How to decide who you are

We live in a world that’s on the brink of exploding - emotionally and physically.

And it’s made me realize that we all have a chance right now to answer a question: 

WHO are you?

Who are you as a man or woman within the context of what’s happening and outside of it?

WHO ARE YOU?

I’ve realized that who you are comes exclusively from making tough decisions.

It could be LITTLE choices like… 

- Deciding to work out instead of Netflix on the couch.

- Choosing salad over pizza.

- Choosing a night in over another night out. 

It could be MEDIUM choices like…

- Apologizing when you know you’re wrong.

- Taking ownership of f***ing up when you probably could get away with not owning it.

- Being honest with someone you’re dating but have no intention of getting serious with.

And it could also be HARD choices like…

- Standing for something and always… no matter what… standing for it.

- Risking it all to stand for something. 

Who you are is defined exclusively by making tough decisions.

Who you are is not who you think you are.

Intention doesn't define you. Behavior does. Choices do.

If you avoid making the hard choice… you are not being true to who you can be. 

If you avoid stepping up and taking ownership of your life and what you stand for… you are not being true to who you can be.

If you avoid building others up in favor of tearing them down… you are not true to who you can be. 

If you stay silent when you should speak up… you are not being true to who you can be.

In all contexts, you have to choose the tougher choice!

You have to choose:

The choice that makes you uncomfortable. 

The choice that makes you doubt yourself. 

The choice that leads you into the unknown. 

That choice that makes you wonder what others will think. 

The choice that makes your heart beat a bit faster.

The choice that makes you nervous, awkward, embarrassed, self conscious, etc.

My friend… that is the choice you have to make!

Because THAT is who you are! It’s choosing the tougher decision.

Every single time. That is who you are!! When you commit to living your life as a man or woman of character…

You become someone who breaks the patterns in life.

You become someone who doesn’t let their hurt turn around and hurt others.

You become someone who doesn't let their pain become someone else's.

You become someone who sees good in themselves and seeks it out in others.

You become someone who sees good in themselves and inspires it in others.

You become someone who is scared but steps towards potential anyway.

You become someone who doesn’t close off but instead opens up.

You become someone who chooses softness and vulnerability when the opposite is so much easier.

You HAVE TO choose the tougher choice because it is always the right one.

What’s happening in the world right now is living proof of what happens when people don’t step towards being the men or women of character they are fully capable of being.

The world right now is living proof that far too many of us have visions of who we are in our heads but don’t act on it in our lives.

Think of what a tough decision in your life looks like right now.

- It could be an honest conversation with your parents.

- It could be a tough conversation with your boss.

- It could be a decision to stop being a f*** boy.

- It could be a decision to end a friendship, a relationship. It could be a decision to drop a bad habit - drinking, smoking, etc.

Or it could be bigger. 

It could be a decision to volunteer, to get your a** out and vote, to let your voice be heard, to get involved in something that matters. It could be a decision to offer your time, money, service or knowledge.

Those decisions reflect who you are and I think it’s time we remember this. THAT is how you bring out the best of you into the world. It’s not enough to be about change - whether personal change or world change.

You have to live it and whether you think no one looks to you and your example and you think your little voice carries no weight… it matters.

People notice, people listen and people are inspired by you. What you do matters.