Being Me Interviews – Andrea Olson

Why am I running this series of interviews? – Each of us is on a journey, some people take different paths, some people feel others are ‘ahead’ of them, others feel overwhelmed they might never get there. I want you to be comfortable recognising that where you are is perfect, it’s the best starting point you could want.  Now start!

Today in the Being Me spotlight, I am joined by Andrea Olson.  Andrea and I have a penchant for similar thinking which makes this a double pleasure as I’m often found commenting over on her blog and website A Multitude of Things.  What I love most is that Andrea is honest that  we are more than just one thing, we are complex and multi faceted and it must be celebrated, or we will become one dimensional.

What do you love most about being you?

I love that I am a deep thinker – I get so much pleasure out of pondering, considering, creating, and exploring. I like to weave seemingly disparate ideas together until it makes something beautiful, useful, and interesting. Along with that, I love that I can see and appreciate beauty everywhere. Oh, and I have a great sense of humor. I love to laugh!

What do you like least?

I can be wickedly impatient. When I see what could be or how it could be done, I often get impatient when others can’t see the same thing or if I can’t get there quickly enough. I’ve been that way since I was a child and I try to remember that not everyone looks at things the way I do.

Was there ever a time when you didn’t like being you?

Of course! For the longest time, I thought there something was wrong with me because I couldn’t find one thing I was passionate about. I went from career to career and from interest to interest searching for my passion. It’s only recently that I realized nothing is wrong with me – I love a multitude of things and it is perfectly okay to try them all, if and when I want to. My passion is following my interests and crafting a life I am absolutely in love with!

What was your biggest hangup?

Not honoring my intuition has been one of my biggest challenges. My intuition always knows what I should do; however, I have sometimes ignored it in favor of convention or what others expect of me. After going around and around (and feeling incredibly indecisive), I almost always end up where my intuition said I should be in the first place.

How have you overcome it?

I’m not sure that I’ve overcome it completely. The difference now, for me, is that I am so much more aware that I have a strong inner compass and, when I start spinning with indecision, I know I just need to slow down long enough to hear myself. I try to find that quiet time – writing or walking along the beach – where I can feel what’s true.

What have you learned?

Listening to ourselves is critical. We really do know what we know – no matter how much we pretend that circumstances are dictating our choices.

How has it affected your relationships?

Turning a blind eye to what I knew to be true or pretending or wishing it wasn’t there had unfortunate consequences. I persisted in relationships, hoping that I was wrong, and being devastated when I wasn’t.

If you have any, what are your stumbling blocks?

Oh goodness. Stumbling blocks? I think the biggest challenge for me right now is single parenthood. Raising a young child leaves me scrambling for time and energy. I don’t always have the bandwidth to do everything I want to, when I want to, and that can be frustrating – especially when trying to build a business and manage multiple ideas and projects. At the end of the day, though, I realize I am doing the most important thing I can do right now and that is raise a wonderful child. The rest of it – well, it will happen exactly the way it is supposed to, one small step at a time.

What advice would give others who don’t yet like themselves?

I would say, be kind and gentle to yourself. No one else will do a better job of loving and caring for you than you will – just try it. If it is hard for you, pretend that you are someone you are in love with and think of how you would treat them. With kindness. With consideration. With tenderness. That is exactly what you deserve. You may not like everything about yourself but you definitely need to love yourself. Love builds acceptance and acceptance opens the door to possibility.

About Andrea - 

Andrea Olson is the creator of amutltitudeofthings.com, a community of individuals dedicated to embracing their possibilities and crafting lives they love. Andrea recently launched Possible to Probable where she works with individuals and groups as a personal dream manager, drawing on her background in law and a multitude of things in between.

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When you are ready to start first liking, and then learning to love yourself, you’ll be glad of this 28 day email course – How to Navigate your Relationships – it puts you in the centre of every relationship you’ve ever had with family, friends or partners and enables you to create the ones you want and deserve.

Next week, I’m joined by Annu Tara, The Dakini Portal

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