When I say you, I mean each and every one of you.
You, are the central character of your story, you, are the creator of your own destiny, you, are your own knight in shining armor. It all starts with, you.
It’s a human tendency to be self-critical and self-deprecating, to judge ourselves by a meter which is humanely impossible to impress, to concentrate on the negative aspect of everything about ourselves. We spend a lot of time criticizing ourselves, let’s spend these few minutes to appreciate who we are, what we have, our hidden potential and our existence.
Today, I want you to meet yourself under a different light, to love yourself a little more, to celebrate your flaws, your scars, your quirks, your obsessions, your phobias, I want you to celebrate, yourself.
How we tend to be so optimist about others and so pessimistic about ourselves, is something that never stops amusing me.
It may sound crazy, but at this moment, think about everything that has bothered you about yourself; something that you’re not really proud of, something that has or will embarrass you, something that hits pretty close to home. Think about those words that have hurt you, or the scenes from your over-active imagination that manages to tear you apart.
I’m sure that more than 50% of you will agree that, if given an opportunity, you’d like to change something about yourself. Maybe your nose is too big, or maybe a few calories gone wouldn't harm, or your hair is too short or too frizzy. It’s okay to have insecurities, but the thing that makes it so crippling is that, we tend to hype about it. What we tend to forget is, while we are busy thinking about ourselves, wouldn't others be doing the same? Would they really have time to notice how small your eyes are, or big your nose is?
Even if they do, it’s one thing to be aware of how people feel about you. It is a WHOLE different can of worms when you are so concerned people won’t or don’t like you that you morph into a validation monster. You tend to impersonate someone else, and in doing so, you may gain something temporarily, but you’ll lose yourself forever. Your thoughts, your quirks define you, but as a matter of fact, your original self is often muffed, overwhelmed, even strangled, by other people’s expectations. You are who you are, you don’t need to change yourself for anyone, people who’re meant to be in your life, will accept you just the way you are.
Your scars tell the stories of the battles that you have won. Your obsessions set you apart from everyone, your flaws and phobias show room for improvement and make you seem real. All I’m saying is, cut yourself some slack, perfection is an illusion, just be perfectly imperfect and be happy. Being the best imperfect version of yourself is better than being a second rated version of someone else.
We tend to rely on people and their opinions a bit too much, and as much as you’d like to believe that a certain individual or a group of individuals will stay with you forever, it hardly happens. People will look out for themselves, but you’ll have to look out for yourself, fight your own battles, and be your own hero. You don’t need anyone to help you stand up, you don’t need pity or sympathy, you’re strong and that’s how you've survived for so long. You've struggled, you didn't have it easy, and there might have been times when you were completely lost, times when you almost gave up, but you didn't. Stand tall and proud, wear your story as your crown.
Someone will always be more pretty, more handsome, more intelligent, more hard working, but they’ll never be you, the bottom line is, you’re different, you’re unique, and if you ask me, that’s pretty awesome, you’re much more than you realize, you’re not worthless and stupid. We all have a different story, a different fate. How can we all be the same, when we’re designed for a life that is only meant for us? I think we spend too much time wondering why we’re not good enough, or putting ourselves down. We spend too much time with are heads down and our hearts closed, and never get a chance to look up from the ground and enjoy this ride, called life.
Someone doesn't like you? Having a bad day? Didn't get the job done? Someone bailed out on you? Losing control of everything and everyone? All of us go through this low phase in life, and when we do, self-pity is the worst thing you can do to yourself, don’t let hopelessness win over you. Tell yourself that, it’s okay. It’s okay to be a little lost, a little messed up, a little confused, things may not make any sense right now, but they will. Everything will be okay, tough times do not last forever, but staying in one place and whining about what’s wrong won’t help, get up, brush yourself and do what you’re supposed to do.
On a happy note, life is too short to be wasted, live a little, know that being mad at someone and holding grudges is silly. Don’t lose a friend because something happened, learn to forgive and forget. Have fun, do a happy dance once in a while, sing at the top of your lungs, don’t hold back a laugh. Dress how you want, say what’s on your mind. Be real, be you.
Hence I’d like to conclude by saying that, for not every shoe is meant for you, the pair that is, will take you through. Celebrate yourself. Keep Smiling. The most important person in your life is the one I started with. It all starts with, you.
