Transformative Living Radio

Don't Be A Leaner: You Were Created to Stand, Not to Lean on Others

• Andre Flax

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What happens when you stop leaning and start standing in your own power? Everything changes.

Most of us have become unconscious leaners – waiting for validation before moving forward, depending on others' approval to determine our worth, or believing our success lies in someone else's hands. But as Ernest Holmes wisely observed, "Do not lean on anyone. You must stand straight in your own strength."

In this powerful follow-up to our "Borrowing Brilliance" episode, we clarify an essential distinction: borrowing ideas and wisdom from others doesn't mean leaning on them for support. Like an oak tree with deep roots, you possess everything needed to stand tall through life's storms. The infinite creative power you seek isn't external – it lives within you, waiting to be expressed. When you stand aligned and grounded, you become a clear channel for strength, clarity, and abundance. But when you lean, you block this natural flow.

Through practical strategies and compelling examples, we explore how to recognize when you're leaning and how to shift into a stance of personal power. You'll learn to claim your inner strength through daily affirmations, catch yourself in moments of dependency, deepen your spiritual roots, and take bold action even without perfect circumstances. One coaching client discovered that by recognizing themselves first instead of waiting for their boss's validation, everything shifted – not because their environment changed, but because they did.

Standing in your own power creates a presence that radiates without words. It's not about isolation but authentic connection from a place of wholeness. When you stop leaning, you stop waiting. And when you stop waiting, you start creating the life you were meant to live. Are you ready to stand?
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Speaker 1:

Welcome to Transformative Living Radio, where we explore the power of intentional change for personal growth and fulfillment. I'm Andre Flax, your host and certified life and leadership coach. In our last episode, we talked about borrowing brilliance, how we can spark our own ideas by drawing from the wisdom and light of others. But here's the thing Borrowing brilliance doesn't mean leaning. But here's the thing Borrowing brilliance doesn't mean leaning. Too many of us are leaning leaning on approval, leaning on circumstances, leaning on other people to hold us up, and when we do, we forget the truth that we were never created to lean. We were created to stand. In today's episode, entitled Never Be a Leaner, we're tapping into the wisdom of Ernest Holmes from his book Creative Minds and Success. In this episode, we'll explore what it really means to stop leaning, how to stand rooted in your own strength and how to tap into the infinite power already living inside you. Because when you stand firm, aligned and unshakable, you become unstoppable. You don't wait for the world to change, you start creating. So if you're ready to stop leaning on others and start standing on your own brilliance, grab a pen and a pad and if you're ready, let's begin. Hello and welcome to another empowering episode of Transformative Living Radio. I'm Andre Flax, your host and certified life and leadership coach. Now, before we dive into today's message, I want to pause and connect it back to our last episode entitled Borrowing Brilliance. In that conversation, we explored how none of us has to start from scratch. We can borrow ideas and wisdom and inspiration from the great minds and experiences that came before us. We can borrow brilliance to spark something new within us. But here's the key Borrowing brilliance doesn't mean leaning. When we borrow brilliance, we're not asking someone else to carry us, we're not shrinking back. We're not waiting for others to validate us. We're standing tall, choosing to take those ideas, those lessons and light our own candle. Think of it like fire. You can borrow a flame to light your own candle, but once it's lit, it's your flame. You don't keep leaning on other candles forever. You stand in your own light. And that's the bridge in today's episode, because today we're talking about what Ernest Holmes called never be a leaner.

Speaker 1:

Now, this is about more than just leaning or borrowing. It's about standing tall, unshakable and rooted in that power that is already living within you. You see, holmes reminds us, quote do not lean on anyone. You must stand straight in your own strength, end quote. And that's precisely where we're going today. So let me be clear about what I mean by the term leaning. You see, a leaner is someone who waits for life to happen to them instead of creating it. A leaner is also someone who believes that their destiny is in someone else's hands.

