I went today to watch the Tampa Bay Buccaneers play football. That’s American Football to you Europeans. Needless to say, the Bucs are having such a year they were beat pretty bad.
But from that I was able to learn a very valuable lesson. Well, not from the game. From the young man I went to the game with. His name is BJ.
BJ told me something on the ride home tonight that really made a lot of sense to me. He is only 15 (and taller than me!) but there was a definite truth revealed when he said this.
He told me what his definition of success is. This is what he said, to the best of my recollection.
True success comes when your back’s against the wall – when you’ve got nothing left and it’s time to show what you’re made of.
I heard this quote with my ears first, but then part of it seeped right into my soul. If you really think about it, we all rest on the edge of greatness. We are only one performance away from showing the world what we an do.
A lot of times it feels as though the world is crashing down in front of us. Like there isn’t anything out there we can do to stop everything from caving in.
What this quote said to me is this fundamental truth.
When things seem hard or difficult, it simply means your time has come. It’s time to show what you’re made of. Your back is against the wall and you’ve got to stand strong and give it all you got.
It makes me think of star athletes, doing all they can to win the game. (Unlike the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who right now aren’t playing with any heart.)
Stars accept adversity as a challenge and rise to meet that challenge. They aren’t scared or afraid to look problems in the eye and do something about them. They make action.
So, what about you? Is there an area of you’re life where you’ve let fear control you? Is there an area where you need to step up and “show what you’re made of?”
We all have areas we can improve in. So, let’s commit to doing that right this instant.
Just think, this is your time to shine.
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