The Mystery of the Squashed Self

Like many others my writing life has changed. Working from home, bereft of the company of other writers unless they’re staring back at me from my screen, I miss the coffee breaks in-between writing sprints and the gluing of character arcs and plot points after seeking advice from those in the same boat. I know we’ll get back together eventually, so I shall persevere but it’s not quite the same.

I have many ‘how to’ guides about writing and the creative process . Using their guidance (I have my favourites) I regularly tap out words on my keyboard in the hope they resemble something that may warrant a read from someone else. Three & five act structure, a synopsis, story arc… they’re all in there and some have proven to be life savers when I reach a critical point in my creative process. But what about me, as a human on this Earth?

What can I do to get the best out of myself – anxiety, quirks and all? There are days when I don’t feel empowered or perhaps struggle to concentrate and motivated for the tasks ahead. How do I combat this and power through? A simple answer – I read about those who do and cherry pick the relevant-to-me sections. Everyone is different so you have to find a path that works for you.

What a strange world we would live in if we were all the same. We need the introverts, the extroverts, the empaths, those that are driven, those that debate. The list is endless but we’re all an essential part of society.

For a change from writing, I read this book. The title alone is intriguing enough for me. Having worked in finance since I left school, many, many, MANY years ago, it’s taken me a while to reflect and acknowledge the person I became back then. A ‘squashed, tired, lacking in confidence and the gumption to get my voice heard’ lump of someone who worked very hard during the day and still tried to write before the day began or late at night. That was never going to be a success story for me, so things had to change. I wish I’d had this book by my side back then but I am very glad to have read it now.

Trisha Lewis has a genuine appreciation of those who wish to succeed as the amazing women they are. In particular, I embraced her ‘The case of the Too Nice trap’ and ‘The Case of the Identity Incident’ chapters with continuous nodding. Each chapter provides an example of a workplace scenario, points to consider and reflect on, and a suggested resolution. With the right amount of humour amongst the science and psychological aspects of our behaviour, this was an exceptional insight into how we, as humans, can thrive.

Communication coach, actor and business owner, Trisha Lewis, empowers women to find and be their ‘unsquashed self’ – released from the ‘shoulds’ and ‘self-doubt spirals’.

Trisha has a background as a freelance actor, entertainer, speaker and story facilitator. She set up her communication coaching business in 2016 – at the age of 59. She now works with women starting or growing their own business – with soul and originality.

Trisha pulls on her life and business growing experiences along with common themes in her client work – to ensure her written and spoken resources resonate. This includes her popular ‘Make it Real’ podcast.

‘The Mystery of the Squashed Self’ is Trisha’s first full-length book – and true to form it brings the challenges of 8 fictional, but reality-based, business owners to life. The common link being ‘self-squashing’. Trisha took her own advice when deciding to write a business book that didn’t follow the standard style!

Trisha lives by the seaside on the south coast of the UK with her husband. Her children are all grown up and she has no pets – other than the robotic vacuum cleaner which she admits to talking to.