MY HUMAN DESIGN DISCOVERIES AS A 4/1 SACRAL MANIFESTING GENERATOR
In the midst of a pandemic – April 2020 – was the first time I heard of Human Design, and I was immediately interested! I was inspired to find my birth time, and when I looked up my chart, I found out my human design is a 4/1 Sacral Manifesting Generator. I didn't know what the graph meant but I thought it was beautiful and I wanted to know everything about it!
Right away I discovered a podcast that quickly became my favorite – the DayLuna Human Design podcast. With a worldwide quarantine in full effect, I had nothing but time to soak it all in.
Over the next year, I listened to hours of their podcast (many episodes I’ve listened to several times)! Along with the podcast, I also started listening to a couple of other Human Design podcasts, I bought a Human Design book and a deck of “flashcards” to learn from, I bought a beautiful DayLuna personal Human Design Box that told me all about my design, and eventually I did two 1-on-1 readings with Dana and Shayna. It felt like a dream come true to get to talk to them in person (well, Zoom, but who cares). One day, I’ll go to a retreat or something of theirs where I can meet them in person!
Update: I manifested the retreat! In January 2022 I attended DayLuna's 10 day Human Design reader training in Costa Rica. It was amazing!
My 1-on-1 meetings with Dana and Shayna were absolutely life-altering! I was in a daze for hours afterward – in a good way – soaking up all the goodness they told me about my energy and my superpowers. I felt so unstoppable, and still do quite frankly, which is why I want to share Human Design with anyone who wants to listen!
With that said, here are 10 standout lessons I’ve learned about my unique Human Design (and this is just the tip of the iceberg!)
#1: DO MORE OF WHAT I LOVE, WHEN I WANT.
My Human Design Type is a Manifesting Generator! I am meant to have many interests and to follow the passions I feel energized by at that moment, even if it seems like I’m bouncing around from thing to thing. I am meant to lean into play and happiness in my life, and doing this creates more energy to continue doing what I love. It's like the energy rejuvenates when you're doing what you love, and you can keep going and going. A literal energizer bunny!
Once I found out I was a Manifesting Generator, I knew I had to shift to do more of the things I love in order to create more success, ease, & satisfaction in my life. How?
The first thing I did was ask myself, “What Are the Things in Everyday Life That Excite Me?”
Here are the questions I asked myself to help me make my list:
What situations, people, activities make me respond, “Heck yes!”
What am I drawn to?
What lights me up inside?
What makes me genuinely happy?
What things make me feel expansive?
Who do I love spending time with?
What do I spend hours googling or wanting to learn more about?
What situations make me feel like time flies because I’m so into it?
What do people come to me for?
What could I spend hours doing?
Luckily, my list was long! It included things like dancing, hiking, going on runs with friends, yoga, fostering kittens, drinking bulletproof coffee, making matcha lattes, researching topics I’m interested in, new traveling adventures, being in nature, basking in the sun (with a big sun hat, of course!), listening to music, talking about nutrition, being with my friends, learning about human design, journaling, and the list goes on.
The next question I asked myself was: “What Are the Things in Everyday Life that Suck the Energy Out of Me?” I took inventory of the things that make me feel bored, exhausted, frustrated, or “turned off." This included things like too much TV time at night, doing the dishes, unprepared dinner plans, house cleaning, sitting too long, packing school lunches, and putting everyone's needs before mine too often.
This list brought awareness to the things I was putting energy toward that drained me, and how often I was engaging in them. Here's what I did...I made a point to remove just one thing daily from the “energy-sucking” list, and the first to go was TV time at night. I didn't always enjoy it, and there were times I could feel the frustration building as I sat there "relaxing," lol! So, I found friends to walk with, things to read, activities I loved, etc. and it made a HUGE difference in my satisfaction.
