Be You, Glorious You

How many days do you have left to accomplish everything you want to accomplish?

If you really think about this question, it's quite scary. For many of us, we have procrastinated accomplishing things thinking there will always be tomorrow. We haven't traveled as much as we wanted. We haven't pushed ourselves as hard as we wanted. We've watched more TV than we should. We haven't spent as much time with friends and family as we would want. We've worked jobs we hate to pay for shit we really don't need. We've silenced our dreams to do what we think society expects us to do. We've wasted precious time doing things we don't remember or care about.

We can read all the blogs and books ever written about how to lead a meaningful life, but unless we make the choice to do something, we are going to continue to do what we have always done. This life is ours to do with what we will. If we choose to skate through life, then we won't really accomplish what we want to accomplish. No one has the goal to just get through life. We want to live fully and do what excites us. We want to leave a legacy. We want to be remembered.

No one is going to remember what television we watched or what work we half-assed. No one is going to remember the people who did little and made no waves. No one is going to remember the vast majority of people who live today. What mark are we going to leave on this world when we pass? What are people going to say about our life once we are gone? This doesn't mean we need to live our life just to please others. We want people to point at us as an example of how to actually live.

We don't have to do what we think society expects of us. We don't have to do what we think other people, even trusted people, think we should do. We don't have to get frustrated when people question our passion. We don't have to live our life pleasing anyone else but us. We don't have to live our life afraid to offend others. Some might say this is selfish, but this is our life to do with what we will. We don't have to buy the shit everyone else buys and we don't have to chase the same goals other people chase. We are individuals and should have our own beliefs, our own goals and our own dreams. We have to be true to who we are.

There will always be people who don't understand us. This is okay and we don't have to convince them of anything. If they stand in our way, then we'll go around them. If they can't give us what we need, then we'll find someone who will. We can't let the doubters hold us back. We can't let other people slow us down. We can't buy in to their bullshit and if we offend a few people along the way, then good. Maybe it will help wake them up. We have to forget about the status quo and not rocking the boat. Rock to your heart's content. Do what needs to be done to keep pushing forward. Don't ever give up and lead the life you are meant to lead. Be you, glorious you, in everything you do.

We all need to make the choice to live our life. We must stop putting aside our goals and dreams and start chasing them. We must stop taking things as they are and start making them better. We must forget what everyone else says and follow our heart. It's time to silence the fears in our head and start moving. It's time to get out of our comfort zone and risk failing again and again. Failure isn't bad. Choosing to not get back up is when we lose. If anyone tells us they haven't failed, then they are either lying or not trying hard enough. We can't listen to them. We can't listen to anyone who tells us something different than what our heart tells us. We have time, but we have to start doing what we need to do.

How many days do you have left to accomplish everything you want to accomplish?    

Comparisons

We spend way too much time comparing ourselves to others.

We do this in our personal life, even if we don't realize we are doing it. We compare ourselves to our friends and wonder how someone could be so much better off than we are. We compare ourselves to our neighbors and wish we had the nicer lawn or the nicer house or a nicer car. We compare ourselves to the people around us on a daily basis, wishing we were better looking, skinnier, in better shape, wealthier or smarter. We are constantly comparing ourselves to the people around us.

We do this in our professional life, both as individuals and as compaines. We wish we were more like our co-worker who seems to do better work or who got the promotion we wanted. We look at what we do based on things we did in the past, at other companies or in different situations. We look at competitors and wonder how we can be better then them, get more sales then them, build more than them, create more than them. We wonder how we can do what they are doing, but bigger and better.

There are always going to be people and companies who are better than us at something. There are always going to be people and companies we are better than. Go through your day and be aware of the number of times you compare yourself to others. See how this comparison makes you feel. Does it help you do better work? Does it help you feel good about yourself? Does it drive you to be more creative? Does it make you feel as if taking risks are okay?

Instead of constantly comparing yourself to others, look inside and see what it is that you want to do. You don't have to be like anyone else around you. You don't have to offer the products everyone else does. You don't have to offer the same services or the same prices or the same quality as everyone else around you. There are billions of differences between you and your neighbor or your company and your competitor. You are not capable of being exactly like them, so why would you compare yourself to them?

Each one of us is an individual. Each grouping of individuals into a company is distinctly different than any other company. We, both as individuals and as groupings, have different things to offer, different viewpoints, different needs, different driving forces and different passions. Instead of trying to be like someone else or trying to be better than someone else, try being true to you. You might just be surprised at what you have to offer the world if you stop comparing yourself to others and start doing what you want to do.