| Do you remember feeling different from other kids in school? Maybe you were taller than everyone, bigger than the others, or, if you were like me, you were the shortest one by a few inches.
Hopefully now you understand that these differences are what makes us special, and they are to be celebrated (rather than ashamed of) but when you were an insecure kid growing up (we all were) you didn’t understand that at the time. When I was younger, I was smaller than everyone else. I didn’t physically grow as quickly as everyone else. I was TINY on the football field. I didn’t have anywhere near the strength that most kids did. I couldn’t even compete in some situations. That had multiple effects: 1) It put a chip on my shoulder to make up for what I lacked in size by focusing on strengths that didn’t require size, like speed, agility, and being the work horse. 2) It made me train harder, so I could get stronger and get as big as everyone else. 3) It helped me set the intention from a very young age to be exactly what I had struggled to be. We’re all familiar with the phrase “you’ll be surprised at what you can accomplish when you put your mind to it”, but that’s not really true. It takes more than that. I’m telling you this anecdote of my own life because it’s an example of what you can achieve when you do the following: 1) Set a clear intention. – What do you want to be? Why is it important to you? 2) Put in the time and effort. – Remember your intention, its importance to you personally, and use that as fuel to put in the time and effort required for results. 3) Positively reinforce yourself and practice gratitude. – Take a minute to look around (or in this case, at yourself) and appreciate how far you’ve come. Will you ever be 100% satisfied? Probably not, but the trick is being satisfied with the work you’re putting in and the knowledge that you’re doing your best. (And if you’re not doing your best… maybe it’s time to do that! You only live once, after all.)
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