Some things on my list will remain, such as packing school lunches, but I find ways to make it more fun, like listening to music. I've also learned to let go of the "pressure" I may put on myself to do things on this list that drain me if I don't feel like it. For example, if I don't feel like watching a movie with my kids, I don't. And guess what? Mama is much happier after 90 minutes of getting to do what I want!
Take-home Message: Doing more of the things I truly love and less of the things that drain me or serve other people is like the magic wand that makes my life more magnetic and flow more smoothly. Doing this creates space for transitions in life and real “YES’s!” to come my way.
#2: WITH SACRAL AUTHORITY, I’M DESIGNED TO TRUST MY GUT FOR ALL MY DECISIONS – it feels like, “Boom, that’s it!” or "No way!"
In Human Design, everyone is designed to make decisions in a specific way. I have Sacral Authority, which means I am here to make all decisions, big and small, from my gut, and to trust my gut feeling in the moment. I am aware of this feeling and have been for years, so for Human Design to confirm that this is aligned for me felt so validating! I have always called myself “decisive” 😊 and in a way, that’s what the gut response is – it knows immediately if a decision is a yes or no.
For me, when I feel a “Yes," it’s a buzz in my gut, and my entire body feels energized and expansive and almost physically pulled in that direction like a magnet. I have learned I don’t have to know why it’s a yes or why it’s a no. I just feel it, so I’m leaning into trusting that sacral response. When something is a “No,” it literally feels repelling and I feel zero energy to put toward it. I can feel my body closing up and retracting.
I learned, when something feels like a maybe, that means "No, for now." Not spending time on "maybe's" has freed up a lot of time for actual "yes's" to come to me, and has also reduced frustration.
I am teaching my mind to let go and be a backseat driver so my inner authority (gut) can drive my energetic body. It takes practice but also feels so natural to let myself fall back into my body and lean into the gifts that are really me.
Take-home Message: I allow my gut feeling (sacral response) to guide my decisions – not my mind! I pay attention to what my body is telling me in that moment.
#3: AS A 4/1 PROFILE, I AM WICKEDLY INDEPENDENT AND DO THINGS MY WAY
Everyone in Human Design has a profile. There are 12 different combinations, and I am a 4/1 profile, which is rare – 2% of the population – and INDEPENDENCE is really reflected in this profile.
Shayna and Dana told me it’s important for me to do things in my own way, like a train on its track, going in my own direction — I know who I am, what I like, and how I do things I like to do, and if anyone tries to make me change that direction, it can go against the grain of my energy. It’s good when people around me can understand and say, “great, you do your thing.” It’s always in alignment for me to do my own thing.
This awareness is such a blessing to learn because I have always felt a sense of knowing exactly what I want, but I also thought it was inflexible, impolite, rude, or selfish! I'm learning to let that go!
I think a big reason my relationship with my husband works well is because we have so much trust, and I am able to maintain my sense of freedom and independence at all times. My poor parents though, lol! I know this independence came across as extremely stubborn as a child, and still does. Sorry, not sorry 😊.
If you want more 4/1 information, I wrote a blog all about characteristics of a 4/1, and my personal experience living life as a 4/1.
Take-home Message: It’s OK and healthy to do what I want, when I want, in my own way, and to follow my gut along the way.
#4: I AM VERY INTUITIVE, IF I LISTEN
Human Design confirmed I am really intuitive! It took me years to “believe” my intuition. I would “hear” the intuitive hit, but it would come and go so quickly, and I often got it confused with my thoughts, so I ignored it. However, oftentimes I would realize later, “I was right about that!”
In Human Design, the Spleen Center is the center that represents intuition, instinct, and safety. I have three channels coming off my spleen, including gate 57, which is the most intuitive gate in the Human Design chart. This is an aspect of myself I really want to tune into better. With channels from my Spleen to my Throat (57-20) and Spleen to my Sacral (57-34), it’s important to speak the things I intuitively feel out loud, especially if I feel them for other people.
