Return to site

Say to yourself what you would be...

Day 42, August 18th

broken image

I'm pretty sure this calendar page was inspired by one of my favorite quotes by the Stoic philosopher Epictetus: First say to yourself what you would be, then do what you have to do.

We tend to overthink these things, and I am absolutely the pot calling the kettle black here. Deciding who you want to be and then working to get there is a simple concept, but it's a simple concept applied to complex beings. The space between knowing what you would be and being that can be full of self doubt and insecurity and old messages telling us that we can't just do whatever we want (see post Day 35, August 11th!). The path can be littered with obstacles that we put there ourselves.

So all of that is true, but having to puzzle through those obstacles makes the success all the sweeter, I think. My vision for myself is crystal clear, it's just that some days there's a little more fog than other days. But today was not one of those days. Today was a day that I knew I was exactly where I am supposed to be doing exactly what I'm supposed to be doing. Today was one of those days when life was throwing fast balls and I was knocking 'em out of the park with ease. Today was one of those days that the obstacles were making me stronger instead of holding me back. God knows there are still days that I feel stuck in the fog, but when they do happen I'm finding I bounce back pretty quickly now.

It's exciting to have this vision that's formed for my life, especially after so many years of not being able to see even two steps ahead, and even if it doesn't always seem to make sense. There are some obstacles that I don't know how to get through yet, but I trust that my training is preparing me for what to do there. I like both the simplicity and the complexity in say to yourself what you would be, then do what you have to do. It's my north star, and I'm happy and grateful to do the work to get there.