Did you see the solar eclipse yesterday?

It was truly amazing.

Two minutes of my life I will remember forever.

And thanks to planning, like I talked about last week , I could make seeing it a priority.

I’ve been thinking about the eclipse quite a bit over the last week.

Obviously, the shadow is one of the most important parts of an eclipse.

This got me thinking about our own shadow sides.

Everyone has a shadow side.

They are important aspects of our personality.

In some aspects of psychology this is referring to the unconscious part of your personality – a dark side.

The most common example is likely Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

When thinking of the shadow side, authors like to turn it into something to rid yourself of.

To run away from.

To suppress.

But, as an eclipse shows us, the darkness is always there.

We just can’t see it when the sun is shining so brightly.

Just like us, there is always a shadow side.

You can’t deny it or pretend it doesn’t exist.

We celebrate shadows during an eclipse – you should celebrate yours.

Instead of Jekyll and Hyde, I like to think of Peter Pan when it comes to shadows.

In case you forgot, Peter Pan lost his mischievous shadow and was trying to catch it.

He met Wendy while chasing it around her room.

Wendy found him crying, and helped to sew his shadow back on so they would never be apart.

Peter knew his shadow was important – he loved it so much he went to great lengths to get it back.

It was a part of himself he loved.

And you should do the same.

Our shadow sides provide our characters and personalities with complexity and fullness.

Without them, we are flat, cartoonish images of ourselves.

Think about what social media has done to our perceptions of others (and ourselves) these days.

There are too many people who only post the best, brightest images and messages for the world to see – and it feels fake.

It’s really hard to genuinely connect with someone who only shows the good – because we instinctively know it isn’t true.

Being genuine is refreshing and people respond to it.

Don’t believe me? I recently posted about my own anxiety and fear in my business – this was my shadow side coming out to say, “Hi.” It received 150+ comments and over 350 reactions.

People want to know you aren’t invincible – just like them.

It makes you easier to relate to (and do business with).

So, take a lesson from eclipses and Peter Pan…fall back in love with your shadow!

Until then…stay passionate!

Dana

P.S. If you missed the eclipse and want to know where the next one will be (they actually pass over the earth every 18 months or so), check out Great American Eclipse.