Feeling a sense of emptiness is incredibly uncomfortable. Emptiness and loneliness often go hand in hand. We feel an urge to fill the emptiness so that we can avoid the uncomfortable feelings. Instead, embracing the emptiness is the best route, otherwise it will continue to resurface. Embracing the emptiness will inevitably allow us to feel the fullness in our lives.

Avoiding uncomfortable feelings like emptiness and loneliness will only keep us stuck in that discomfort. Moving out of one's comfort zone allows for growth and forward momentum.

Feeling uncertainty and avoiding change is another example of avoiding uncomfortable feelings. A while ago, I coached a client who realized the paradox of avoiding change while wanting it at the same time. While she didn't want the uncertainty that goes along with change, at the same time, she does want forward momentum in her life. She came to realize that change and getting out of her comfort zone is necessary, and is ready to move forward with her life.

In my life, I have constantly been "filling up" -- an insatiable search for knowledge, constantly reading books and looking for more learning; filling my schedule full of activities, to the point where it's all too much. I am now at a point where I want to "empty out". The quotation above, from Lao Tzu, keeps ringing in my head -- how it's time to stop accumulating and share what I know. Fortunately there are many channels available to allow and enable this: especially through PeopleJam! This environment provides a haven for emptying out gems of wisdom, and letting them land with whoever is ready to receive them.

I have gone through phases of de-cluttering and downsizing. A few years ago, I sold my house to enable me to start my coaching business. It was a wonderful feeling to downsize, give things away, and let go of all kinds of unnecessary physical belongings. I'm again at a stage where I feel it is time to downsize and de-clutter -- physically in terms of my schedule and activities; emotionally in terms of grieving loss; spiritually in terms of embracing the emptiness and meditating in silence; mentally in terms of sharing my wisdom. Instead of adding, it's time to eliminate. Instead of filling the emptiness, it's time to embrace it.