Hi there, I'm Brennan Smith, the hypnotist who recorded all the Natural Hypnosis mp3s and CDs. Please allow me to introduce myself in a bit more detail.
We’re going to get into the real nitty-gritty about me in this post. If you want the pretty-sounding professional bio, check out our FAQ page about me .
Since I’m writing my own bio, I’m pretty sure I’m supposed to put it in the third person so that it sounds more official, right?
The short version of 'Who is Brennan Smith' would sound something like this:
“Brennan Smith is a natural-born cheerleader. He loves people, and loves to support organizations that are up to something. He enjoys public speaking, but not as much as he loves being a father. He lived in Los Angeles for 12+ years, and that is where his hypnosis practice first flourished before he moved to the East coast, where he now lives.”
Yeah, that sounds pretty good. And everything I just said is true, but I used to try and hide the real reason I did all those things.
The real reason I was always cheering people on, and the real reason I loved people and joined organizations, and the real reason I got started helping people using hypnosis is because I needed people's approval so badly.
The truth of that has a bright side, and a shadow side.
- On the bright side, it got me started with hypnosis, for which I will be eternally grateful because hypnosis has changed my life forever.
- On the shadow side, my need for approval -- my ego -- used to cause me to accept clients who were beyond my ability to help. That would be fine, if I asked for help from a mentor, but I didn’t want to lose my mentors’ approval so I never asked them.
- And on the bright side, I used to be that friendly, enthusiastic guy who people would nominate for leadership positions in every single organization that I joined.
- On the shadow side, I always said Yes -- because I didn't want to lose their approval -- even though I wasn’t the right person for the job and didn’t know how to lead.
- And on the bright side, wanting to help people so badly (so I could get their approval) is what first made me a pre-med student, which is where I learned neurophysiology (brain anatomy) and that has helped my clients so much.
- On the shadow side, getting peoples’ approval (and the approval of my parents) was not the kind of inspiring vision that could motivate me through med school (so I never went).
Are you seeing the pattern here?
The same aspect of my personality that brought me all the great things in my life -- my relationships, my career success, my personal fulfillment -- is the same aspect that took all of the joy out of them, and stole from me what was truly possible if I would have been willing to let go and trust that life would be OK, whether I had people’s approval or not.
Why am I telling you all this?
By now, I’m hoping you’re seeing that the challenges as I faced as someone who needed people to like me are the exact same challenges -- that have the same opportunities for life-changing levels of happiness -- as most people face.
There is an aspect of you -- an imperfection, or a flaw you might call it -- that is actually the source of your greatest triumphs, if you let it be.
So once I let go of that old, silly story about not being worthy of love and needing to fight for approval, an entirely new biography was written.
I’m proud and excited to share that one about Brennan Smith with you here:
“Brennan Smith is one of the most respected hypnotherapists in the global hypnosis community. He is the author of the soon-to-be-released book, The Art of Inspired Action, and writes the Inspired Leadership column on the Huffington Post. Brennan has been featured as a guest on TV and radio and tele-seminars around the world, speaking on the subject of human potential and life transformation. He is a member of the invitation-only Association of Transformational Leaders, and currently lives on the East coast of the United States with his wife and family.”
Writing that just now, I’m smiling and full of joy. I want you to feel the same daily happiness, and have the same amount of fun, that I do. I absolutely believe that it’s possible -- for everyone!
Look, will I ever fully release the desire for people’s approval? Probably not. But understanding that my desire for love would be my single-greatest challenge in life led me to work really consistently to understand it more and more so that I could master it. As a result, I have received so many gifts from it.
What pattern are you ready to master? How can you shift your perspective on it, so that you can re-write your bio and declare a new life story that includes everything you are now -- your “flaws and imperfections” and your finest qualities and achievements -- as well as everything you’re becoming?