Yes,You CAN! Believe in yourself!

Sarah E. Blair
Dec 13, 2017
8 min read

Believe it, because it is true. You can do anything you set your mind to!

What is the point; is a common question we as humans ask ourselves. We get stuck in a routine, unsure of how we got there. Once this routine is questioned or challenged we ask ourselves is it worth it. We become comfortable in our situation even when our situation is not always the healthiest. We fear the unknown. What is to be afraid of really; Failure? There is no such thing as failure when you are trying. You can only fail when you give up and stop all efforts. Failure is defined by the success of achievement. You achieve nothing if you do not try. You are rewarded with nothing if you do not try. If you try and are unable to succeed the first time well then try and try again.

Next time you think of the word FAIL; think of it this way.

F.A.I.L

First Attempt In Learning

Perception is reality… Change your perspective and you can change your perception.

When you stop trying, that is when you allow failure to happen.

Life is full of opportunity and chances, but you only have ONE chance to live. You are given one life to make the most of. We all have obstacles we must face in our lives, but we cannot quit at the first sign of struggle. We need challenges to keep us motivated and our minds active. Some of us are given harder obstacles to overcome. The easiest road to take is not always the easy way out of a situation. It is all about choices. Time is constantly moving forward. It is not going to wait for you to catch up. You have a choice! You can stay in your routine or you can take a chance. There is no time like the present.

“Our greatest fear should not be of failure but of succeeding at things in life that don’t really matter.” ~Francis Chan

Ask yourself what is stopping you from making your dreams reality? Do you find yourself not doing the things you love because you think you can’t? Do you find yourself doubting your abilities? Do you make excuses for not going out and trying new things? Being sick, in pain, emotional turmoil, financial hardships, a bad upbringing or poor environment is not an excuse. Those are merely obstacles. You cannot define yourself based on circumstance. You define yourself based on who you are inside. You have wants, needs and dreams. You can achieve these. It might take you time, but you will get there. Many of us struggling with chronic pain and depression put up a wall of CAN’TS. It is time to take that wall down brick by brick. There is a world of opportunities out there waiting for you.

When I was a small child, I spent a lot of time at my Granny’s house. My Granny and I have always been very close. She has always tried to instill in me the important foundations to be a good and successful lady. She would teach me the practical things such as cooking, baking and sewing. Like all Granny’s, she would pass her wisdom onto me and still currently does. As a child I didn’t realize that her loving and encouraging ways where going to make such a HUGE impact on me now and forever. The most memorable thing my Granny ever did was always believe in me. Yes, this is what Granny’s do. But you see my Granny is different. My Granny, taught me the valuable lesson of self-speech.

As, long as I can remember, my Granny has always corrected my sisters and I with our grammar and our speech. She has always pushed us to self-improve, with everything we did. Not in a rude or aggressive manor, but in a loving way. She would say there is always room for improvement and education. She is to this day constantly telling us that we are never too old to learn something new. Sometimes my sisters and I would get fussy with her for this. She always smiles at us though.

I remember clear as day a time when I was so upset with her. I was getting frustrated because she wanted me to read to her. I hated reading out loud and still do. Time at Granny’s meant every morning I would wake up and have breakfast with a story. Breakfast time there are some of my fondest memories. Granny would call in a loving tone from the foot of the stairs to say breakfast was ready. My sisters and I would come down in our jammies to oatmeal with pineapple on the side. My favorite. She would always read to us a story while we ate. This was our tradition. Then after breakfast I would go upstairs and help my sisters get dressed while she cleaned up the breakfast table. This was not the case the day I remember getting upset with my Granny.

My Granny had other plans for me.

