My Aunt and role model for success Jean McKay on a family trip to Banff Springs Canada 1972
Next time you look in the mirror pause for a minute…
Ask yourself what do you see when you look at yourself in terms of the success you’ve achieved?
Are you doing well? Above or below average? Look deep inside, where does your response come from?
Guess what? It’s all relative. Your feelings of success are based upon your position is all relative to those who have accomplished less and your feelings of failure are based upon your position to those who have accomplished more.
Who and what are you comparing yourself to?
I want you to do this simple exercise:
Take out a piece a paper and start writing a list of everything that you have accomplished in the past year. Take some time and start writing. Write it all down. Now, look it over…how do you feel when you look at your list?
Pretty good, huh?
Next time you start feeling like a failure, or get frustrated with your seemingly lack of progress towards your goals take this list out and look at it. Or, if it has been awhile write a new one. This little exercise is guaranteed to shift your perspective and just shifting your perspective will make a big difference.
When I was growing up and as a young adult, every time I started to feel sorry for myself or frustrated my Mom would tell me to pull up my bootstraps and get going. Then she would point out my Aunt Jean and her accomplishments. You see my Aunt was one of the last people to be stricken with polio only months before the vaccine was discovered at the age of 18 years old.
Even though she was confined to a wheelchair and unable to care for herself without any help my Aunt Jean was a success. She did not let her physical situation limit herself in any way. Jean traveled all over the world before anything was wheelchair accessable. I remember seeing her being carried up the stairs of many planes and ships as she explored the world with my family. She also built and ran a multi-million dollar business with my Mother. Jean was an amazing person and I was lucky to have her as a role model for what a person can do with their life. She outlived everyone’s expectations and passed away 2 years ago at the age of 79 having lived a rich and full life.
Did Jean have a list? No, she didn’t need one.
What she had was something deep inside of her, a driving force to live life to its fullest. Something that all of us have inside of us and have access to if we are willing to look deep enough.
