Lately, I have been taking the time out to think about where I am in my life and where I want to be. I have a tendency to compare my own success and progression throughout my life to others and I’d somewhat shame myself. I’d wonder why I’m not in a better place. Every day, a constant flow of questions filled my head about what others were doing that I wasn’t. These unanswered questions plagued my self-confidence and left me lost within my thoughts. It took me a while to realize what was really causing me grief. It’s not that I don’t work towards anything, or that I don’t have goals of my own. I know what I want out of life. Instead, it was the mindset that I have allowed to lead me for all these years.

One thing that I don’t think many people are told growing up is how powerful your mind is over everything else you do, see, and even feel. The brain is a unique organ and I feel that I undermined it for a while. You see, between being insecure, comparing myself to others, and never giving myself credit, there was hardly any room for my brain to formulate constructive thoughts. As a result, I performed under par in my life. I simply passed by the years, doing just enough. Yet, the entire time I knew that I didn’t just want to do the bare minimum. I have always wanted to excel in life. The question was how to do it.

Coming up with the perfect plan to success is such a broad idea. There are almost an endless number of ways to plan for success. This left me stuck for a while. I couldn’t decide on a plan I felt promising enough to pursue. Then I realized something. I’ve been worried too much about the end result. Constantly contemplating my life and what’s going to happen next. I haven’t been enjoying my journey. Life has a way of making everything okay over time. Time itself reveals all the answers. So I decided that instead of being so hard on myself about my mistakes and comparing myself to others, that I would stop and just acknowledge my accomplishments thus far. I took some time to see that I didn’t plan how to get there. I lived my life trying new things, having fun, challenging myself and greatness naturally came as a result of that.

My mindset has to be a positive one. Happy thoughts give me the happy mood I need. When I’m happy within myself I have the confidence to step out of my comfort zone just like I did growing up. The adult world is a lot more intimidating but the concept of it is all the same. Of course, I’ll still make mistakes on my way to success, but messing up is a part of life and quite frankly it’s the best teacher. Positive mind, positive life. I challenge you all to live by that. It may sound cliché, but it holds a very imperative purpose. Understand that everything started with a thought, that was then put into action. Keep a healthy and happy head on your shoulders and everything else will be too.