What did the Lion need?

I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter, dancing through the fire

‘Cause I am a champion and you’re gonna hear me roar

I don’t care who you are, what your station may be in life, or whatever situation you may be facing. The words above are absolutely inspiring. Do you recognize them? I’ll give you a hint; they’re from a popular song. And a pretty decent music video as well.

Still don’t know? Well this may surprise you, but these words come to us by way of Katy Perry. They’re from her hit Roar. If you haven’t ever listened to the song or watched the video, here’s a link to it. I don’t think Katy will mind me sharing it with you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CevxZvSJLk8

So, what’s my point here? Aside from introducing you to an extremely popular song and person of course. You have to admit, it’s a pretty encouraging song. And quite a catchy chorus. Almost enough to give a person hope, inspiration – courage. And that’s what we are talking about today – courage!

I used to bite my tongue and hold my breath
Scared to rock the boat and make a mess
So I sat quietly, agreed politely

Whether it’s finding a new job, leaving an abusive spouse, standing up to a bully, or even something as simple as writing a novel – we all need courage. In the past year I can’t tell you how many times I’ve sat alone, late at night, wondering exactly what I was doing. Using up valuable sleeping time, both morning and night, creating something that maybe a dozen people would ever read.

I was a coward, so many times. You see it’s easier to give up than it is to put yourself out there and face possible (read that likely) rejection. So I delayed. And did I ever have the reasons for the delays. I wanted it perfect (yeah, right), I needed to check the POV for the 700^th time (a great stall technique that muggles don’t really understand), I needed to give Brit a sharper edge, Bill a more realistic back-story. The list goes on.

I poured eight and a half months into this 70,000+ word novel. That was enough time. Tolsty probably published War and Peace in that same time frame. Why couldn’t I hit the publish button? One simple word. I lacked courage.

You held me down, but I got up
Already brushing off the dust
You hear my voice, you hear that sound
Like thunder gonna shake the ground

We are told every day that we can’t do something. If you leave here, you’ll never find another job. You are such a loser, who else will ever hire you? Whether it’s your boss, or a co-worker, you may have heard something like this before. You can’t stand up to me, I’m bigger and stronger. Bullies stand over our cowering children, and as adults we do so little. You can’t leave me, no one will ever want a person like you. We allow others to define who we are. You can’t write (or publish) a novel. You don’t know the first thing about it. In my case, this was true – very true. But the voice badgering me came from inside my own head. Self-doubt, self-loathing, self-shame. We need to give ourselves a break, the benefit of the doubt. We can do anything we put our minds to.

I got the eye of the tiger, a fighter, dancing through the fire
'Cause I am a champion and you’re gonna hear me roar
Louder, louder than a lion
'Cause I am a champion and you’re gonna hear me roar

Who says you can’t start anew? Who says you’re a loser and that’s all you’ll ever be? Who says you’re a rotten person, incapable of love? Who says you’re not good enough to do anything? Those cretins that surround you every day with their negativity? No, don’t listen to them. Maybe it’s a co-worker or your spouse. Break the mold. Aspire to be a better person … and then do it. Become that person; the one you dream about becoming every single day. Go For It! You deserve it.

But let’s be honest. Many times we are our own worst enemy. It’s what’s rolling around in our own heads that stop us and hold us back. You can change that. It’s hard, but you can win. And you deserve it.

Take a deep breath, close your eyes, and exhale. Now, repeat after me:

I can and will become the person I want to be. I will be fearless and tenacious in obtaining my goals. Nothing will stand in my way. Nothing will stop me.

‘Cause I am a champion and you’re gonna hear me roar.

As always, I wish you the best of everything. Go out and live your dreams.
(And thank you Katy Perry for the inspiring words shown in bold above).

lake