virgin islands scene

To dare is to lose one's footing momentarily. To not dare is to lose oneself.
-- Soren Kierkegaard
 

 

The MONTHLY Motivator - March 2009

The courage to be you

In order to live the life you want, you must be who you are. That may sound like a cute play on words, but think about it. Do you think your own thoughts? Do you dream your own dreams? Do you set your own goals? Or do you borrow them from someone else? Having more and more of what you don’t really want in the first place will not bring happiness. The life you desire will not come from following someone else’s dream, or someone else’s idea of the best place to live, or someone else’s idea of the best car to drive or the best way to spend your leisure time. True happiness and fulfillment require that you have the courage to be your own person. There’s a reason why you want the things you want. It is because you’re the person best equipped to achieve them. When you authentically pursue what you truly want from life, then you are fulfilling your own unique set of possibilities, making your own special contribution, creating value as only you can do.

You are unique, with your own special beauty and value to give to life. What a terrible shame it would be if you were to let that beauty be hidden behind your fears. When you worry that you’re not good enough, you allow others to control you, and their domination will soon make you miserable. Or when you fool yourself into thinking you’re superior to everyone else, you deny yourself the exquisite joy of offering your own special gifts to life. It takes courage and faith, effort and initiative to be who you are. And it is so very much worth the effort. Though no one else can do it for you, you have what it takes to be magnificently successful at being you. From the deepest secrets of your soul to the face you put forward to the world, every bit of you is meant to be the authentic and original person you are. Listen to that quiet, persistent voice inside that you know is always right. This is your opportunity to fulfill and express the real and lasting joy of being you. Let the beautiful person inside of you come more fully to life as each moment passes. Let yourself, and the world around you, know the joy and fulfillment that is meant just for you to express. There is no person you can pretend to be who is as powerful and effective as the person you really are. No identity you might try to manufacture will ever work as well as the identity that has always been a part of you. When you summon the courage to be the person you are, you’ll find that life is full and rich.


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--Ralph Marston

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