This day, of all days, she wanted me to read out loud. I started to read from the story book where she had left off. We were reading what I think was Walt Disney Hans Brinker or The Sliver Skates. As I began to read from the book, I started to skip words. My Granny stopped me and told me to place my finger where I was reading so I wouldn’t skip. She then had me start the sentence again. I kept reading till I got to a word that was hard. She like any Granny would, told me to sound it out and helped me along the way. I did. As I kept reading the stopping for hard words started to happen more and more. I was struggling to get through full sentences without needing to stop. I was getting embarrassed and frustrated with myself. I said “Granny, I CAN’T!” She leaned back in her chair smiled and said “You mean to say YOU CAN… I sighed…. “Say it with me I CAN…” She said with a smile. I rolled my eyes and repeated softly “I can… She said “See you can do anything you put your mind to. So, come on let’s try again.” So, of course I start to try and read again. I read a few more sentences till I couldn’t take the stopping anymore. I slammed the book shut. Folded my knees up into the chair and covered my face in my knees. “I CAN’T! I CAN’T! I JUST CAN’T! IT’S TO HARD!” I snapped at her before beginning to cry.

My Granny leaned over to me and picked my face up from my folded body. She said “Girls, let me tell you something. Never say you Cannot do something. The only time you can say you can’t is when you tell yourself YOU CAN’T QUIT!” Things might get hard, but you must always try your best. You have one life to live and this is it. So, you must try and live it the best you can! So, give everything your best, never give up and never say you can’t do something. Never let anyone else tell you, you can’t either.” She wiped my tears off my face and said to me we can try again tomorrow. And we did. We tried every day till I could get through that damn book all by myself. Guess what… I DID IT!!!! Not only did I get through that book, I learned the most valuable lesson of my existence.

I didn’t know at the time why she wanted me to read out loud to her. All I knew then was it was frustrating. I later found out that, my Mother had told her I was struggling with reading in school. My teacher would ask us to read out loud in class. I would get shy and upset whenever she would. The kids would pick on me. I was that kid that Billy Maddison made fun of. “T-T-T-TODAY JUNIOR!” I was picked on so badly, I got to the point where I would refuse to read in class. My Granny as all loving Granny’s do, thought if I could practice with a story I knew and loved I would enjoy reading again. Come the next school year I was still nervous to read out loud. Once I did, all my fears where gone. I kept thinking of that summer with Granny reading. I still don’t like reading out loud. A small part of me is waiting for Billy Madison, but I always try.

Through my life time my Granny has had to remind me that I can, but her lesson that day and everyday will stick with me. She not only taught me this lesson, she taught my mother the same one. Between these two women I am constantly reminded that I can do anything I want to do. So let me remind you reading this that you can do anything!

If you are told something over and over enough times you begin to believe it. Why are you telling yourself that you can’t? Start telling yourself you CAN!

We do not tolerate verbal abuse from bullies. Why should we tolerate it from ourselves? The words you tell yourself are powerful. You might be the largest bully on the playground; that is your mind. Every time you tell yourself you can’t because… or you call yourself a name you are bullying yourself. You are holding yourself back. Sometimes we bully ourselves and don’t even realize it. Everything you say out loud or in your head about yourself, is a direct message to yourself. Even when you think you’re not listening, you are. You are believing the words you are saying.

If you think what I am saying is crazy, just think about this for a moment.

Please note, what I said.

If you think WHAT I am saying is Crazy. I said WHAT I am saying. I could have said. If you think I AM crazy. I chose not to say the second option. Why do you think that is?...

You see, the way we speak about ourselves is very important. I know I am not crazy. I know that not all of you will agree with what I am telling you. So why would I put it out there that I am crazy that is only telling my mind subconsciously that I am. When really, I AM NOT crazy, the idea might be crazy. We must be conscious of what messages we tell ourselves. This is just one example. It is not always easy to pick up on when you are being a bully to yourself. Some forms of self-verbal abuse are more obvious than others.

“Never say Can’t, unless you are saying I CAN’T QUIT!” ~Marigeri Parks

When you say can’t, you are projecting onto the world that you lack confidence and are unwilling to take a chance. Is that who you really are? Do you want to live in the shadows of fear; stuck while the world passes you? NO! You want to live and THRIVE! Start adjusting your self-speech. LOVE YOURSELF! RESPECT YOURSELF! BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!!!

You can do anything! It might take a bit to get there but you will!