Take-home Message: I must be in the moment and present in order to hear my intuition. I’m paying closer attention to my intuition and bringing those intuitive thoughts to my throat to share them rather than questioning if they are real.
#5: WHEN I FEEL SATISFACTION, THIS INDICATES I AM IN ALIGNMENT. WHEN I FEEL FRUSTRATION OR ANGER, THIS INDICATES I AM OUT OF ALIGNMENT.
I have always used the phrase, “I’m so irritated/frustrated/annoyed” and Human Design confirmed those feelings are what a Manifesting Generator feels when out of alignment. That’s sure insightful!
I was told by the experts at DayLuna that Man-Gens are really “on it,” efficient, and good at mastering things quickly. We are also good at finding shortcuts so things work well. This is great, but the downside is sometimes I can try to be 5+ steps ahead of myself – what’s next, what’s next, what’s next – and that feeling pulls me out of alignment and can make me feel frustrated.
I used to pile thing 1, thing 2, and thing 3 and hurry, which actually worked for me in life…until I had kids! I have felt more frustration than ever before since having kids eight years ago. To help remedy this, I must be fully present in the moment, rather than thinking three steps ahead.
I also learned I can feel frustrated when something is boring or there’s something I’d rather not be doing, which is SO TRUE! I start to get antsy and then it escalates, and when I feel that frustration coming on it helps if I do something simultaneously or “take 5” to do something that feels really good to me at that moment. For example, while sitting to play Uno with my son I also foam roll my lower body or play fun music (both of which I enjoy) and that alleviates all frustration tendencies.
Take-home Message: When I feel frustration, I re-focus on what is directly in front of me with presence. I take a second to check in with my body at that moment to see what I need.
#6: TO MAKE A DECISION, IT HELPS WHEN I'M ASKED YES/NO QUESTIONS
One tool I learned to move my decision-making from my head to my gut, is to have someone ask me “yes/no” questions. This is SO helpful and true for me! For example, if Scott asks me, “what do you want for dinner?” My legitimate answer is likely, “I don’t know.” But if he asks, “do you want pizza?” I immediately know yes or no. “Do you want salad?” Yes or no? “Do you want tacos?” Yes or no? These yes/no questions move me out of my head and into my body to decide. It feels so good to do that! It also makes the decision easier.
Take-home Message: When I’m stuck on a decision, I place two options in from of me to choose from, or have whoever I’m with to ask me “yes/no” questions.
#7: BE BRAVE. I AM MEANT TO RESPOND TO THINGS THAT SHOW UP IN MY UNIVERSE.
My strategy is "to respond." This means I am meant to respond to what's directly in front of me, and when my gut says "yes," I follow that – but am I brave enough to follow those feelings? In addition, am I paying attention, and can I actually listen? Also, it can transform my life by saying “no” to the maybe’s because they waste a lot of time and energy. A mantra that really helps me respond more accurately is "I am here." I repeat that and it helps bring me back to the present moment.
Take-home Message: I want to only follow the “yes’s” in life. I will trust and know they will always lead me in the direction I am meant to flow.
#8: I AM CRACKING OPEN MY EMOTIONAL COAT OF ARMOR
In Human Design, the Solar Plexus is the center where emotions and feelings come from. About 51% of people have and Defined Solar Plexus which means they have a personal emotional wave and have their own experience with their emotions. The other 49% of the population have an Undefined Solar Plexus, myself included. This means when I’m around people who have a Defined Solar Plexus (emotional wave), it’s easy for me to feel their emotional energy, and those emotions can actually feel amplified inside me. I have always felt so much emotional intensity with certain people and in certain environments and situations. It can feel so overwhelming, and in my younger years, I avoided that intensity like the plague! I shut down emotionally.
Growing up, and well into my 20's, I pretty much built up a coat of armor, a crab shell so to speak, to shield myself from all emotional vulnerability, and anything to do with showing and feeling emotions if it had any chance of feeling vulnerable, overwhelming, or “heavy.”
