Embracing Nudity—An Ode to Vulnerability, Strength, and Being Open

God created us in nudity, so why do we hide ourselves?  We embraced our nudity before we were introduced to Satan.  He told us to be ashamed and we covered up.  We exchanged our freedom for confinement.  We accepted that our natural state was ugly and we covered up in fig leaves and we hid ourselves from God.  We need to take it back to the garden.  Let it all hang out!  Embrace the nudity that we were created in and be free!

By now, I hope that you have figured out that I am speaking metaphorically.  While I love the literal freeness of being in the nude, we really need to embrace our nudity and drop the fig leaves to reveal the authentic image of who we are.  The emblazoned truth of who we are in all its glory.  What would our lives be like if instead of hiding behind our truth, we stood boldly in it?  The naked truth of who we are is the beauty of our existence.  It is the genuine connection between us and our Creator.  It is the essence of our ability to transform darkness into light, confusion into enlightenment, and chaos into purpose.

Our freeness is buried under the fig leaves of popular opinion.  We surround ourselves with people who suppress our thoughts, ideas, dreams, and desires with the limitations of their own fig leaves.  We abandon our truth in search of what is easy.  We exchange achieving greatness for being good because good is easier than greatness.  People are okay with you being good.  They have a problem with you being great.  We don’t see the greatness of our own lives because we are looking through the scaled eyes of people who can’t even begin to comprehend what greatness is.  We cover up our greatness because others are afraid of our shine.  Take off the fig leaves!  Throw them away!  Burn them up!  Embrace the nudity of your emotions, value and purpose and return to the garden where your dreams will bear fruit.

Emotional Nudity

One of the greatest lies that we tell on a daily basis is how we truly feel.  We cloak our emotions and live a lie.  We pretend to like people that we cannot stand.  We give admiration to people who don’t deserve our attention.  We keep secrets from our loved ones when what we both need is the truth—the unadulterated truth.  We need to be real in our communications with each other instead of dressing up our feelings, desires, and needs with politeness, acceptance and cowardice.  Yep, cowardice.  It takes courage to tell it how it is.  It takes courage to say, “You are hurting me and I don’t like it!”  It takes courage to say, “The way you make me feel hurts and I deserve better.”  It takes courage to say, “I need your time and attention and I want you to show me that I matter.”  It takes courage to say, “I was wrong and I want to make it right.”  It takes a courage that we often lack because we are afraid of putting ourselves out there.  We are afraid of what people will think when they see us in the nude.  We are afraid of the piercing eyes upon our vulnerability, openness, and the simple truth.  Take off the leaves and say what needs to be said.  Be even more brave and ask the question that has the possibility of an answer that you don’t want to hear.  You need to hear it.  It may hurt, but not hearing it hurts worse.

Value Nudity

Each of us operates on a set of often unstated values.  If we really thought about it, how we make decisions boils down to a certain set of values—how we see the world, how we see ourselves, what is important to us, and what really matters.  It is important to stop and think about your personal set of values.  It is even better to write them down so you can remember.  There is a power in being able to look at a statement of what you stand for.  Our values are in constant competition with the values of the world and those around us.  Being clear on what you stand for enables you to filter through all of the noise of values that conflict with yours.  The greatest power of your values comes from articulating those values to others through your words and actions.  It is meaningless to acknowledge your values if you lack the courage to live them.  Embracing value nudity allows your true values to guide your decisions rather than putting on the cloak of popular opinion, acceptance, and conformity.  People should know what you stand for because you show them.  You act consistent with your values and don’t allow your values to be compromised because it is easier to go with the flow than to stand firmly in your values and beliefs.  Take off the fig leaves and be unwavering in living your values every day, out in the open, and without shame or fear.  Burn the leaves and be willing to say, “That is not aligned with my values and I will not …!”  Blow up the leaves and be courageous enough to say, “Your values don’t match my values and this relationship/business venture can’t continue.”

Purpose Nudity

One of the treasures that we often cover up is the God given talent that is ours and ours alone.  Each of us has a purpose, but only a few of us know what that is.  Even fewer live that purpose.  Embracing Purpose Nudity means being unafraid to live the life we were born to live and rather than the empty existence of following a script that has been given to us by others.  Many times we are literally actors in our own lives.  We wear a costume.  We read a script.  We use props.  We are on cue and our lives are dictated by somebody else’s commands of “Action!” and “Cut!”  We are being directed by the expectations, limitations, desires, and values of others.  Imagine the beauty of your life when you step into the role of executive producer, director, and lead actor!  You call the shots.  You negotiate the deals.  You decide the angles, lighting, and which scenes are deleted or filmed in the first place.  You decide upon the supporting cast.  You interpret your life through your words, actions, emotions, and delivery.  It is truly a beautiful moment when you snatch off the fig

Imagine the beauty of your life when you step into the role of executive producer, director, and lead actor!  You call the shots.  You negotiate the deals.  You decide the angles, lighting, and which scenes are deleted or filmed in the first place.  You decide upon the supporting cast.  You interpret your life through your words, actions, emotions, and delivery.  It is truly a beautiful moment when you snatch off the fig leaves of playing a role that was not meant for you.  You can create an Oscar-worthy masterpiece rather than B-rated made for TV production that is entertaining, but awful to watch.

Let’s get nude!  Let’s embrace the freedom of emotional, value and purpose nudity.  Rip off the fig leaves and return to who you were created to be.  Fully embrace the power of the truth—your truth.  The indelible statement of what is.  The truth is good, bad, and ugly—all three are good.  All three are needed.  All three are beautiful.  The ugly hurts, but it is beautiful nonetheless.  The bad is painful, but it leads to healing.  The good is only as good as you give it the power to be.  The good is always lying beneath the surface of bad and is always hidden behind the beauty of ugly.  The good is always under the fig leaves of our emotions, values, and purpose. 

When you rip off the leaves, you stand fully in the power of your truth.  You sleep better.  You live better.  You love better.  You are fully equipped to stand fully in your greatness.  Your greatness is predicted by the extent to which you are willing to let it all hang out!  The more authentic you are in your truth, the more powerful you are to operate in your gifts, talents, skills, and vision.  You cannot fully embrace the greatness of your life when you are confined by the corsets of fear, cowardice, and lies.  Be unafraid.  You have more to win that you will ever lose.  Be courageous.  You are more powerful when you are fueled by a commitment to who you are.  Stand in your truth.  It is your truth.  It is your sword.  It is your shield.  It is the key to living your best life.

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Stephanie Barnes Taylor is the CEO of The Fruition Group, LLC, a company that specializes in personal excellence, leadership and strategic planning solutions.   A former corporate attorney and executive, she retired from practicing law in 2014 after 16+ years. Stephanie embraces the choice to create opportunities! In 2009, when her company leadership identified that there were few women qualified for leadership, she created a leadership program. Over 100 women graduated from this transformational class! When women work with her they experience a transformation from good to great, from potential to purpose, and from uninspired to joyful. Stephanie is a confidence catalyst that produces leaders! Using her corporate experience, Stephanie works with women to help them find their inner leader through her transformational coaching program, Fabulous University—where women learn to lead with brilliance! Stephanie helps women to have a fabulous career, business, and life! Being fabulous is to live and lead boldly, brilliantly, and vividly.

She graduated summa cum laude from Tougaloo College with a B.A. in English.  She received her law degree from Harvard Law School and her doctorate in Organizational Leadership from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology.  Stephanie is a published author and certified professional coach.

Go to www.stephaniebarnestaylor.com to learn more!

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