Happy Friday, Friends!
I hope and trust this post finds you all having a great day as a glorious new day has dawned in my Sweet Home Alabama! 😊
The other night my Beautiful Bride and I watched the movie, True Spirit, on Netflix. It is the true story of Jessica Watson’s attempt to become the youngest person to sail around the world – she was 16 years old at the time! It is a powerful, inspiring movie and I strongly encourage you to watch it with your families this weekend!
There were so many great moments in this movie however one was very poignant to me; it was during a dark, discouraging, time in the journey, and Jessica, who did a video blog of her journey, said something like, “Sometimes the toughest mountain we can climb is to be ourselves.” She then went on to explain that we all get scared, discouraged, we feel inadequate, etc., and that is all o.k. Out of the mouths of babes…such wisdom!!!
It is in the process of being scared and moving forward that we find our strength. It is in being discouraged but still pursuing our dreams that we find out what we are capable of becoming. It is when we feel inadequate but choosing to take the next step, and then the next one, that we learn, grow, and become all we are capable of becoming. To accept ourselves fully - the good and bad, the hopes/dreams and fears - to dare to climb this great mountain is to have fully lived!
(Spoiler Alert!!! 😊) We all want to be on the little sailboat that pulls into Sydney Harbour with 80,000+ people celebrating our accomplishment however there are not many volunteers to live 210 days all alone – the movie does it’s best to help us feel the depth of the loneliness though it is clear that it can only truly be understood fully by actually living it…unimaginable! - on a boat, suffering 7 knockdowns, and facing 70 foot waves! We all want to be the championship athlete, award winning writer, singer, or musician, or the highly successful entrepreneur but are we willing to do what it takes to accomplish these things? Are we willing to climb “The Great Mountain?”
Somehow, inexplicably, we tend to think that these things are accomplished rather effortlessly. We look at the graceful athlete and think that this just comes so naturally to them. We don’t see the countless hours spent to be graceful in the moment. We don’t see the injuries overcome, the failures endured, or the sacrifices made, and all that comes with those things to arrive at that moment.
I want to challenge you and I this morning to simply climb The Great Mountain. To fully, and perhaps finally, accept ourselves for who we were created to be, who we are, and relentlessly pursue all we are capable of becoming. Instead of hiding and running from the difficult moments – fear, doubt, discouragement, etc. – lean into them, learn from them, and then – and this is the most important part!!! – keep pursuing the dreams that are in your heart! You have doubters and critics? So did Jessica! You have doubts and fears? So did Jessica! You stumbled or fell? So did Jessica! You feel an indescribable loneliness or depression? So did Jessica! The only difference, perhaps, between you/me, and Jessica is that she intentionally chose to continue to pursue her dream! And so did every other champion, award winning author, singer, musician, successful entrepreneur, etc.!!! 😊
I want to end this Happy Friday with a few quotes from Jessica:
“You don’t have to be someone special to achieve something amazing. You’ve just got to have a dream, believe in it, and work hard.” – Jessica Watson
“You can’t change conditions – just the way you deal with them.” – Jessica Watson
“You are only as big as the dreams you dare to live.” – Jessica Watson
“I’m an ordinary girl who believed in her dream.” – Jessica Watson
“For me…it was always about the challenge of making this voyage…It was always a calculated risk, but life is a risk.” – Jessica Watson
Please don’t hesitate to contact me if there is ever anything I can do for you or your family. I will always help you any way I can. You can reach me at kevin@whatwillyourinfluencebe.com.
Have a great day, a wonderful weekend, please cherish your precious families, and please stay well!
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