Dang that woman is so right! How could you sum anything up any better? I read this quote and it dawned on me that I don't have to wait until the end to be a success. I am not successful when I am finished with my teaching career and am entering retirement. I am not successful when I have been married 100 years (poor Steven, I know!) And I am not successful when I am finished losing weight and in that perfect sized pair of pants. If that were true, Angelou's quote would say: Success was liking yourself, liking what you did, and liking how you did it. I am successful everyday.
Especially when I remember the following:
I like myself.
-I am intelligent, witty, helpful, conscientious, empathetic, and beautiful inside and out.
I like what I am doing.
-I am an educator, a role model, a friend, a leader, and a motivator.
I like how I do it.
-I am careful, thorough, punctual, spontaneous, driven, dedicated and fun.
If I only consider myself a success once my goals are achieved, then I am to see myself as a failure along the way? That is such a downer and so un-motivating! There will always be a day or a week that goes by that I don't do exactly what I need to do as I should do it. Take the past few weeks for example. The thought of a 60 minute cardio session after being at work from 7:30 am - 6:00 pm, was NOT high on my list of "Oh Let's Do It!" Or the week that I only made it 3 times to the gym instead of 5. I am successful. My mind is in it and my heart is in it, but my body is temporarily not in it. I am a success because I still want to do it. I am a success because I am careful of the things I put in to my body and am frequently asked by co-workers what my "Secret Food Diet" is. (I have to laugh as they lean in close to me as if to receive the location of the Holy Grail, and I say, "There is no secret. No trick diet, no trick juice or bar or pill. Just eat clean! And workout a few times a week with a personal trainer...")
I am a success because even though I have thought about quitting because I am "too tired" or "too busy", I can't. My friends are counting on me, my family is counting on me, my students are counting on me and I am counting on me. To continue being successful.
And I am...