Human Design has given me the words to describe what I’ve felt all my life and the new perspective has been LIFE CHANGING! I understand now when emotions don't belong to me, and if I take them in, I know how to clear them out.
Take-home Message: I am learning to distinguish between emotions that are mine and not mine. When I don't hold onto emotions and claim them as my own, I am less likely to burn out. I clear that shit out, and exercise works best for me to do this.
#9: MY THOUGHTS “PING” ALL DAY AND NOW I KNOW WHY 😊
In Human Design, I have an Open Head Center, which is the center for thoughts and inspirations. When it’s open, it can be a source of mental pressure, and from my personal experience, I can feel bombarded with ideas, thoughts, and inspiration all the time that I'm not sure what to do with. It can be confusing and overwhelming to determine what to focus on.
So what has Human Design taught me for managing this?
I do not need to act on every idea or inspiration that interests me. Since I rely on my gut for all decisions, I really tune in to what it's "saying" to decide what inspiration and thoughts to act on.
To help clear the chaos in my head, I use “inspiration boards” such as Milanote, write down to-do lists or manifestation lists, and use a Notes app on my phone. Once I write it down, the mess in my head clears.
Journaling clears my mind by moving thoughts out of my head and onto paper.
It helps to talk out loud to hear my own voice and get all my thoughts out, whether alone or with someone I trust. When I can talk, and while I talk, I usually solve my problems or come up with solutions myself. It’s amazing how well this works for me! I think I’m simply needing to hear myself think and brainstorm.
Take-home Message: Do not identify with all the thoughts and inspiration that come to me. I remain a detached observer of my thoughts, and when my Sacral center says "Hell, yes!" that's my sign to act.
#10: PRESSURE! IT'S A BEAST BUT I'M FIGURING IT OUT
In Human Design the Root Center is the center that feels stress, adrenaline, and pressure to get things done (it's associated with the Adrenal Glands). I have always felt this pressure within myself, but it’s amazing how using words to describe something brings awareness to a problem, which then actually starts a healing process with it. That's what I aim to do now.
My Root Center is Undefined which to me feels like there is a never-ending to-do list, and I cannot relax until everything is done – as if I’m negotiating to-do’s before I can get to the fun stuff. For me, the pressure can also feel like there isn’t enough time so I need to hurry, hurry, hurry. An example when I feel this type of pressure is when I prep for a big trip, or even a weekend getaway, or the pressure I feel in the evening when I’m getting stuff done before I “allow” myself to sit down for a bit.
With this daily pressure, I have learned I must take care of my adrenal glands because the stress hormones, cortisol, and adrenaline, are so damaging to health. Here are 7 specific nutrients + adaptogens to support adrenal function.
Take-home Message: I know I will always have an Undefined Root, but identifying what is going on has made me more intentional about what I do with that pressure, and just taking a deep breathe to release it really helps.
MY HUMAN DESIGN SUMMARY, AS TOLD TO ME BY DAYLUNA:
They told me when I do things, it’s charismatic and magnetic and other people want to follow me; I’m a leader and I’m here to empower people and share my values in a big way with everyone around me; I’m here to be this teacher that leads people towards their highest potential and helps people to connect with the information I’m sharing in a simplified way.
I mean, wow! So empowering and uplifting! Thank you, Dana and Shayna!
HUMAN DESIGN APPOINTMENTS
Moving from where you are now to where you want to be requires long-term dedication to learning and experimenting with your human design.
With your "1" line, I know you will do a ton of research on your own and that's amazing! I've learned so much through the process of researching, observing myself and others, experimenting, and repeating that cycle over and over.
I believe real growth takes more than one appointment, which is why I offer an initial appointment (90 minutes) with a follow-up appointment (60 minutes).
If you think a one time appointment is more ideal for you, I also offer that option.
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Cheers!
Kelly
xo