Original
Strong
Independent
Authentic
Courageous
Honorable
Fearless
True
Bold
Dedicated
Clever
Passionate

These are great words, aren’t they? If someone used these words to describe you, it would be pretty cool, wouldn’t it? Absolutely.

The funny thing is that I believe that we all have these qualities in our hearts. We are all capable of greatness, it lies inside each and every one of us! It doesn’t matter who we are, where we come from, what we look like… doesn’t matter how popular we are, the color of our skin, or our income bracket… every single one of us are bold, strong, passionate people, capable of moving mountains if we just unlock the keys to our hearts!

The mantra ‘be who you are’ is a reminder to strive every minute of everyday to be yourself, and be the BEST self you can be. You only have one turn on this carousel of Life and it would be to everyone’s advantage is you choose to make the very most of every moment you’re given. You can make the most of your life by being true to yourself!

Now I know what you’re thinking: what does she mean exactly? Well, it takes some thinking and ‘tuning in’ to your body and your thoughts… I would take some quiet time to think about the following questions to get yourself prepped and ready for discovery… Grab a piece of paper and jot these down, and throughout your day, think about how you would answer them:

1) Name 5 things you like to do (hobbies for example) that make you totally happy. When you are doing these things, you could accidentally let the whole day go by because you are so engrossed in your activity that you don’t notice the world around you.

2) Has there ever been something you wished you could do, but you thought your friends would think it was silly or your parents wouldn’t approve, so you just decided to forget your idea and be like everyone else wanted you to be?
(I had a friend like this in school who desperately wanted to become a mortician and everyone thought she was a freak for wanting to examine dead people, so she ultimately was talked out of her passion and has never full ‘realized’ who she is as a result)

3) Do you ever think to yourself, “I wish I were more like _(insert name)____; she is always happy and fulfilled”? Answer truthfully now!

4) Imagine that you are a guest at your own funeral in the future (I know its morbid, but just hang with me for a sec): what does the scene look like in your mind? Are there tons and tons of people pouring in the doors, all very respectful, all in agreement that you lived a full life? What do they say about you? How are you described? This is a powerful exercise to get you thinking about how you want to live your life. Time is ticking and you owe it to yourself to use each moment you’re given to be the best YOU that you can.

5) Think about 5 people that inspire you to be a better person, a better YOU. Who are they and why do they inspire you? Who do you think inspires THEM?

Give these 5 exercises some thought as you go through your day. Think about what you would do if you were given the opportunity to do anything, absolutely anything to be the BEST ‘YOU’ you could be. Family pressure, peer pressure, lack of self-confidence, insecurity, lack of funding… none of those are factors in this exercise. If given the opportunity to do anything great with your life, what would your heart choose to do?

People that find their ‘calling’ and do what lies in their hearts talk about their work or their studies as not feeling like work at all. Its their passion and without doing their life’s work, it would feel like they were missing a part of themselves. Think about professional athletes for example… sure many have a great paycheck that certainly motivates them, but most play their sport because they absolutely love the game. They go through injuries, off season in the weight rooms, constant wear and tear on their bodies, because of the natural high they are on when they play their sport.

I know I’ve talked about him before on this blog, but I grew up with Yankee captain and shortstop, Derek Jeter. Derek and I were always good friends through school. Despite peer pressure always trying to get him to drink or smoke at parties, kids picking on him because he was ‘different’, Derek had a goal. Derek was tuned-in to his heart, knew what he needed to do to Be Himself. Derek knew he wanted to play baseball, he specifically knew he wanted to play for the Yankees. He achieved his dream and let nothing stand in his way. Baseball was his ‘natural fit’. While he is an extremely intelligent and good-hearted person, its nearly impossible to imagine Derek doing anything else but playing baseball. Because he has followed his heart and his passion, he makes his work look effortless, makes it look easy.

I really think that when we see someone doing something that looks easy, they are working from the heart and it shows…

Get busy thinking about what lies in your heart and lets hear about it! 

Photo Credit © Kuco | Dreamstime.com

Tags: heart, passion, Personal Growth, Self-awareness, Women