Why Speaking Your Truth Feels Hard: How to Do It Anyway And Hold Your Boundaries Too

Why Speaking Your Truth Feels Scary

The brighter you shine, the more you illuminate the shadows around you.

If you’re terrified to speak up, set boundaries, or let them know how you really feel, this is for you…

In leadership, you will be invited to share uncomfortable things that rock the status quo…to say the hard thing, to name your needs, to speak your truth.

You will be asked to engage in forms of communication that push your growth edges and to hold firmly in your truth… even when others disagree.

And when you do, your body may respond with panic...

Your Body Is Reacting, Not Judging

The pounding in your chest, nausea in your belly, or urge to shrink or silence yourself doesn’t mean you’re wrong. Often, they're your body alerting you to a potential threat.

But these physical sensations don’t always mean you’re in trouble or you’ve done something wrong… they mean you’re pushing the edges of your comfort zone.

It may feel easier to stay silent, shrink, or smile and mask the resentment inside…

...but in the long run, you’re the one compromising while your needs & desires slowly wither in the background.

Fear of Others Keeps You Small

When someone tries to silence you, it is almost always their own fear, & inability to see a bigger picture over a rigid viewpoint that keeps their world small.

And when you play into that storyline, whether with a client, a family member, a friend, or even a stranger on the internet, your world shrinks too.

People will not always like what you have to say, and that’s OK.

Patterns That Limit Your Growth

The fear of someone else’s response is what keeps you from sharing your truth…

...and it’s a pattern that comes up again & again, especially as you attempt to make change, shift the culture around you, or step more fully into leading yourself (& others).

Most women fawn or attempt to manage the emotions of the other. They placate discomfort. Or retreat into old patterns of self-doubt.

But let me tell you — this only enforces a pattern of disempowerment in both you and the person in front of you.

Instead of collapsing under the perceived weight of someone else’s projection, fear, or discomfort, start to see it for what it is…

THEIR WORK TO HOLD. NOT YOURS.

In Speaking Your Truth and Holding Boundaries, Your Work Is to Hold Yourself

Your work is not to shrink or cower.

It’s not to go back & forth soothing someone else’s wounds.

Your work is to fully embrace your own discomfort.

To stay with the physical sensations that arise when you think about taking up more space (& possibly pissing someone else off).

Because the brighter you shine, the more you illuminate the shadows around you.

And it’s the fear of their reaction (& possible rejection), not your truth, that makes you want to dim down.

This is why speaking your truth and holding boundaries can feel terrifying. Why leaving a relationship or taking a risk in your work feels unbearable.

Because you’re terrified of the somatic imprint of being uncomfortable.

Stepping Into Your Power

But here’s the truth: touching that sensation NOW doesn’t mean you’re unsafe, even if at one point it did. It means you’re pressing the edges of your comfort zone and stretching into more of yourself.

If this theme feels especially alive for you right now, I’d love to support you in navigating it in a private session. This is the work I do with women and facilitators every day, and I’d be honored to support you.

You can book your session below.

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