I’ll go first.
I see a therapist.
For support, for guidance, for another perspective, for shining the light where I’m unable to and challenging me, for stepping out of old patterns that I don’t want to live by even though they feel wired-in at times, for making repeated attempts at being vulnerable and brave, for stopping the self-shredding when I think I’ve made a mistake, for expressing my emotional truth when it’s really scary and risky-feeling, for stretching further in love and dating, for practicing assertion and connection in one, for understanding my own motivations and intentions and reactions, for hearing what I want, for exploring the nuance and beauty and challenge of being human, for helping me live as authentically as I can, particularly when the choices are hard, for having a space for the big, emotional stuff that life brings to all of us.
So, that’s me.
As for you, the number of clients who tell me unselfconsciously that they see a therapist is quite small.
I can think of two.
Much more common is a disclosure-confession.
Which is why I’m writing this.
As best I can tell, going into our depths has the potential to expand us, creating greater capacity for insight and understanding, for compassion, for awareness and authenticity, for freedom, and for presence and seeing the person in front of us.
None of which sound like a terrible foundation for leadership.