“Some men have
thousands of reasons why they cannot do what
they want to do, when all they need is one reason why they can.” ~
Willie R.
Whitney
Good
Morning!
You likely know
the people to whom Willie is referring. No matter what it is
that they desire, they can
create a list of reasons that is longer than Santa’s wish list as to
why their
goal is out of reach. You might even
have some of those tendencies yourself.
Most people do.
At some point, we
all embrace the “I can” attitude. As babies learning to walk,
we don’t sit down
after that first fall, plop our thumb in our mouth, and count the
reasons we will
never be able to walk like the “big people” all around us.
But somewhere between those young years and
adulthood, many of us do just that. We plop
doubt in our minds and count the reasons why we will never be able to
have the
dreams that we truly desire.
How is it that we
have become addicted to thinking: “I cannot”
instead of “I can”? Of course, when we
are babies we have a team of cheerleaders.
Parents and relatives help us stand again, they hold up our wobbly
legs,
and they shriek for joy as we make those first steps. Video
cameras roll and lights flash in our
eyes, as if our parents or support team has become paparazzi.
In our lives as
adults, we often don’t have that support
network saying, “Get up and try again;” “Of course you can;” “You can
do it!” And, in the absence of those positive voices,
doubt creeps in.
I wonder what the
world would look like if tomorrow we could
all create a list of reasons “we can” versus “we cannot.”
Your Turn:
Your challenge
for the day is twofold. Find someone you
believe in and tell them today: “You can do it!” whether by email,
phone,
in-person, or a thoughtful card. Then,
choose something you want in your life and create an ongoing list of
the reasons
you can reach that goal.
Today’s Affirmation:
Each day, I tell myself, “I can!”
