I am Glinda. You are Dorothy

Have you ever felt like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, confused about her ruby slipper’s magic that was there all along? This is the metaphor I use to empower women to tap into their inner wisdom - their intuition.

For 24 years, I was Glinda. I’ve guided women through “The Heroine’s Journey,” a framework based on Joseph Campbell’s concept. It’s a call to action for women who want to make a change, embark on a personal adventure, and return with valuable lessons to share. This is the ruby slippers metaphor I’ve used to teach women that they have a power they can access. It’s with them all the time, just like those slippers were on Dorothy’s feet from the beginning of her journey in Oz. It’s their inner knowing, their intuition.

I’ve always identified with Glinda. As a child watching the movie, I loved her manner, her kindness, her magic, and, of course, that dress! Much later, as a mediator and a facilitator, I always followed the “don’t tell them, let them learn it for themselves” principle. People are more engaged when the ideas come from their brains, not mine. They own the outcome. The Hudson Institute of Coaching, my coaching school, calls this approach “leading from behind.” This is the understanding that the client has it within herself to find her way. We follow along by giving hints, like “click your heels” and trusting your intuition. “...she had to find it out for herself,” Glinda said to the Scarecrow.

The Destination My Intuition Led Me To

Today, I find myself in the part of the Heroine’s Journey called The Return. However, I’ve come to a point on my journey that inspires me to speak up. It’s time to share the gifts of my journey—gifts from many journeys. It’s time to be more direct than Glinda.

I’m going to be 73 in November. No, this doesn’t mean I’m dying. It’s not that kind of Return. 

Heroines go on a journey in response to their intuition calling them to make a change, leaving their “village” and what they know, and as a result, they have adventures. (This happens often in a lifetime if you can keep leaving your comfort zone.) They learn and gather gifts from their experiences. Then, they return to their village and share what they’ve learned – to aid in the education of those around them. I have returned, and I have something important to share.

Joseph Campbell (the author, academic, and mythologist who gave us the hero’s journey schema) called the gifts received from a person’s experience the boon or the elixir. The hero’s quest is to journey out to find the boon and return with it. The wizard sent Dorothy, our heroine, out on such a quest, “Bring me back the broomstick of the Wicked Witch of the West!” And she did!

My Elixir

Since 2000, I’ve had the desire to help women understand they are much more than they realize. I have been intent on building their confidence. I came to understand that this goal fits into what’s called Women’s Empowerment.  I call women Heroines. I want them to identify with this label because, to me, it’s so very obvious that women who find the courage to make a change fit into the framework of the Heroine’s/Hero’s Journey. My book, You Are a Heroine: A Retelling of the Hero’s Journey, is about this.

It has been a journey for me, too, of course. I started out teaching a form of strategic planning derived from the work I was simultaneously facilitating in businesses, showing how a woman could use it to plan her life. That was the focus of the first seven years of my women’s empowerment business, which I called (no surprise) Ruby Slippers. Upon discovering Campbell’s schema in a workshop explaining Dorothy’s story as a heroine’s journey, I was inspired to teach the journey steps and pattern to the women in my workshops and coaching practice. It truly is a metaphor for life. And the ultimate elixir? From our travels on the journey, we gain clarity about who we are and what we are here to do. My elixir? I now know who I am and what I am here to do.

Why have I been called to write more and speak about the Heroine’s Journey, to create an online course, and to establish The School for Real-Life Heroines?

Finding my Purpose

I empower women, and I do this by teaching the lessons I have learned:

1. You have a gift inside – your intuition. It will guide you like those ruby slippers finally got Dorothy to where she wanted to go - home. Your intuition will guide you to your home, your true self. But it’s your job to connect with it. You must find a way to hear your intuition because it will call you to do something at some point. You can follow that inner wisdom or listen to the world, your family, and everyone else outside of you. Why would you do that? You know you the best. Instead, trust the guidance that comes from within you.
   
2. Thanks to that professor of mythology at Sarah Lawrence College, Joseph Campbell (1904-1987), we were given a roadmap that we can use to navigate our lives. (It’s always been there, but he brought it into popular culture.) Know it! Know that you are walking this ancient, archetypal path. It helps to be aware of this. Why? It lets you know that you are not ordinary. You are worthy of walking the same path as so many heroes and heroines before you. It reminds you to leave your comfort zone because that’s where the magic happens. And on the journey, you will need to feel lost and unsure to see things differently. And when you make peace with your dragons, you will be shown your best life. The actions you’re called to do are designed to uncover who you are. 
3. You do have a purpose. You are here for a reason. Your intuition, the journey – following the path, answering your call- will all help clarify your reason for being. The world needs you to respond to your purpose – not to anyone else’s but yours. Campbell meant this with his famous quote, “Follow your bliss.” These are the calls that will guide you. Your gifts will unfold when you fulfill your purpose. Then you’ll be on your return and need to share them with the world.
   
   

I Now Follow My Bliss

Are you familiar with the sacred feminine? Let me explain it to you. The world consists of masculine and feminine energies. Think of this as the yin and yang of Eastern philosophy. Our world right now is filled to the brim with the masculine. The masculine qualities have served us positively in many ways, yet if they are out of balance with the feminine qualities, we get into trouble. We are definitely out of balance. My bliss is in rebalancing our world. We need you to follow your bliss, your passion, and your dream to increase the flow of feminine energy into the world. 

We’ve always defined success in masculine terms: competition, taking the long, hard climb to the top to win. Sound familiar? However, we also need the type of success defined as collaboration. It helps us all when we bring each other along. The feminine energies (which exist in both men and women) are collaboration, acceptance, compassion, and love. When we share our heroine’s journey stories, we inspire and encourage our fellow travelers to leave their comfort zone and find their bliss, increasing the sacred feminine.

Here’s how Deepak Chopra writes about what he terms “the eternal feminine.” Click here to read more about the subject in my blog. 

Chopra tells us that “the eternal feminine needs to be recaptured.” He associates the aspect of the eternal feminine with these words: loving, peaceful, forgiving, warm, tolerant, harmonious, and heartfelt.

He says that the feminine connotation of these words crosses social, gender, and national lines – that they are innate in human awareness. They are not “mind-made” and to access them you need to bring in feminine energy – no matter who you are. 

He calls the practical aspects of feminine energy the “four As”  - appreciation, affection, acceptance, and allowing. I love this because it gives us something actionable. Yes, I can practice doing more of the four As.

Listening to your intuition; following the journey road map to realize your purpose so you can experience the return and share your gifts. These three things will give you the life you desire. It will be fulfilling. You will have the energy and passion to do things each day that will help bring the eternal feminine to your community – in your own very unique way. You will follow your bliss, and when you share your journey story, you empower the next heroine to find theirs.

Individually, you prepare and take your own adventures(s), which will always be customized to what’s needed for your promise and potential to emerge. But then there’s the Return. That’s for all of us, collectively. We gather to share our stories so we know we’re not alone in this. We inspire each other. That sacred feminine energy is stronger when we acknowledge it together as a group:

Our school was built to increase your success on the journey and help you embrace these three principles. Though our journeys are individual, our school helps us see we are not lonely travelers aimlessly moving from one thing to the next. We learn that if we listen to the cues from our intuition (we name them “Calls” in Journey-speak), then we are guided to the next step and the next. The road opens up before us as we venture into the unknown and get closer to finding our purpose, our true selves, and our way in life because we’re following our bliss.