The Power of Letting Go

A long ago memory came to mind today. I was living in Kansas City, raising two little girls, running a thriving career counseling firm. Business was hopping, but I wasn’t happy. I was longing to live near water and write.

Huh??? I’d never written anything. And there was no water in KC (at least none that I’d want to live near!). Why would I give up a flourishing business, uproot my kids, leave behind a network of friends and reliable babysitters? 

That’s when I stumbled on a quote by Carl Jung: “For better to come, good must stand aside.”

I grabbed onto those words as if they were gospel. Was it time for me to give up “good”? Was “better” really out there…waiting? It was a risk I was willing to take. 

Seven books later and still living on water, I have enormous respect for the power of Letting Go. And the scarier it is to release, the more magical the results. The moment I decided to give up my business, someone on my staff offered to buy it. Within 6 months I was living on the side of a hill, outside San Francisco, overlooking water.

Then, out of the blue, a national magazine asked me to write a monthly column. And they paid me!!! I was officially a writer.

Is there something “good” you may need to let go of for “better” to come? Think about it. Then leave me a comment below.