Your Aspirations Are Not the Enemy

(Why Becoming Starts With Being)

We all carry an image — a version of who we think we should be, could be, or hope to become.

Whether it’s:

• the confident leader

• the calm parent

• the creative visionary

• the healed, grounded, purposeful self

That ideal isn’t bad. It’s not wrong.
It’s actually… sacred.

It points to our longings.
Our values.
Our desire to grow.

But here’s what I’d say to anyone (including myself) chasing that ideal:

🌱 Your aspirations are a compass, not a measuring stick.
Let them guide you — but don’t use them to beat yourself up for where you are right now.

That ideal version of you isn’t someone you need to become in order to be worthy.
That version of you is actually already inside you — just waiting to be related to with care, consistency, and patience.

It doesn’t need to be forced.
It needs to be nurtured into expression.

✨ You grow into that version — not by striving harder, but by relating to yourself better.
It’s not about pressure.
It’s about presence — staying close to yourself even when it’s hard.

The “ideal you” doesn’t come to life when you’ve eliminated all flaws.
It comes to life in the way you show up when you:

• fall short and still stay kind

• feel scared and still take one small step

• don’t know the answer but stay present anyway

That’s how the future you is built —
Right here, in the now.

So yes, dream big.
Hold your vision.
Envision the person you want to be.

But don’t forget:

🌿 The only way to become more of yourself… is to start by being with yourself.
Not the ideal.
Not the imagined.
But the present, imperfect, unfolding you.

And that’s not settling —
That’s rooting.
That’s what makes your growth real.