The Thing About Exposing Yourself

Okay, so plain and simple…CheekyChicago and Soapbox Therapy are partnering up. Why? Because you deserve it. Ya, you do.

You deserve to be heard for what you’re really saying and seen for the gorgeous, delicious self you really are. You deserve an advice column specially tailored for you…and as usual, Cheeky gets it.

You deserve to talk, listen, express, hear, ask questions, and get answers. You, my loves, deserve permission to expose yourselves… your real selves. Well, permission granted.

So here we go…

Exposure. Exposure. Exposure. It’s really my mantra for 2010. Maybe even my New Year’s resolution. It may even be my next tattoo. We’ll see.

Not the reality-show-tell-all-expose-to-everyone-and-their-mother-things-not-even-close-to-their-business-for-the-purpose-of-entertaining-people-while-distracting-them-from-the-details-of-their-own-lives kind of exposure. Though I admit a guilty pleasure once in a while – no, that’s not what we’re talking about here…

This is Cheeky exposure: it’s about scooping out your true, real, beautiful, messed up, scared, uncomfortable, confident, smart, fabulous, stagnant, unsure, questioning, growing, shifting, gorgeous, and perfectly unfinished self onto the table…and taking a good look at her.

It’s about getting to know, respecting, and befriending yourself. Not with the goal of analyzing until you’re blue in the face, though a past-time I’ve dabbled in, but with the goal of learning about this woman you’re moving around in the world as.

It’s about getting to know your intentions and your reasons and your actions and your goals and your passions. It’s about getting to know your relationship to loss, to quality, to fear, to yourself. Getting to know the parts of yourself you most adore; and the parts you’re ready to shift, eager to develop, and prepared to unpack…sort of.

Exposing your real self with Cheeky is not about knowing exactly what you want, or exactly who you are. It’s about being willing to admit that you don’t, or maybe you might, or you did that one day but today just feels different and how could you feel so fabulous yesterday and feel like ugh today…and and and. It’s about signing up to be curious, to ask questions, to put it all out there…

The thing about exposing your real self is that although thrilling and sexy and strong, it’s a risk. It’s a risk to expose what you’re really thinking, what you’re really afraid of, and what your real voice is saying. Maybe it’s judgment you think is waiting for you. Maybe it’s fear that if you say what you really want, and what you really deserve, and what you really expect out of your partner, your job, your friends…someone may change their mind about you. It’s a risk to expose the amazing diamonds inside hiding under who you think others want you to be. Valid. All of it. And also worth it…that’s why I’m here to support you.

Exposing yourself brings opportunities along that you didn’t even know existed. Exposing yourself brings answers and awareness and understanding that you didn’t even realize you were missing. Exposing your real self and telling your story leads to open space in your life that you can choose to fill with the you you love. And open space, well that’s just plain sexy.

So take a breath, and expose your stuff. Expose your questions and stories and concerns. Expose your inner thoughts and dialogue and curiosities. And as a side note, for the love of whoever, expose your fabulous legs already.

This Soapbox Therapy Cheeky advice column thing we’re doing…it’s for you, and it’s about time… It’s about love, life, self esteem, work, creativity, him, her, your mother, that thing, that other thing… and everything in between. ‘Cause its all there…waiting to come out.

And that’s the thing about exposing yourself.

Send your questions to brooke@cheekychicago.com. That’s it. Oh, and even though we’re exposing ourselves here…you don’t have to tell me your real name/identity. This is all confidential, darlin’.

Soapbox Therapy, Cheeky style, will be published monthly so keep your eyes peeled.

Love love love,

Brooke.