Do you believe in yourself? Do you believe you can accomplish anything you want? Can you be an athlete playing for the MLB or NHL? Could you maybe play in a band and imagine winning a Grammy? What about having your own television show and you are the star chef? Do you see yourself as a CEO or a real estate magnate? Do you get excited at meeting someone famous, but tell yourself you could never be a star?

 
WHY NOT?

 
Why are YOU holding yourself back? Yes, that’s right, “you” are holding yourself back. You are limiting what you can achieve or not. I don’t want you to play the “blame game,” of someone else won’t let you, or your parents said couldn’t or a coach said you’ll never, etc. We have all played this game and guess what it limits us in what we will do! I played this game. I had a coach in high school that not only told me he was disappointed in me, during an awards ceremony, he said I would never be a good coach…. ouch! I was deeply hurt and angry at this man but….

 
We see all of the famous pretty people on television and get enamored with their looks, their money, their homes and more. We see them and think, “that could never be me.” Or “I’m just not that good.” I want you to see these people in a very different way, ready? Let’s start at birth: we all come into this world in very similar ways, be it natural birth or caesarean birth, we are born after our mom carries us around for 8-9 months. Then what happens? We all cry, scream, giggle, fall, spit up, crawl, eventually talk, walk and stand. The first 4-6 years of our lives are very similar, wouldn’t you agree? Now I am not talking about child rearing skills, absent parents, etc. this is strictly us as humans develop early on. At some point we have someone teaching us to do things, such as talking and learning new words that develops into language – written and verbal. Someone, hopefully a parent or grandparent is taking time to help you learn and expand your horizons.

 
Eventually we enter school and teachers begin sharing and teaching us things. Most of us will be in school from K – 12 and then 4-8 years college, maybe even more. Through all of this; growing up – from birth to lets say you get a Bachelor’s Degree – did you see any classes on: how to be a tv star, be the number one golfer, how to play the lead in a movie, how to become the CEO of a company or become a billionaire? Of course not. Did you hear a lot of things during this time such as: you’re not good enough, the world is tough so just do your best, you are horrible at baseball, you don’t deserve it, you’re not special? I am sure you did and a lot more than just these. But then most, if not all of us have heard these or similar. But then how did Kenny G, Madonna, Sting, Ronald Reagan, Nolan Ryan, Cher, Tiger Woods, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Ricky Henderson, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Sandra Bullock and you know this list goes on forever, but how did they “make it?” Hard work, didn’t let the negative messages sink in and they BELIEVED in themselves. I am sure other factors played into their success as well, but if you stop and think about it, it all started with them wanting to do something that was not the normal humdrum of life. They set goals, they worked hard, they dreamed and even saw themselves as what they would be, not what they wouldn’t be. They BELIEVED that they could do something amazing despite the circumstance, the bullying, the upbringing, etc. They became STARS, CEO’S, BILLIONAIRES and more!

 
Why couldn’t you do the same? Why can’t you step out and do something different today that would make your life better for tomorrow? Maybe you don’t want to be a star or anyone famous, maybe you want to be a better teacher, leader, pastor, husband or parent. THEN do it! Step out of your comfort zone, step out of your “poor me” zone, step out of the “I can’t” zone and make something happen! Learn new skills, take classes, read more – do something that will help you become a better version of yourself! Don’t settle! Settling will kill you deep within and before you know it, you’re just existing, not living.

 
Remember that coach I was sharing about early on? Well, I have been coaching teams and individuals in bowling for over 30 years, plus I have bowling awards, won money and at one time was a Professional Bowler. I didn’t let him define what I could or could not do, I believed in myself and set goals and worked hard. I stepped off and away from his “horrendous words” and proved him wrong, but I didn’t do it for that reason. I did it because I COULD. His negativity wasn’t going to stop me.

 
The world will knock you down over and over if you let it. You MUST get back up, stand on your feet and say “NO” I have plans and I BELIEVE in myself and I WILL ______________________________ – you fill in the blank.

 

Better yet – let this sink in:

“You dont want to end up sitting on a bedpan in a nursing home wondering what would have happened if you had more courage!”

~ Bishop TD Jakes