As I became more comfortable talking about my faith, I began to understand what I had been holding back. I wanted to talk about God and Jesus Christ in my teaching. I wanted to include the scriptures that helped me understand and apply the principles I was sharing.
That was a decision about my training, rather than a change to my client services. I was considering what I wanted to teach and how much of the reasoning behind it I was willing to share.
Look at the reason behind the work you already do
My faith was already part of how I made decisions. It was part of the logic I used to help myself do difficult things. When I taught the practical principle without that connection, I was leaving out part of what helped me live it.
I had been concerned about offending people or sounding preachy. Becoming more comfortable talking about it took time. Eventually, I could see that I wanted to share the same reasoning with others that I used for myself.
The reason you do the work may belong in the way you explain it. That can take some thought, especially when you have become accustomed to leaving it out.
For you, the connection may be faith. It may be an experience that changed how you understand the people you serve, or a conviction about how they deserve to be treated. Look at a decision you keep making in your work. Why do you make it that way? What do you want someone to experience as a result?
Stay with the specific decision long enough to understand your answer. You may find something you want to teach more openly, a kind of work you want to do more often, or a reason to reconsider work you have been accepting.
Decide where that conviction belongs
You have choices about how to express it. You could explain the belief behind a lesson, offer a service designed around a particular need, or be clearer about the way you work with people.
Consider the setting and the relationship. A person choosing a faith-based training should be able to understand that part of the experience before joining. A client who has hired you for a defined service should be able to rely on the agreement you made. Being open about your convictions includes being clear about what you are offering.
Tell people enough about the work that they can decide whether it is right for them. You can let a particular lesson or offering speak to the people who want that approach. Other people may choose something different.
For my training, this meant considering how scripture could be part of the explanation. The connection belonged to the teaching itself. It was part of why I understood the principle and how I used it.
Give the idea a practical place to begin
A sense of calling can give you a direction to explore. You still need to work out what you will offer, who it could help, and what you can provide well.
Start with one piece you can describe clearly. That might be a lesson you want to teach or a service you want to offer. Explain what the person would receive, why you want to do that work, and what would be different about your approach.
Then have a conversation with someone who could use it. Listen for what they understand and what they need. Ask what would make the lesson or service useful to them. If you are considering a paid offer, interest in your story and willingness to buy the offer are different things to learn about.
You can explore work you feel called to do while taking care of the commitments you already have. Choose a next step you can carry out alongside those responsibilities. It can help you understand the idea before you decide how much of your business to build around it.
Make room for the explanation you have been leaving out
Return to a piece of your work that feels incomplete when you describe it. Write the explanation you would give if you included the reason you care about it. Read it and ask whether it helps another person understand the work and what you are offering them.
You may keep the whole explanation. You may find a smaller part that belongs in a lesson or a conversation. Let the purpose of the work guide what you include.
Being honest about what moves you can help you make a more deliberate choice about what you build. It gives you something to consider alongside the skills, time, resources, and responsibilities involved.
For me, the realization was that the teaching could carry the same belief that helped me put it into practice. I could explain the principle and share why I lived it. That was the part I wanted to become brave enough to include.