I feel awesome

I feel awesome.

And you know what? There is nothing wrong with feeling fantastically strong and confident. There is nothing wrong with believing that you can accomplish the greatest feats. That you DESERVE happiness, health and wealth. There is nothing wrong with promoting yourself. There is nothing wrong with believing you are beautiful and a contribution to the world.

We don’t want people to think we’re arrogant. We don’t want other people to believe we’re full of ourselves. Aside from all that, we are so busy telling ourselves that we can’t. Or it wouldn’t work. Or it would be uncomfortable. You know what’s really uncomfortable? Holding back. Bottling up. Keeping your joy to yourself.

In high school, a teacher of mine, Bill Johnson, was known for being loud, honest and hurting feelings. Students who didn’t care enough to talk to him assumed he was egotistical and just slapped a label on him. One day, while prepping for “The Wizard of Oz” (he had noticed my potential for work when I produced the fall play at Mechanicsburg my junior year), someone told him that he was arrogant.

He shook his head and said, “I’m not cocky. I’m convinced.” Later, while going to retrieve lunch for the crew, we talked about it. “You have to believe you can do anything. You have to know that you are the best. There isn’t anything wrong with believing in your abilities. You can’t rely on other people to believe for you. If you believe in yourself, other people will automatically believe in you.”

Every now and again, I have to say to myself: “I am not cocky – I AM CONVINCED.”

And I challenge you to be convinced as well. Especially when it comes to your talents, your skills and your passion.