Softness as a path to true connection

Heya Reader,

We live in a world where we mostly meet one another at the surface. Words, postures, opinions and behaviour. We react quickly, interpret constantly and carefully protect ourselves.

What lies beneath often remains untouched.

True connection does not arise because we communicate better, set firmer boundaries or express ourselves more clearly. It arises when we are willing to be present in our core. In softness.

Softness is not weakness and not niceness. It is the natural state of our humanity. The only state from which we can reach beyond the protective layers of ourselves and others. As long as we respond to one another’s outer layers, we continue to communicate from mask to mask and sustain mutual hardness, often without realising it.

This year, I challenged myself to find more softness within me, to embrace it and to deepen it. To anchor myself in it more firmly, and to explore the recurring effect this has in my contact with others.

In the article I share today, I explore what softness truly is and why it is the path to genuine connection with one another.

The many well-intended pieces of advice to be tougher, to stand up for myself, to do things on my own terms and to set boundaries were, in part, the impulse for this article. They made me very aware of how normal hardness has become, and how it is generally seen as a good thing when you assert yourself and draw a line. The familiar “you have to, because…” reveals how little trust there is that we can truly create a more beautiful world. We mostly continue along the well-trodden path, because… you have to.
Or do you?

If you wish to read the full article, you can find it here: