The "Be. Do. Have." Roadmap to Transforming Into Your Authentic Self
Breaking Free from a Dysfunctional Past
For years, the weight of my traumatic childhood crushed my spirit. I felt trapped by my family's dysfunctional dynamics and the expectations they placed on me.
As an introverted, shy child, I desperately longed for positive change but didn't know how to break free from the turmoil surrounding me. Deep down, I knew there had to be more to life than merely being a powerless bystander in my own story.
It took a great deal of time and inner work, but eventually I came to the profound realization that my past did not have to define my present or determine my future.
While trauma can certainly lead to destructive coping behaviors and mindsets, I understood that I had a choice: continue identifying solely with my painful past experiences, or courageously embrace a new liberating path forward.
“Becoming”, acrylic on 16x20 canvas, 2024. Original is available for purchase.
The "Be. Do. Have." Philosophy: A Roadmap to Reinvention
I decided to adopt the transformative "Be. Do. Have." philosophy - a powerful framework that serves as a roadmap for personal growth and reinvention.
"Be" Your Authentic Identity
It all begins with "Be" - clearly defining your authentic core identity, values, and deeply held beliefs about yourself and the world around you. This involves some soul-searching and asking the pivotal question: "Who do I fundamentally want to be as a person?" Getting clarity around your passions, innate strengths, and vision for your ideal self lays the critical foundation. When you have a strong, unwavering sense of self-identity, you equip yourself to make empowered choices and take actions that align with your true nature.
"Do" Purposeful Actions Aligned with Your Values
The next phase is "Do" - taking purposeful actions that reinforce and actualize the identity you've envisioned for yourself. Once you've gotten clear on who you want to be, it's time to ask: "What habits, behaviors, and practices do I need to adopt to become that person?" This is where the rubber meets the road - consistent intentional actions, no matter how small, that demonstrate a commitment to your values and desired way of being. Each step you take cultivates and reinforces the person you've defined for yourself, gradually moving you closer towards manifesting your vision.
"Have" The Life You Envision
Finally, there's the "Have" phase of attracting the experiences, relationships, accomplishments, and tangible circumstances you want to have in your life. While not ignoring goal-setting, this is more about living in the spirit of what you want to create, allowing space for grace, and trusting that when you consistently "Be" and "Do" in alignment with your purpose, the specific "Haves" will naturally follow. Keeping your focus on embodying your ideal self creates a powerful energetic frequency that quite literally calls in the realities you seek to experience.
As Zig Ziglar wisely stated:
“You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.”
This principle is especially relevant for aspiring artists on the path of reinvention.
The Artist's Journey
For creatives, reinvention is about pushing boundaries, trying new techniques, and continuously evolving your artistic voice. It requires a willingness to start before you feel fully ready, trusting that your unique perspective has value to offer the world.
Through cycles of reinvention, artists can break through creative blocks, overcome limitations, and unlock new levels of inspiration and innovation that resonate with their audiences in meaningful ways.
The Courage to Become Your True Self
For me personally, fully reinventing myself in accordance with the "Be. Do. Have." principles involved a profound inward journey of rediscovering my life's purpose and the person I felt called to be in faithful service to the Divine.
It required tremendous courage, as I had to consciously choose to shed self-destructive patterns, toxic relationships, and limiting beliefs that had kept me playing small for far too long - even if that meant losing certain friends or family members who struggled to understand or accept my transformational changes.
Finding Freedom Through Radical Self-Acceptance
Yet the freedom I've experienced through reinvention has been beyond worth it. I finally feel like I'm actively running towards my highest, most authentic self - the person I'd subconsciously yearned to become my whole life.
And I've realized that true reinvention is not about becoming a different or completely new version of yourself, but rather peeling back the layers of conditioning, narratives, and experiences that previously blocked you from fully embodying and expressing your innate basic goodness, your unique strengths, and your sacred life's purpose.
My journey is far from over, and the path remains delightfully uncertain at times, but I'm filled with a sense of hope, excitement, and trust for the new possibilities continuously revealing themselves. I'm reminded that the ever-evolving person I'm consciously choosing to become is not a stranger to my soul, but simply a truer resonance with the essence of who I've always been destined to be.
Though avoiding pain or disappointment is inevitable when pursuing authentic self-actualization, I now welcome whatever arises as grist for the mill of my ongoing metamorphosis.
Reinvention for the Modern Woman
In stepping fully into my most empowered, purposeful, and radiant selfhood, I'm humbly doing my part in ushering a new paradigm for women to embrace - releasing societally-imposed beliefs about lack of agency, doubting our voices, or not deserving autonomy over our lives and bodies.
My story is a reminder that reinvention is a courageous reclamation, honoring the feminine spirit of truth, vulnerability, creativity, and redefining the world around us through our fiercely glowing authentic presence and capabilities as nurturers, dreamers, healers, and inspirational badasses.
Nurture Your Ever-Evolving Spirit: An Invitation for Aspiring Female Artists
For my fellow aspiring female artists in particular, I encourage you to embrace the journey of reinvention wholeheartedly. Allow your art to be the expressive vehicle for your growth, healing, and truth-telling.
Let it be the mirror reflecting back your deepest realizations about yourself and the world we co-create. Remain fearless in exploring new mediums, styles, and perspectives that feel resonant for you in this moment...for true artists understand that embodying the artistic spirit means being in a constant beautiful dance of reinvention, courageously bringing more of your ever-evolving self into radiant form.
Tarra Lu
