There’s a part of what you do that’s beyond, beneath, and before the bounds of language.
Photo by Jakob Owens on Unsplash
As a healer, you know that the color, the sensation, the texture of an event or an emotion carries meaning that the English language often can’t begin to touch.
And, if you’re a therapist whose work is based on talking through thoughts and problems, you know there’s something you do that transcends words. It’s in the holding of the space. It’s in the silences. It’s in the invisible bonds of relationship that allows the healing to happen.
Here’s a secret… it’s that unutterable something that makes your work so unique, so vital, and so uncommonly necessary.
This is the place where you truly want to dwell and it’s the work you truly want to do. It’s the deep, subtle, sensitive work your clients crave. It’s also the hardest to describe and the easiest to undervalue.
When we’re talking about describing the “real magic” we’re talking about writing down the ephemeral stuff that you wouldn’t begin to know how to put on a webpage. We’re talking about it because that is exactly what will bring the right people to your door.
I know, that’s completely annoying and maddening to hear.
(Marisa, you want me to build my practice and reach more people by writing about the indescribable???)
Yep.
At least, I’d very much like you to try. Your power as a healer and transformation professional depends on understanding the depths of you magic. And because it’s going to be more rewarding than any other marketing gimmick you could try.
My own kind of “indescribable” magic
At our house, all I need to say is “it’s for a unicorn client” and my husband knows instantly that it’s not business as usual. This is the work that my better angels don’t want to put off. These are the writing coaching and healing clients whose stories will get my attention at 9 pm on a Friday - even if that glass of wine seems awfully tempting.
Before I go on about “my unicorns,” I will say that I have a sense of deep respect for all of my clients. After seven rocky years of entrepreneurship I have finally discovered to trust my gut and I will either refuse to take or will gently release anyone who will de-center me from my sense of worth. I work with caring, curious souls who do meaningful work and are open to words like “magic.”
It’s just that the unicorns are different.
These are the people to whom I can offer the fullness of my magic. These are the clients who seem to be able to see through the website copy that describes what I’ll do as their “writing coach” and recognize that it’s a full-life healing journey we’re on together. The words will anchor our work, will be a touchstone to keep us coming back and diving deeper and seeing things anew, but the healing, changing, and meaning-making doesn’t end when the next article is published.
Here’s the thing: though I have written about aspects of this work - check out my Sovereignty Sessions page - I’ve worked harder on making the copy sound right than I have worked on getting to the essence of what this unspeakably magical work actually is. It’s easy to put that off since, as I said, it all seems to transcend words, but that’s just an excuse, really…
If you have the power to change lives, you have the power to say how
Photo by Milos Tonchevski on Unsplash
We are creatures of story, of language. The unknown and the ineffable are true aspects of the human experience, but to say “the real magic I do cannot be spoken” is to diminish its real world power you have to change lives.
Truth time: I am fantastically guilty of dodging this particular writing assignment. My first draft of this blog, longhand in my oversized “professional visions” journal was seven pages long and at three different points I caught myself saying “I am still not describing the real magic of my work.”
I kept slipping into telling you, dear reader, how to do it but I refused to engage the question myself.
In fact, when I was going through the final edit of this post I realized I still hadn’t really answered this question for myself. I’d written around it so many times that I’d created some sort of energetic groove in the paper between me and the fullest truth.
I stepped away from the desk and closed the computer. I curled up on the couch and pulled out the journal and I scrawled into the question until my hand ached/ At this point, I have a set of answers I can work with. (I’ll share them soon!) The process needs to be ongoing, but I can tell you I have learned more about the “why” of my work and just what’s makes me exclaim to myself “damn, I love my work” at the end of a call.
How do you describe your magic?
That’s easy… you start by trying. As I can say from experience, all you can do at first is try. You’ll probably do a lot of resisting and avoiding and writing about everything else but the question at hand until you get to the truth that lingers beneath the "unspeakable."
To make the process a little easier, I invite you to try the prompt I offered the Sovereign Writers Circle during our writing practice this week:
There’s a part of your work that’s, well, magic…
You see it in the moments when it’s so clear the transformation happening. You see it when you feel giddy that you get to do this work for a living. You may see the magic in the longing for such moments, knowing that so much more is possible.
It may feel like this magic transcends words. Try anyway. Flow with this energy, this unspeakable possibility now. Ask it to make sense to other people later.
Now, grab your journal or close all the windows on your computer and open a blank doc. Set a timer and give yourself at least ten minutes to write into that idea. I would love, love, love to hear what comes up for you… In the comments, tell me what you did (or didn’t!) discover about the real magic of your work.
This is far from the end of this journey… We’ll keep exploring how to describe your real magic throughout this series. And, I’m always here to help.
The Sovereign Writers Circle is welcoming new members through March 1.
And, I’m always available for individual healing & consulting through the Sovereignty Sessions.