“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” - Dr. Seuss
Follow me. Got your ready bag? Grab it. Both handles? Lets go. I am me and you are you. In essence, you comparing yourself to me or me comparing myself to you, we are actually comparing ourselves to ourselves of who we are not. Coincidentally, the idea of being someone else or comparative to someone else simply highlights what we do or do not see in ourselves.
I think the quote is a great summation. Facebook posts/statuses, instagram hashtags, epic trip picture albums, check-ins from exotic places of people doing exotic things. This is the reason why people face so many insecurities. It's because we use social media to gauge our own successes against others. but why? It makes no sense. Any champion will tell you that it's the years of hard work, blood, sweat and tears that no one ever sees is what makes the champion, so why do we constantly wish we were someone else, or harbor a secret jealousy for someone who we perceive is 'doing better' than us in 'life'.
I digress. My post is about a single thing. I've found in my life that I, as much as I truly would like to believe, am not good at everything I do. I am not nearly as handsome, smart, funny, or strong as I think I am - and that's OK. For the longest time, I struggled with trying to define who I was and who I wanted to become. Then it dawned on me, I am who I am and will never be anyone else. It was up to me to be the best person that I knowI could become.
So here it is, my advice to you: Want to be happy? Be you... but always be on the look out on how to be a better you. Is the you of tomorrow better at running? better at your job? predicting stocks? cutting wood? or being a better cook? Whatever you is waiting tomorrow, just remember that that person is dependent on what you do today. For you.
Okay, so I ripped off the name - that's ok. I've been searching and waiting all month to figure out what I wanted to write about for my first topic of this 12-entry New Year's resolution. What better way to start than to write about everyone's favorite one: to lose weight and go to the gym. Well.. not exactly for me. Having gone to the gym 3-5x a week for the past 4 years, my resolution (and for my sanity) ought to be to stay out of the gym, but we all know that's not going to happen. After watching this video, it made me ask the question - Why do I go to the gym? How and where do I get the motivation each morning to day-in, day-out push myself to the brink of exhaustion? In hindsight, the answer seems so simple now. It's because my body is the way I choose to show the world that I'm still going and life hasn't beaten me down to the point that I can't get up. It's not just about me, it's about an idealogy that was born a long time ago that made me face the stark reality that I'm not able to control anything in my life, but am equally as tasked to be accountable for how I react to it. You see, Hard Work represents something greater than just beeping into the gym and banging out a couple of weights. It represents a journey from point A to point B, and eventually points C and D. It's one of the only things in life that is guaranteed to not happen unless you pour your very heart and soul into it. The human body just isn't built that way - fast gains and quick losses are reverted back as swifly as they come. It's only in running the proverbial and literal marathon with diet, exercise and mental stamina do you realize goals. I always go back to a place - a not so happy place - when someone talks about the grind. The grind is the place you go to when you have to push that extra rep, run that extra couple of feet, or walk away from that double scoop of extra fudgy volcano brownie goodness. It's somewhere that we all go to test ourselves. It's a place we go to really understand how far we can go -- and then go further. It's weird to those who don't get it, but to those who have achieved this usually grow somewhat addicted to the feeling. One more rep, one more mile, one more .. anything. It's this addiction that I've found that is the driver to my motivation to lead a positive life. The grind takes me to a place that holds me accountable for the success that I have had and will continue to have. Always counting on Hard Work to go hand-in-hand with self-sustenance... constantly pushing the envelope on how far my body can go, allowing that mental burn to flood into all facets of my life: Worship, work, family, friends, love and wanderlust. After all of the failure, set backs, achievements and success I know I'll have, I can easily agree that the source of motivation has always been that after every day, each morning brings me closer to who I want to become and reminds me to take a look back at who I already am.
