Maybe you’ve even started saying to yourself something like “this year will be different”, but by February that chaos creeps back in. To move forward, you first need to go inward. Today I’m going to guide you through moving from chaos to confidence by embracing the the magic of shadow work.
Welcome to the Nancy Levin Show. I’m Nancy Levin, founder of Levin Life Coach Academy, best-selling author, master coach, and your host. I help overachieving people-pleasers set boundaries that stick and own self-worth, anchored in empowered action, so you can feel free. Plus, if you’re an aspiring or current coach, you are in the right place.
Join me each week for coaching and compelling conversations designed to support you in the spotlight as you take center stage of your own life.
Let’s dive in.
Welcome to another episode of the Nancy Levin Show. We’ve turned the page on a new year. I know what it’s like to feel that familiar push and pull, the craving for change coupled with the overwhelm of chaos. Maybe you even started saying to yourself something like “this year will be different”. “This will be the year that I step into my power”, but we all know what happens by February that chaos creeps back in, old pattern surface, and your confidence shrinks. It’s not because you have failed in any way. It’s because you’re ignoring a fundamental truth that to move forward, you first need to go inward.
So today I’m going to guide you through moving from chaos to confidence this year. We’re going to do this by embracing the magic of shadow work. So I invite you to take a breath, give yourself full permission to be here, present. because this just might be the conversation that changes the way you see yourself forever.
So let’s start with chaos. Chaos is not just the clutter in your physical space or the never ending to do lists that pile up. Chaos is the storm inside of you chaos is the swirling emotions, the fears, the doubts, that have you feel untethered and uncertain. Most of us, myself included, were taught to run from that chaos to fix it, to hide it, to bury it.
Here’s the truth. Chaos is not your enemy. Chaos is your invitation. It is your shadow calling you forward. Now, what do I mean by shadow? Your shadow is the part of you that you’ve kept hidden. The parts of yourself you’ve deemed unworthy, unlovable, unacceptable. This could be your anger, your fear of failure, your craving for attention.
Shadow work invites you to meet these pieces with love and compassion instead of shame. So if you are someone who feels stuck in chaos, Whether it’s emotional chaos, mental chaos, or even external chaos, this episode is your roadmap back to confidence. Confidence does not come from perfection. Confidence comes from embracing our wholeness. It comes from embracing all of you. Even the parts of you that you’ve been afraid to look at.
I want you to think back over this past year. What patterns showed up for you again and again? Maybe you noticed that you keep over committing to please others. You procrastinate because you’re afraid to fail. You struggle to speak up because you don’t want to rock the boat. These patterns are actually a whisper from your shadow. They’re not here to shame you. They’re here to guide you. The good news is, when you face your shadow with courage, the chaos loses its power. This is the magic of shadow work. By bringing your unconscious patterns into the light, you give yourself the freedom to choose differently.
I’m going to share a quick story with you. Years ago, I lived a life that looked perfect on the outside. I was the Event Director at Hay House Publishing. I was traveling the world, working with some of the biggest names in personal growth. But inside, I felt like I was living in chaos. I was constantly performing, hustling for my work, hiding the truth of what I felt inside. I didn’t believe I was enough unless I was achieving. Underneath all of that chaos was my shadow, my fear of being seen, my fear of being unworthy, my belief that if I slowed down, even for one single moment, I would lose everything. It wasn’t until I started doing shadow work until I gently turned toward these hidden pieces of myself that I was able to uncover my confidence. Confidence to leave my marriage, confidence to start my own business, confidence to create the life I live now and shadow work helped me see that I was whole all along.
The truth is, it will do the same for you.
So you might be wondering how do we start, where do we begin? I want to give you three powerful steps you can take today to move from chaos to confidence using shadow work.
Between the whirlwind of daily life and the current state of our world, chaos seems prevalent, and with chaos comes overwhelm, anxiety and burnout. The truth is, when we’re experiencing chaos, we’re ultimately desperate to feel grounded. This is why I invite you to join me for my FREE Live Virtual Workshop — From Chaos to Confidence: Tune In, Take Control & Live Your Truth so you can overcome the chaos, find your footing and create the peace you desire and deserve. Visit nancylevin.com/chaos to choose the date that works best for you, and if you can’t make it live, I’ll send you the replay. I hope to see you there.
Step one is to get curious about your chaos. Instead of judging your chaos, get curious. Ask yourself, “What is really going on here? What am I afraid of viewing or seeing? What might this chaos be here to teach me?”. When you approach your shadow with curiosity, instead of criticism, you unlock new insights about yourself.
Step two is name your shadow. Write down the parts of yourself you’ve been hiding. Maybe you’ve been hiding your fear of being unworthy, your anger or resentment, your perfectionism, and then ask “What would happen if I welcomed this part of me with love?”. Naming your shadow allows you to diffuse the shame and harness its power. It allows you to say, “I see you and you’re safe here”.
Step three is take one brave step forward. Once you’ve met your shadow with compassion, you can ask yourself, “What is one small step, one micro action I can take today to move out of chaos and in to confidence?”. Maybe it is setting a boundary, or speaking up, or giving yourself permission to rest.
Remember, small steps create big changes. So as you step into the new year, I invite you to see your chaos as an opportunity. An opportunity to uncover the shadows that have been holding you back and to meet yourself with love and compassion.
Confidence doesn’t come from fixing yourself because you are not broken. Confidence comes from embracing your wholeness, all of who you are. Shadow work is the path to this freedom.
Let this be the year that you choose yourself, the year that you choose wholeness, the year that you trust that every single part of you is worthy of love because my friend you are more powerful than you have ever imagined.
If you are ready to take a deeper dive into moving from chaos to confidence, I invite you to join me for my FREE Live Virtual Workshop — From Chaos to Confidence: Tune In, Take Control & Live Your Truth.
You can sign up at nancylevin.com/chaos for the day and time that works best for you, I really hope you’ll join me.
Thanks again for being here at the Nancy Levin Show. I’ll be in your ears again next week.
Thanks so much for joining me today. I invite you to head on over to nancylevin.com to check out all the goodies I have there for you. If you’ve enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a rating, and a review. I’ll meet you back here next week.