I am not a Wrangler

This past week I decided to “own” something about myself.  I am not meant to be a “child wrangler”.  More specifically, I am not meant to be involved in the ‘business’ of helping out in the kids’ school in a capacity that involves managing students in their school activities.  I do not enjoy it.  I get grumpy when kids are not following the rules (aka ‘kids being kids’).  I have always been a ‘rule follower’ so it grates on my nerves and I cannot untangle from that feeling, so then I am a ‘bitter’ helper.

In the past I’ve held an erroneous belief that I “should” want to be working with the kids at school because I love kids.  That is not the case.  I still love kids and I hold a belief that children should thrive and be happy in school (and in life); however, in a capacity of ‘organizing kids’, I am not a happy camper.  I could have seen this ‘lightbulb’ way back in 2006 when I spent half a year as a preschool teacher to 3 year olds.  That should have been my ‘clue’; I wasn’t having fun and I began to dread it.  Hence, I am no longer a preschool teacher.

So, here is my lesson.  I get to acknowledge that I am a hugely valuable resource to the kids.  I know this to my core.  I am an active volunteer in the school for the teachers and the PTA.  I have abundant gifts that I share like organizing projects, creating effective communication systems, and supporting school-wide endeavors from a project management and implementation perspective.  AND, my time is better spent in those activities than ‘child wrangling’.  There are amazing people who find it rewarding and fun to work in that capacity; not me!  So, I intend to say NO to activities that do not speak to my desires, and say yes to ones that do.  I get to decide how I show up in my life and I KNOW that I am valuable in what I do. 

So, I ask you….what is your Child-Wrangler story?  What have you believed that you ‘should love or should do’ because that is what ‘people do’, or ‘moms do’, or ‘women/men do’ or even ‘entrepreneurs’ do?’  What can you OWN as your value and what can you say “that is not for me, but I can do (fill in the blank) that also serves the greater good”?

What if saying yes to what feels good and no to what doesn’t is all it will take for you to feel as if you are having a ROCKIN’ life?  What if the more you own what feels good and what doesn’t, the more ‘feel good’ things come your way?  I am going to look at my “should do’s” with more of an open perspective of….

“I am NOT willing to do X, but I AM willing to do Y”…thankyouverymuch!