When hardest part is just showing up

This past week, I've been thinking a lot about what it means to just show up.

And maybe that sounds trite, but it’s honestly something I’ve been wrestling with for a while now.

How to show up. When to show up. What showing up actually looks like.

For a long time, I sincerely believed having success in my business meant I needed to show up big. You know—stage lights, microphones, book launches, television interviews, speaking tours. I thought it meant being the kind of "bigger-than-life" personality who always had something to say, and always looked like she had it all together.

And truthfully, that worked for a while. Until it didn't.

By 2019, I was completely burned out. Not just tired—actually drowning.

I was running a company that had grown faster than I'd learned to lead it. I had this massive team I wasn't managing well. I was writing books and traveling constantly and saying yes to every speaking opportunity because I thought that's what it took to "make it."

I thought success meant being everywhere, being known, being seen.

So that’s what I did.

And yet, behind the scenes, my health was shot. My family was suffering. My life felt like chaos.

At some point, I just couldn't sustain it anymore.

So I pulled back. Hard. I set boundaries I'd never had before. I stopped traveling. I stepped back from live teaching. I created distance between me and my audience.

And that was necessary—it probably saved my business and my sanity. It allowed me to restore my most important relationships, and to focus on getting healthy.

But here's what I didn't realize at the time: in protecting myself from burnout, I also pulled away from the thing I loved most about this work. 

Connection. Real, genuine, human connection.

Fast forward to now.

Last week my team and I spent time together talking about where we're headed next—what's working, what's not, and how we can do things differently. We had some brutal honesty moments (the kind that make you squirm a little), but also the kind that brings so much clarity.

It reminded me of one of my favorite quotes from Jim Collins in one of my very favorite business books, Good to Great:

You must maintain unwavering faith that you can and will prevail in the end, regardless of the difficulties, and at the same time have the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality.

He calls it the Stockdale Paradox, and it hit me all over again last week: if we want to grow, we have to be brave enough to face the truth—but also hopeful enough to keep showing up for what's next.

And maybe that's the real shift for me in this season of life and business. It's not about performing big. It's about showing up real.

In other words? Success isn't about doing it all or being everywhere—it's about being present for the moments and the people who matter most, even when it feels messy or imperfect.

These days, "showing up" for me looks nothing like it did in 2019.

It looks like planning my week alongside a thousand other women in The Finish Strong Project, because I know accountability keeps me honest—not just with my work goals, but with showing up for myself and my family too.

It looks like spending Sunday afternoon making a meal plan and going to the grocery store, then reorganizing my pantry and refrigerator, and meal prepping a big pot of chicken noodle soup.

Which all sounds so ordinary, but I’ve learned that my family–and therefore my own ability to get things done–literally falls apart when we don't have a plan for meals. When the fridge is chaos, everyone's crabby and we're grabbing junk and I'm scrambling at 5pm wondering what to make for dinner. 

So yeah—meal prep is showing up.

It looks like texting back and forth with women in our community, asking what they're working on, what's clicking for them, what they're struggling with. Not with any ulterior motives, but because I genuinely want to understand where people are at. It’s just being present. And being real.

It looks like going live on Facebook even when the technology makes me feel like an idiot, because the message matters more than looking polished.

All of it comes down to the same thing: just show up.

Because when you stop worrying so much about how you'll be perceived and start focusing on how you can serve, everything shifts. The pressure lifts. The fear fades. You stop hiding in your office and start re-engaging with the people who need what you have to give.

That's where I'm living right now—somewhere between brutal honesty and unshakable hope, between leading and learning, between doing the work and simply being present.

And honestly? It feels really, really good.

So here's my challenge for you this week, and I'm going to make it really specific:

Pick ONE area of your life where you've been hiding—where you've been avoiding showing up because it feels uncomfortable or vulnerable or like you might not do it right.

Maybe it's that difficult conversation you need to have. Maybe it's starting that workout routine. Maybe it's actually posting that thing you've been overthinking for weeks. Maybe it's reaching out to someone you've been thinking about but haven't contacted.

Just pick one thing. And show up for it this week. Even if it's messy. Even if it's imperfect. Even if nobody claps.

Because I promise you—someone is waiting on the other side of your courage.

Live with purpose, friend, and have an amazing week.

xoxo, Ruth

P.S. I'd love to know—what's one small way you plan to show up this week? Hit reply and tell me. I'd really love to hear.

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