Speaker 1:

Think of it this way If you lean on a crutch too long, your muscles weaken, you forget how to walk on your own, you lose your strength. Now, when we lean on approval, on other people's strength, on luck, on circumstances, we forget the truth, and that is we are powerful. I want you to picture an oak tree strong, tall and rooted. Now that oak tree doesn't lean on the tree next to it to grow. Its roots go deep, its branches stretch high towards the sky and when the storms come, it doesn't topple, it stands. You see, my friend, that oak tree is you.

Speaker 1:

Now here's a more profound truth. When you lean, you're sending a message to the universe, and that message is I don't trust myself, I don't believe I can handle this, but the spiritual reality is everything that you need is already within you the infinite, the creative mind, the spirit, god. It isn't outside of you, it lives within you. It expresses through you. And when you stand straight, aligned and grounded, you open yourself up to that power. You become a clear channel for strength, clarity and abundance. But when you lean, it's like kinking the hose you block the flow. Let me give you another example. Imagine electricity flowing through a cable. If the wire is bent too sharply, the current is disrupted. When you straighten it, the current flows freely again. That's your mind, that's your spirit Straight, aligned, grounded, strong. So let's bring this home In a relationship. A leaner might say I'll only feel good if they love me back. But one who stands says I know my worth, I bring love into this relationship.

Speaker 1:

In a business situation, a leaner might be someone who waits for the perfect moment, the one who stands. They move, they act and they create. Now I remember a particular client that I was coaching who said to me I just can't move forward until my boss recognized me. They didn't realize that they were actually leaning. So I asked them what would happen if you recognized yourself first, if you stood on your own confidence and if you led from there. Well, within weeks everything shifted, not because their boss changed, but because they did. You see, when we stop leaning, we stop waiting. And when we stop waiting, we start creating. So how do we move from leaning to standing? Well, let me give you four practical but powerful strategies to help you start standing versus leaning.

Speaker 1:

Strategy number one is to claim your power. Daily, each morning, declare I stand in my own strength, the infinite upholds me within me. Now I want you to say it until you believe it. You see, affirmations don't trick the mind, they train it. Now, strategy number two is to catch yourself leaning. What I mean by this is notice when you're waiting for someone's approval, notice when your fear makes you hold back. You see, awareness is the key. The moment you see it, you can straighten it. Now, strategy number three is to deepen your roots. Like the oak tree example, your strength comes from roots, and that's through meditation, through prayer, journaling and silence. The deeper your roots, the stronger you'll stand. Now, strategy number four is to take bold action.

Speaker 1:

Standing isn't just an inner posture, it's an outer action. If you've been waiting for the perfect moment, stop, move, take the next step, make the phone call, write, launch, begin. You see, momentum builds by movement and movement creates strength. Remember, when you stand, you're telling the universe I am ready and life always answers readiness. Now, as we wrap up this episode, I want to take a moment to have you imagine something. Imagine you're walking in a room, everyone else is leaning, leaning on walls, leaning on others, leaning on excuses and then there you are standing, tall, centered and confident. You don't have to say a word, but people notice, because presence I mean true presence radiates. That's who you are, that's who you've always been.

Speaker 1:

As Holmes said, never be a leaner, always be strong, Always be independent and listen. This doesn't mean we don't need people. You see, we're wired for community, for connection, but there's a difference between sharing strength and depending on others to hold you up. You don't lean because you don't have to. You are whole, you are complete and you are enough. So today, decide to stand, stand in your business, stand in your relationships and stand in your dreams, and never be a leaner. Well, that's our show for today. We hope that you found this episode both insightful and inspiring. You found this episode both insightful and inspiring. Join us each week for practical tips, actionable insights and inspiring stories to help you transform your life. We hope you can join us.

Speaker 2:

We'll see you soon To experience a free coaching session with Andre Flax. Click the link in the show notes to book your coaching session today, or contact him at andre at transformativelivingradiocom. If you enjoyed this episode, leave us a comment. Wherever you get your podcast and share it with friends.