This is the transcript from Episode 1 of my Souls@Work podcast. If you would rather listen than read, you can find the audio file at Soul Growth Radio.
“Welcome to the first episode in my Souls@Work podcast, featured on Soul Growth Radio. I’m Dr. Britt Andreatta and I am a spiritual being with a day job.
My current day job is that I am a leadership coach and consultant. I have published several titles on leadership, learning and management and I get a monthly salary for being the Director of Learning and Development at a global company.
You can learn more about all that stuff at BrittAndreatta.com or from my LinkedIn profile.
This Souls@Work project has grown out of my own personal experience as well as those of the people I have coached and taught over the years.
What I noticed was that most of us deal with our jobs by putting on a shield. It may look professional on the outside but it also blocks our authenticity and highest self from shining through.
I hungered to find a way to bring my whole self to work, not just the person I suited up to be when I left my home.
So let me tell you a little about how I got here.
What I know for sure is that I am a spiritual being having a human experience. I know there is a part of me that is more than just this human suit I walk around in.
And that part is my soul. It’s my wisest self, and my higher self. It’s that part of me that is always trying to guide me toward being my best, and I believe it is connected to the Divine.
When I am at home or on the weekends, I do a good job honoring that higher self. I tune in to what it has to tell me and I approach the world with an open heart.
But then I have to go to work.
I don’t know about you, but I have found it difficult to approach work from a spiritual place. In fact, it never used crossed my mind to do so.
My work—and by that I mean, any job where I am paid to accomplish the goals that the organization has already chosen—my work was a place where I showed up to get shit done.
I gave my full attention, I did a good job, and I got paid for my efforts.
But I kept work separate from my personal life. I would no more consider bringing my spiritual self to work than I would consider wearing my slippers to the office.
This all changed a couple of years ago when I realized that while I may choose the times and places to practice my spirituality, my soul goes with me wherever I go.
And my soul was being crushed at work. You have heard the phrase “soul crushing jobs.” Well, I had one. I would dread Mondays so badly that my worry would start on Sunday morning, ruining half my weekend.
The job itself wasn’t bad but my boss was horrible. In fact, she made the people in the movie Horrible Bosses look like Mary Poppins..
When I had that job, I needed at first one, and then 2 glasses of wine when I got home to calm down–let’s be honest, I really mean numb out.
And when I was at the office, I would eat junk food to get through the day. I started crying more, and I was generally cranky and easily pissed off.
My misery was my soul telling me that things needed to change. The soul is always guiding us toward our higher selves. Whether we are spiritual or not, our soul helps us evolve to the next best version of ourselves.
I call it ‘the keeper of our potential’ because it’s that part of you that won’t let you settle. Sure, you might try to ignore it for a while, but it keeps tapping you on the shoulder and trying to get you to wake up.
I have noticed that the soul uses emotions to guide us toward our higher selves.
Emotions like misery and longing, or depression and anxiety, are powerful clues that you have gotten off the path you were meant to walk.
I was certainly miserable with where I was and I was longing to find something better.
Once I recognized that I was in bad shape at work, I turned to my spiritual practices to help me get back on track. I used both prayer and intention as well as a vision board to help me get clear about what I wanted.
And I did it! I manifested a much better job and the day I handed my horrible boss my letter of resignation, I felt triumphant and glorious!
I started my new job and it was great. I got to do meaningful work with some pretty awesome people. And my boss was so much better than the last one that I was in good shape.
But you know what I did? I went back to keeping my soul self separate from my work self.
The horrible boss problem was solved so I didn’t need my prayers or intentions any more, I just needed my to do lists and I was good.
Except I wasn’t.
My soul was no longer being crushed at work but it certainly wasn’t thriving either.
But this time, I didn’t have anyone to blame. There was no one doing the crushing “TO” me.
And thus began my own “souls@work” journey. I wanted to find a way to bring more meaning to my worklife. In fact, I didn’t even want to think of having a worklife and a homelife. I just wanted an integrated, soulful life.
Which meant I had to find a way to honor my soul wherever I was, no matter what I was doing. Even at work at my day job.
So that was my original goal and I am happy to say that I have achieved it. My work became more fulfilling and as a result, I got better at it too.
But something magical and unexpected happened along the way. As I brought my soulful self to work, my workplace started changing.
As I brought more kindness to my day job, the relationships with my coworkers got kinder too.
As I found a way to stay grounded and calm in the face of stress, so did my boss.
And as I became more authentic, others around me did as well.
Could it be that the reason so many of us find our workplaces to be soulless is because we are not allowing our souls to show up?
That was certainly true for me. And what if we all started showing up? Couldn’t that create a seismic shift in the world? I think so.
In this podcast, I will share with you what I learned as well as the tips and strategies that really worked for me. It turns out it is a three-stage process.
And the first stage is about how you SET UP. This stage is about doing a little prep work so that you can bring your soul self into your work life.
Now, let me be clear. I am not talking about bringing your spiritual practices to your workplace. I don’t believe that is the right time or place and there are laws that can make that a sticky situation.
But I am saying that your soul is already along for the ride so you might as well be intentional and conscious about it. Your soul is that part of you that hungers to grow and learn and become your best. And in fact, our workplaces are a wonderful playground for our souls if we set it up right.
So let’s figure out how to do that. Lesson 1 is about getting to know your higher self, the non-work soulful self that you see at home or on the weekends. Let’s peek behind that shield and see who is there.
I recommend doing a little journaling and ask yourself these questions.
- What do you already know about your higher self or soul self?
- What activities do you find fulfilling or bring you closest to your soul self?
- When you are honoring your soul self, who do you hang out with?
- How do you spend your time?
- What about the little things—what do you wear and what do you eat?
Do a little exploring to get to know your soul self a little better.
When I asked myself these questions, I discovered that my soul self does calming things on the weekends.
I listen to mellow music, I read, and I go for walks.
I also do something that helps me be in touch with my spirituality, like watch Super Soul Sunday, do yoga, pray and meditate.
I slow down and rest. I cuddle with my kitties.
I wear clothes that make me feel good and I eat more veggies.
And I do fun things with people I love or deeply like.
When I looked over this list, I realized that I was not doing ANY of them at work, or even on my WAY to work. Not a single one.
And yet several of them are transferrable to a work setting and that became a powerful starting place for me.
Your first assignment, my fellow spiritual being with a day job, is to find out more about your soul self. Do a little journaling this week and in my next podcast, we will look at how you can use that information to bring your soul self to work.
As we move forward, I’ll share with you some practical tips for:
- bringing your highest self to work
- showing grace in common workplace challenges
- learning the spiritual lessons your job presents
- and becoming an “agent of enlightenment” to help others honor their higher selves
If you want to take a deeper dive with this process, sign up for my upcoming
e-course where you will do some joyful and spirit-awakening heart-work and connect with like-minded souls. Learn more at www.SoulSchoolOnline.com.
I am happy to be taking this journey with your. Have a wonderful week.
Photo by Ryan McGuire.