Yes You Can!

When I was little, I had the privilege of having a mother that would tuck me in every night before I went to sleep. I don’t know if she knows it, but those were some of the most cherished memories of my childhood, it was something I would look forward to each night. It was during that short time each evening when I told Mom everything that was on my mind. Because let’s face it, when you’re a kid there are certain things that you need to know before you go to bed, like why Mufasa had to get trampled by the  wildebeest? Really…why?

But besides the obvious questions, sometimes our conversations went deeper. I remember on various occasions telling Mom that, “I want to DO something GREAT”. I don’t think Mom knew how to respond to such a request, but she would always do the best she could to comfort me and reassure me that I was good at so many things. This answer never seemed to satisfy me…Greatness was all around me, but I never seemed to get a piece of it, what was I doing wrong?!

I’ll tell you what I was doing wrong, I believed greatness was only for special people that were born to wealth, providing them with the opportunities to explore their greatness. I believed greatness was only for the truly gifted individuals, blessed with prodigy like talents. BUT….I was wrong. WAY Wrong!

EVERYDAY ordinary people do extraordinary things; it’s simply a choice they make to BE GREAT!

This blog post is dedicated to all the ordinary people doing extraordinary things. The title, Yes You Can, is the motto of Dick and Rick Hoyt AKA Team Hoyt, two individuals who made themselves extraordinary. If you’ve watched one of the many YouTube videos dedicated to them, you know that their story is one of hope and inspiration.

To get to know Team Hoyt, watch this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDnrLv6z-mM

Feel free to visit their website for more information:

http://www.teamhoyt.com/

Aristotle is attributed with writing:

"Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have those because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit."

Ordinary people, Like Dick, Rick, You, and I are inherently GREAT. We are sons and daughters of God, we have godlike abilities. We are, if we CHOOSE, GREAT!

Special thanks to my mom for helping me think about such profound things at such a young age. I love you mom!

DOnt quIT

Does Anyone Read Emerson Anymore!

The single most important word in the English dictionary is “Do”. In a world of mass media: Facebook, Twitter, texting, Skype, cell phones, and a barrage of other social networks and communication devices, we are increasing the means through which we TALK, but these innovations have subsequently turned off our DOING ability.

As a young boy, my parents taught me to be a man of action. Chores were a regular part of my childhood and deep cleaning was the ultimate source of punishment. Fighting with my brother resulted in hours of weeding the rose garden while my other sibling would be sanding the garage preparing it for a good painting. This might have been my parents’ scheme to clean up the house, but I think it was something passed down to them by their parents and the generation before them. The country was built with the sweat and blood of millions of people coming to America looking for something better then they knew.

This country was destined to be the land of leaders. Think about it….in 1492, when the American continent was discovered, the people who came here were those looking for a change, those willing to take a risk, the DOERS of the world. To say the least, the American heritage is one of entrepreneurship, innovation, and creation! Although we are in a time of economic struggle, the world looks to us to see how we’re going to change to make everything better. We have the history and reputation of being excellent, powerful, and accomplishing great things.

So, now I look at the world…well the younger generations especially. I see us just getting by, hoping everything will turn out okay, hoping that the grownups will figure out the world’s problems so we can stay up till 3 in the morning and continue our quest to become a level 70 commander on “Call of Duty” OR so we get back to the TV and finally watch the last 3 episodes of all of our favorite sitcoms - “Biggest Loser”, “Grey’s Anatomy”, “The Office”, “Modern Family”, “The Bachelor”, “Chuck”, AND “Community”. It’s kind of sad….but there are people, a lot of people, whose lives revolve around NOTHING. Because at the end of the day, watching TV and playing games doesn’t motivate YOU or anyone around you accomplish anything!

SO…I outlined the problem, now how about a SOLUTION!!! The truth is there is no easy solution. The solution is DOING, being the person you wish you could become. The first step is always the hardest, but there are a lot of ordinary people who have accomplished a lot of extraordinary things simply by taking one step in the direction of excellence.

Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, "That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do; not that the nature of the thing itself is changed, but that our power to do is increased". Pick one thing that you have been meaning to change in your life. Maybe waking up on time, or not hitting the snooze button five times before you get up, whatever it is, when the time comes to MAKE the decision, don’t think about whether or not you should do….simply DO IT!

Emerson also wrote, “Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen.”

I know we as individuals are capable of GREAT things! It doesn’t matter what situation we are currently in, it only matters in what direction we’re headed!

DOnt quIT