Why is it that when something isn't finished or incomplete, we feel bad saying "It's a work in progress"?  In this episode, Jenine shares her thoughts around this phrase and why it's a good thing to be a "work in progress."

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Transcript:

Hey, Badass! Welcome back to the Kindhearted Badass show. It's been a minute, huh? Thank you for your patience with me. I had, you know, some emotional stuff I was dealing with the last couple of weeks and then last weekend as I'm recording this, we had our very first ever Kindhearted Badass crew vacation.

And it was awesome. We had a couple of the women came out from the St Louis area with Heather. We had our good friend, Linda and Suzanne over there. Our friend Stephanie came and, and Wendy, who is one of the most Kindhearted Badass women I know. And Pam, it was just awesome. We're already planning our trip for next year.

And I cannot wait because it was so fun and relaxing and energizing. And for as much as I love connecting with everybody online and I am so grateful, we have that opportunity. And it's also really frigging awesome to be able to get together in person. Right. So anyway, I did not get a podcast to you last week. And I could have beat myself up for it.

I could apologize, but the fact that the matter is I didn't do anything wrong. So I'm not apologizing and I'm not beating myself up for it. When Cliff, our amazing, wonderful pro podcast producer, asked me last week, Hey, uh, you didn't give me an episode to do this week. I was just like, Nope, I did not.

And I am okay with that. Ah, and it felt really good to just give myself permission to not try to be perfect. Imperfect action. That's what we're about over here in the KHB crew. Right. Okay. Anyway, what I wanted to talk to you about today is something that comes up a lot, both in conversations with my private coaching clients in the KHB crew chats, in the mastermind the program.

I hear people saying this all the time. And I'm sure I did for many, many years too. And I just gotta say it kind of drives me a little crazy. So we're going to talk about the fact today that you are a work in progress and that's exactly what you're supposed to be. Okay. Well, let's look at this. If I not, if I looked up the definition of work-in-progress online. And it simply said a project that is not complete yet. Something that's not finished.

Well, guess what are you finished? Because I'm sure it should not. I'm 41. I figure that should give me if I'm not looking at the age as my parents died, unfortunately, that should give me a good, like 40, 50, hopefully, maybe like 60 or 70 more years. I wouldn't mind breaking some records someday. But I'm, I'm, you know, maybe at most halfway there, hopefully. Hopefully not nowhere near halfway yet, not trying to be morbid. But the fact of the matter is I am a work in progress.

I am not finished. Neither are you, we're not finished until we're done living. And it boggles my mind, I guess it doesn't really boggle my mind, I guess, after all the years of studying personal development and coaching and running the KHB crew with Heather. And now that we're doing this mastermind program, which is amazing by the way, and stay tuned, because if you have questions, there will be an episode coming up soon, all about that.

And, uh, we're going to have some of our friends join us. But anyway, back to what I was telling you today, so a work in progress. We are all works in progress and that's exactly what we're supposed to be until the day we die. We're supposed to be learning and growing. Right. So why is it that people so often present themselves as apologizing for being exactly what they're supposed to be which is an unfinished work in progress.

Right? I hear especially women all the time. We say. Somebody be like, oh wow, you're doing so great. Like, look at the business that you're building. Oh, well, you know, it's still a work in progress. Oh wow. You're trying to lose weight. You look amazing. Yeah. I, you know, I'm, I'm almost there, but I'm still a work in progress.

Uh, or how about this? Like, uh, oh, like, oh, your new house is coming along so nicely. The builder's making good progress. Yeah. It's still a work in progress. Of course it is. It's not finished and neither you, right. So how can we shift that mentality? Right? How can we stop thinking that being a work in progress means that there is something's wrong with us or something missing from us or our lives or what we're doing.

I want to know what you think about this. So I would love, love, love for you to reach out to me, email me at hello at kindhearted badass dot com. And I'll put that on the show notes pages. And tell me, tell me how you have apologized in the past for being a work in progress. And when I tell you that that's exactly what you're supposed to be, what feelings does that bring up?

Because I find oftentimes when I share that with people that I'm working with or just, you know, even just a conversation that I'm having with a friend or somebody, they kind of look at me funny. It's like, we all get it in a logical. Well, yeah, that makes sense. Way. Of course we're still works in progress.

We're not dead, we're growing, we're learning. Right. But then you would, again, they apologize again for being a work in progress. So. I guess this is my very roundabout way of saying that I give you full and complete 110% permission to be a work in progress. In fact, that's what I want you to be. That's what you should want for yourself and your loved ones and your children or your employees, or whoever, because if you're not a work in progress, you are not growing.

You're not learning. That means you're finished. Right. And like I said earlier, I don't know about you. I'm only 41. And I am far from finished with this life. I've got major, major, big plans for Kindhearted Badass for our vacation next year. And for my kids and my husband and my life, I got lots of amazing things on my dream board that Heather helped me create that I want to do and grow and learn and see. I'm not done and neither are you.

So my challenge to you is next time you find yourself thinking or saying, or feeling like you should apologize for being a work in progress. I'm trying to think about this and remind herself. Well, yeah, of course I'm a work in progress. Because I'm still alive. I'm still here and that is exactly what I'm supposed to be.

Right. Okay. Until next time my friend stay strong. Stop apologizing. Sprinkle kindness everywhere you go. Keep growing and learning and send me an email and share your story with me. All right. Talk soon, my friend. Bye for now.