme Court and held moderately conservative views

  • She was the deciding factor in many Supreme Court decisions and wrote over 100 majority opinions

  • Served on the Supreme Court of the United States for 24 years and was respected across the political aisle

Rosa Parks

  • Avid civil rights activist in the mid-1900s during a time when segregation was celebrated in the South – famous for refusing to give up her seat on a public bus to a white man (black people were ordered to give up their seats for white people during this time)

  • Awarded the NAACP Spingarn Medal and the MLK Jr. award

  • Author of two books (My Story and Quiet Strength)

  • In December of 2000, The Rosa Parks Library and Museum was dedicated on the campus of Troy University in Montgomery, Alabama. The museum is famous for its statue of Rosa sitting on a bus bench.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg

  • Graduated first in her class from Columbia Law School

  • Co-founded the first law journal on women’s rights (Women’s Rights Law Reporter)

  • Co-founded the Women’s Rights Project at ACLU (American Civil Liberty Union)

  • She took on a majority of gender inequality cases and championed women’s rights in a respectful and diligent manner

  • First female Jewish Justice nominated to the Supreme Court of the United States (second to Sandra Day O’Connor)

Elizabeth Blackwell

  • The first female to receive a medical degree in the United States (after being rejected by multiple medical schools)

  • Her decision to be accepted by Geneva Medical School was decided by the 150 male students in the class by unanimous vote

  • The first woman on the UK Medical Register

  • Established a successful private medical practice

  • Her sister was the third woman to receive a medical degree in the United States

Amelia Earhart

  • First female to fly solo and non-stop across the Atlantic

  • She accepted a position at the magazine Cosmopolitan to campaign for greater acceptance of women in aviation

  • She disappeared in 1937 in a highly publicized trip across the Pacific Ocean and has not been found since

  • Awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross by the United States Armed Forces for accomplishing an extraordinary aerial flight achievement

Valentina Tereshkova

  • First female in space aboard the then-Soviet Union’s Vostok 6 on a solo mission (1963)

  • 64 women have since gone to space thanks to Valentina’s trailblazing moment of orbiting around Earth solo

  • She spent more than 70 hours orbiting the Earth during her flight

  • She was a Head of State in the Soviet Union (before its fall) and was elected a member of the World Peace Council in 1966

Billie Jean King

  • A famous tennis athlete, she and her doubles partner Karen Hantze won the Wimbledon Ladies Doubles Championship shortly after graduating high school

  • She was the No. 1 ranked tennis player in the world, winning the Wimbledon Ladies Singles Championship and the U.S. Nationals (now U.S. Open)

  • She spoke out on gender inequality within the sport of tennis and started her own tennis league in response to unfair treatment by Wimbledon and the U.S. Open

  • First female athlete to earn more than $100,000

  • First female athlete to be named sportsperson of the year by Sports Illustrated

THE CHANGE IN COACHING OVER TIME

I have been coaching youth sports for over 25 years, primarily softball and wrestling. During that time, I have seen sports and coaching attitudes change considerably. When I was a kid myself, we had few options, with no cell phones, no internet, and no HULU.  We would wake up on the weekends or any day during the Summer and everyone would play the sport of the season with no parent involvement and no coaches.  My coaches at Bogan High School did a good job both in golf and wrestling but most the fun was off the golf course and wrestling mats in social settings. I can’t recall ever getting positive encouragement during competition nor did I ever expect it. I’ve always felt you needed to make things fun for the kids to want to play, even when I started the Beverly Bandits at the beginning of the newly founded Beverly recreation program back in 1995. I coached multiple teams and I would make sure regardless of how good or bad we played, I would always take the kids across the street to 7-11 for a slurpy and a candy bar. Kids loved it and even if I had barked out constructive criticism or screamed at them during the game out of my frustration, everyone always had fun with a simple treat at the end of each game.

As time went passing by, I noticed a few changes in the game – kids no longer played sports unless it was organized with coaches, and they watched far less baseball on T.V. because the internet offered so many other options, not to mention video games. Kids became better athletes through specialized training; they became faster and stronger. Parents became more involved, as youth sports, in general, became more of a business. I always felt I was more of an old-school type coach: fundamental defense with aggressive offense and solid pitching would win most battles.  I would bark during the games and try to have fun with the team afterward. As the years passed, I realized that players were becoming more sensitive and less productive when I would bark or scream. I noticed that certain players needed a kick in the you-know-what to get the most out of them, but more and more players needed positive words of encouragement to get the best out of them. I’m a creature of habit – I was used to my old school ways but I also wanted to get the best out of my athletes, so something had to change. I now try my best to teach still using constructive criticism but without ever screaming in a player’s face. I also do my best to now provide positive words of encouragement when needed, which is more and more often.

I feel the days of negative reinforcement with disparaging words in any sport, in hopes of getting the best of an athlete in any sport, is a dying breed. Today’s athletes need positivity to be their best and it’s the old school coaches that actually need to embrace the change if they want to keep the players and families happy and productive.

BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS FOR YOUNG GIRLS AND WOMEN

This time of year, the only thing we find ourselves wanting to do is cozy up with a good book, a fuzzy blanket, and a warm coffee or tea. If you are an avid reader, you likely have a laundry list of books on your list to read; if you are just getting into reading, this is your place to start! Or, if you are a loved one of a girl who needs some good reads, check out our list below. There are inspiring books and fiction novels – a book for every girl or woman in your life.

We pulled together a list of books for every type of reader – if you have more to add, send us an email with your recommendations! We have recommendations for each age group below and will continue to add to this list as they come in.

Age group: Elementary school

  1. The Never Girls series

  2. Roller Girl

  3. Little Leaders: Bold Women in Black History

  4. The Complete Gallagher Girls collection

  5. The World Needs Who You Were Made To Be

  6. Millie Maven series

Age group: Middle school

  1. The Mysterious Benedict Society

  2. Princess of Glass

  3. Brown Girl Dreaming

  4. York: The Shadow Cipher

  5. Goodbye Stranger

  6. Drama, Rumors & Secrets

Age group: High school

  1. Brave, Not Perfect

  2. How Far You Have Come

  3. Well, That Was Awkward

  4. Body Image Workbook for Teens

  5. Break The Fall

  6. The Hate U Give

Age group: Young adults/women of all ages

  1. Untamed

  2. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series

  3. What Will It Take To Make A Woman President?

  4. Lead From the Outside

  5. The Last Thing He Told Me

  6. That’s What She Said

A good book is medicine for the soul and a great way to expand your vocabulary, learn about interesting things and places, and challenge the way you think about something. Send us your book recommendations and we will add them to this list!