Now don't get me wrong, I too had these same struggle questions and after a while, they fizzled out until I saw or heard someone else leveling up and the questions come back. Each year, I found myself having the same talk with my girlfriends, and each year we said, "THIS IS OUR YEAR!"
Yet, halfway into the year, nothing has been accomplished and there goes December and you are left questioning yourself again before the fastly approaching New Year with the same pep talk. It yields the same outcome as the years prior, getting yourself pumped up to take on new challenges and face fears, only to fall flat again and be defeated by your own fear.
It was nearing the end of 2016 and a week before Thanksgiving. I went back and forth in my head of whether I should pursue writing or not. I knew I was good but was I that good? Then I remembered something that stuck with me, a quote from Jay-Z:
"I believe everybody in the world is born with genius-level talent. Apply yourself to whatever you're genius at and you can do anything in the world."
I knew I wanted to tell stories, make people feel good, laugh, cry, escape reality, hell even think about their reality or whatever. I knew I had a voice that was worth listening to. I was attending a networking event and someone asked me the infamous question, "What do you do?" I paused for a second and replied, "I'm an X-ray Technologist, however 'Who I Am' is a writer."
They looked at me, stood for a moment, and smiled. I smiled too. At that moment, I proclaimed myself as writer.
I defined Who I Am. I knew it. I felt it. I stepped one foot into my purpose just by saying it aloud.
I learned something that night. I learned that I was the magic.
So when it comes to shifting the perception of how you view yourself, you may be wondering, "How Sway?"
I don't have all the answers, however I do have some helpful tips on where to begin:
- Start by asking yourself, "Does my current job/career define me?" Follow that with the question, "Who am I?" It's a deep question but needed to really find your magic.
- Just DO IT. YES, like NIKE. Stop making excuses just to end up asking yourself the same questions again.
- Forget failure. Because if you're not already who you are, finding out will not hurt you.
- Be consistent. Do so with everything you do, and don't half ass it.
- Choose your friends wisely. Your vibe attracts your tribe. You need folks on the same wave as you to keep you grounded.
- Reflect on your influence. Even a small amount of influence can be impactful.
- Your character should precede your reputation. When you do for others and not just self, the blessings come.
- Trust the universe. What you put out comes back to you.
What you do isn't who you are until they both align with your purpose, passion, heart, and soul. You're essentially just going through the motions and not living the life you were meant to live. Until you decide who you are is what you don't do, and vice versa, you will always ask, "When is it my time?"
Instead, it's about fully committing to the role you play in your life, tapping into that genius-level talent, and leveling up. Since I've made that decision, the conversations I engage in have shifted from "They must know someone" to "I am that someone."
My favorite line to say is, "No one can stop you from being great but you!"
I have the magic. Just like you.
You hear of these success stories, or people say it took me "xyz" number of years to "make it." It took that amount of years to realize who you are and now you know to be great.
Do what you love, create your own lane, and don't just exist but LIVE in that mutha.
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Featured image by Getty Images.
