Who's Looking...

 by Daniel Jacob, MSW: Founder of Can You Hear Me?

Who's Looking... Glad to be back hitting the keys as I open that door to my thoughts, inspiration and passion to help you help yourself.  Sometimes it helps to take a week off in order to be in that space and place that has one available to give.  You see, I gain so much from what I share, and writing for me is truly a part of how I take care of my self.  However, when I write I have to be moved in a manner that I can effectively give to the process.  This in of itself is not always the easiest to manage, but hey Who's Looking...

As I sometimes hit a wall and question the need to keep searching, I find myself looking for that something that I just cannot see. There are many out there in the social forums that share, and thus we all provide a different source of support. For myself, I know that my approach is showcasing my own vulnerability, so I am not focused on overwhelming those that can hear me with facts and bullet points.  No, I'm coming straight to you with experiential wisdom as I tap into your own struggle, whatever that may be.  My writing is that parallel process that speaks to that inner voice of yours, hoping to help you hit the pause, reflect and breathe, Who's Looking...

As we set to close down one season, while transitioning into a new one filled with future opportunities, my hope is that you will move closer to being available to see it.  I was reminded of just that earlier, when for a moment I went to that place of question and comparison... You know that space that is more about our own stuff than what anyone or anything may be doing, so I ask you Who's Looking...  It is very easy for our outlook on life, work, relationships, you name it to be influenced by the stress and uncertainty that WE bring into it.  When we carry this intention we are not operating with a peace of mind, we are often pointing the finger (and blame) towards someone or something that WE feel is the source of our distress.  A friend of mine once told me that our state of mind is so greatly influenced by having a peace of mind. This lesson is one that I hold as true, and so I use this example as another opportunity for you to see your own opening...

I encourage anyone out there that can hear me to continue to trust where you are at, while you embrace the learning that sits side by side with difficulty.  If you have not figured it out by now, Who's Looking is that opportunity to accept where we are at without judgment or control, as we realize who we are truly competing against.  There is no need to overthink the process, you just have to trust it as you continue to be well to your self...

My hope for you this week is that my words find you available and open to what resides on the other side of your own mirror.  It's always a choice, one that will demand a level of effort that will require you to work, but let me just say... When you breakthrough that space, the change you will see is transformative, truly empowering.  May the holiday weekend find you breathing well, until the next time we cross paths...

 About Author

 
Daniel Jacob, MSW Email
Founder of Can You Hear Me? External Field Instructor at University of Southern California School of Social Work MSW@USC. Daniel has a Masters in Social Work (Families and Children Practice/School Social Work). He is currently nearing the completion of the LCSW testing process. More about the man behind the mission ⇢

Overcome...

by Daniel Jacob, MSW: Founder of Can You Hear Me?

It's not what you've accomplished that you remember, it's what you overcome.  It's been a little over four years to this day that I walked away with my head up, set to embark into the unknown and uncertain; At the Crossroads.  The journey actually began to unfold several months prior and the challenges that I was exposed to and have learned from once again reinforce my ability to overcome.  It is fair to say that everything can happen due to reason, usually on its own schedule and when we are not ready or expecting. This is exactly what I was about to learn...
 
When the idea (and inspiration) for this week's post came to me I was immersed into one of my usual self-care practices, reading and writing in my process journal.  As it happens I had a moment where I was able to pause and reflect on all that has transpired in a rather short period of time.  I thought back to February 2009 when I had to be hospitalized because I was unable to take care of my self.  My thought process took me thorough the challenging moments leading to, the experiences during, and the work and commitment that have transpired ever since. What happened to me was going to happen at some point in time. Did I see it coming?  NO!  Should I have recognized what was impacting my mental and physical well-being?  YES!  You see, the man behind the passion and influence of this platform was in a place and space that could not see the eventual outcome that was surely waiting...
 
It turns out that I was living in the moment of survival and that functional behavior that one leads when they just cannot see an opportunity out.  I was suppressing and repressing while being immersed into the powerful affects and effects of burnout.  Turns out that burnout wasn't my only companion at the time as there were continual triggers from my past that were telling me something, I just wasn't ready or available to listen.  When the break happened I was thrust into the most intense ride of emotion that I had ever experienced.  It was so driven that for six days it kept me running away from sleep and well-being. It was a roller coaster of the life that I had lived and all that had impacted my history.  I was releasing what I had kept stored away, internalized in a manner that all I can say, it was like a boiling teapot ready to burst.  I was being given an experiential lesson that had two outcomes waiting; resist and you will suffer for quite some time, or accept, work and commit and you will change for the better in ways that you never imagined.
 
I chose the second option and the journey has been amazingly powerful.  The work that I was self-determined to embrace has opened a door that has truly impacted my personal self and professional practice in such a positive manner.  What I have been able to overcome has showed me the way towards opportunity that I wasn't available to see in the past.  What I have been given is a level of change that has allowed my process (from childhood to adolescence, young adulthood to the present) to breathe and release itself in order for me to live life the only way it should be.  You see, prior to this intense experience I wasn't living.  I was going through the motions of keeping it all together, not allowing myself to embrace my own vulnerability in a manner that would accept my authentic self.  I was able to overcome with much effort, and for this I am well, I am strong, I am empowered. There is much more to the journey, and though I consider myself to be an open book, I leave out facts and particulars not due to discomfort, but because I choose to promote awareness, reflection and the process that leads one to help themselves!
 
May this weeks sharing allow yourself to be available to all that is possible.  It is not a matter of if but when, Can You Hear Me?


About Author

 
Daniel Jacob, MSW Email
Founder of Can You Hear Me? External Field Instructor at University of Southern California School of Social Work MSW@USC. Daniel has a Masters in Social Work (Families and Children Practice/School Social Work). He is currently nearing the completion of the LCSW testing process.  More about the man behind the mission ⇢