Dolly Parton Proved Kindness Doesn’t Mean Being a Pushover. Her Elvis Decision Shows Why
Explore 13 ideas drawn from Dolly Parton’s life, from dreaming big and keeping your rights to lifting others, forgiving, and staying true to yourself.
EXPERT OPINION BY GRACE SMITH, FOUNDER OF GRACE HYPNOTHERAPY
Dolly Parton. Illustration: Inc.; Photos: ; Adobe Stock
Of all the gorgeous Dolly Parton tributes flooding my feeds, I think Brandi Carlile may have said it best: “Dolly had a way of deeply belonging to every one of us, and yet somehow still not being of this world.”
Her otherworldliness is such that we feel the pain of not being able to live up to the magnificence she embodied. I see the same sentiments flooding my feed over and over: “If I could only hope to be half as brilliant a talent as Dolly” and “We’ll never reach her capacity for love.” Even President Obama shared, “It’s hard to imagine many people having a bigger impact than Dolly Parton… What a life.”
What if we did
So what if we did that? What if we hypnotized ourselves to think a bit more like Dolly?
That’s the whole idea behind the Think Like series on my podcast: hypnotize yourself to think and behave more like the people you admire. I thought I would begin by learning from my brilliant, dear friends, like Gala Darling and Danette May, who I knew would graciously say yes to a brand-new show with no followers. Then, over the years, as the audience grew, I’d work my way up to my sheroes. Dolly Parton was at the top of that list. I realize now how flawed that thinking was. I simply assumed our dear Dolly would live to be at least 100.
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If you’re not familiar with hypnotherapy, I wrote a primer for Inc. on the science behind how it works, why it works, and how I use it to support elite founders and athletes. The short version: I have completed more than 10,000 sessions and have a master’s degree in psychology from Harvard. I call hypnosis “meditation with a goal.” It is a deeply relaxed state of focused attention. There’s no mind control and no loss of control. One of the things I love most about hypnotherapy is that, in that state, we can efficiently and effectively reprogram our subconscious minds to create new behaviors and beliefs.
What does it mean to think like Dolly?
I have, this week, recorded a Think Like
I have, this week, recorded a “Think Like Dolly” hypnotherapy session to help anyone who wants to think more like Dolly. Keep in mind, though, that Dolly famously tried to avoid giving advice on what others should do or what they should be like. “To thine own self be true” was sacred to her. So this process isn’t about adopting Dolly’s vivacious personality. When we share her wisdom with our subconscious minds, we become more truly ourselves, maybe just better.
As Dolly shared many, many times, “If I had but one wish for you, it would be for you to dream more.” The underlying theme of this recording is to unfurl the parts of yourself that have balled up and shrunken down in an attempt to feel safe by becoming small and hidden. She also said, “Dreams are where you visualize yourself being successful at what’s important to you to accomplish…” I’ve got to say, that sounds a whole lot like hypnosis to me.
Source: www.inc.com
