Have you ever felt like your ideas are just too weird to share?
Have you ever second-guessed yourself because a thought was just too random to be of any use?
You know that moment when you discover something about a situation or there is an outcome to something and you have that realization of,
“I knew that!”
“I so knew that was going to happen”
OR
“If only I’d listened to that thought, there would be a different outcome!”
I know most women out there will get what I am talking about!
In fact I have been talking a lot about the feminine intuition and knowing recently. Tapping into and acknowledging the YIN energy, the divine feminine that goes within, rather than pushing for an outward solution.
It is one thing to have that inner inkling and another to actually allow those feelings to become thoughts that you pay attention to.
SO how and why can you allow those left field thoughts to come through and inform decisions and actions you take?
The etymology of the phrase -
“that idea came out of Left field”
“left field thinking”
“this idea is a little left field”
- is interesting.
This comes from an American sport – BASEBALL.
Now I am not generally into watching sport, let alone one that is culturally distant from me. But the influence of this sport in creating a phrase that I use often was worth investigating.
The left field is the area of the field that as the batter stands at the plate is to his left.
The reasons for the association to the phrase ‘that idea came out of left field’ are:
1. It is an area of the field, which doesn’t see much action and so when something happens in left field it is out of the ordinary.
2. If the batter hits a ball deep into Left field it takes a pretty superb and extraordinary throw to get the ball all the way from left outfield to first base.
3. If a batter is running third base to home base (not the British DIY store!) and the ball has been hit to left field, the incoming ball to home base will be coming from behind him and so seemingly come out of nowhere because he can’t see it running with his back to left field.
I use this phrase a lot, because I am that player that likes to stand out in left field and wait for the odd balls, the seemingly random, the dynamically different plays to come about.
The hustle, the drive, the tension, the GO GO GO of the rest of the field is quite unappealing.
Too often in life the creative, the left field thinkers, the talented yet diverse players are being forced to play right field or in positions where they are not thriving, because the pace, energy and intention of those positions is NOT their way to play.
How many people have you met or do you know that have spent a large proportion of their life doing what they thought was the ‘right’ thing to do?
They got the expected education to follow the career path that made the most sense, according to the information they were given by their parents, teachers and societies expectations at the time, and ended up in a job that ticked all the boxes.
BUT it didn’t bring them joy, allow them to play life their way or fulfill that space in them that desired to be expressed.
Sound familiar?
There are not many people who want to stand out in Left field, and play the game a little differently.
It takes a certain kind of courage and inner confidence to:
- Play a position that seems slow, is not as exciting because it’s not busy busy, (as others perceive the game should be)
- Watch the game from a different perspective,
- Know that their input from that unexpected, somewhat difficult position, will not always be understood and accepted as a viable solution
-Yet still have the absolute certainty that one is in the right place at the right time with the right idea for the situation that is presenting…
That there is stepping into that inner wisdom, feminine intuition and allowing it become a left field thought that informs your game!
I am constantly practicing and strengthening my left field positioning.
Some people call it thinking outside the box.
I say, “WHAT BOX?”
This is my playing field and it is as far left as I choose it to be. I am a very good left field player, and know how to ‘coach’ people to play their best left field position.
Or in other words - help people see, feel and hear what is coming from that inner place and wanting to be expressed on the playing field of their life.
So yes I am a coach but not like any other you have ever seen teach people to play this game of life.
Have you got a ‘friend’ who you just know is ignoring the amazingness they have inside them because they are:
- too scared to break free from what’s expected
- lacking confidence to take that first step
- doubting themselves and their dreams
- too embroiled in the game /drama /routine of their well planned and scheduled life to follow their heart
You can see them shrinking, struggling and slowly fading as they dim their light to continue to merely exist.
Perhaps that 'friend' needs a little nudge to try out the left field and see it suits them better.
and if it does - I'll be there, waiting for the right time, for the right feeling, for the right person, to show them how to play their game, their way.
bit.ly/chat2ruth