Licence To Be Awesome

Have you ever wondered how to be awesome?

Have you ever looked at someone you admired and wish you knew how they did it?

Have you ever complained how you can't do something because it just seems too hard?

Then wonder, look, and complain no more, for I'm about to tell you the secret to untap your inner amazing self.

There is no course to take. No certificate to confirm your status (I just said licence to catch your attention). You don't need to jump through flame-torched rings over pirana-infested waters. Nor do you have to bust out of a giant bubble, surrounded by fireworks on a stage towards an audience of A-list celebrities.

We are ignoring the glitz and spectacles to reach to the depths of your abilities, because awesomeness cannot always be bought. People tend to also recognize respect and some layers of character.

If you want to be awesome just to get attention, then don't bother reading any farther. Have fun making drama and keep your ignorance to yourself.

But... If you want to know how to tap that inner ability to enforce and empower your life, then listen closely.

Learn to reflect upon yourself.

Awesomeness is earned through realizing your own abilities and learning how to engage them with enthusiasm and dedication.

So take a quiet moment or steal a brief minute to really think about what you have done. Successful people do not think about everything that they cannot do: successful people think about all the good things that they can do and acknowledge what they can't do. By using what works in a focused way allows one to be effective in their work. Limit that scope of thoughts gives you a boost to look at the list of Can't-Do's in a constructive manner, so you can learn how they can improve.

Really, the person that you most want to impress with your abilities is yourself. I have found that usually my best support is myself. Yes, sometimes I have doubts, but I have found that my parents and friends remind me of my successes and ablilities. Sometimes I am stubborn and don't believe what they say. But when I am on my side, I have always found that I always do my best. Even if the project is a failure, I can still walk away with the satisfaction knowing that I did what I could and learned from my mistakes.

This mentality is also helpful when you are applying for jobs and schools. All those questions they ask are opportunities for you to talk about how you have handled your losses and gains. There are different things that happen in life, and how you handle them helps the HR learn what type of person you are. And if you believe in yourself and know your strengths, then you may be able to sell yourself better than if you feel doubtful. Over this summer I had observed my own lack of faith in my ability to find a job (though the market isn't particularly helpful). Despite the outside factors, I always felt so negative about the applictions. Each one made me feel worse and worse till I just simply gave up in frustration. My sense of reason became overwhelmed by my lack of faith coupled with failures that I was not able to continue. Whatever happened to that sense of individual support and pride that I had always offered to myself in rough times?

It took me awhile to remember how to relearn this lesson. There were several other failures in my personal and work life that have crippled me. It has taken me months to get my heart back, and even longer to get my head screwed back on straight. I don't worry about how those failures are seen by others; they do not know what those have meant to me, and probably never will.

But I am not here on Earth to tell people how terrible 2010 was for me. I am here to share my experiences and successes with people who are encouraged to learn from. May it be a tune from a song, a line from a play, an image from a poem, or a thought from my writing: these are done to inspire them to take a pause in their life to think of something or someone. This is my ability and I hope to be able to continue to do so. Even if there is no one really listening or reading, I continue to do so, for every hundred or thousands of people who come across me, only a few people will really be struck by what they discover. And I do all of this for that few. To know that I have that ability makes me feel so inspired, and always, I hope that I never give up this dream that I can have that effect. In short, I feel awesome.

I was a good actress in high school, but that didn't make me awesome. The applause and laughs did.

I am a great singer, but that doesn't qualify me either. But the tears and twisted guts do.

The clothes and boots I wear do not make me feel like this, the attitude that I take on with the outfit makes me believe in myself.

Find those strengths and take ownership of them. Not a lot of people will always tell you how awesome you are; family and friends only strech so far across time and space. Love and cherish them, but don't forget that you will also need yourself to help you become great.

Look on the inside, and I can guarantee you that you will be surprised at what you find.