I am on top of the world right now. New quarter, new classes, new job description, new body, new goals, new mind. I am unbelievably happy with everything. I have no fears.

Tonight, I want to write about impact.

I was sitting at breakfast this morning reading my new book, and out of nowhere, this thought just came into my mind. Happiness allows for our creativity to flow freely, from which our dreams and goals are turned to color, creating the most beautiful strokes on the canvas of our lives. I have always been into quotes, and I think I might just have made one.  I dont exactly know why I said this, but it came to me later in the day. It comes down to a poem written above my door.

Our Greatest Fear —Marianne Williamson

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.
It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous,
talented and fabulous?

Actually, who are you not to be?
You are a child of God.
Your playing small does not serve the world.
There’s nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other
people won’t feel insecure around you.

We were born to make manifest the glory of
God that is within us.

It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone.
And as we let our own light shine,
we unconsciously give other people
permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fear,
Our presence automatically liberates others.

This poem means the world to me. I realize that most of us fear our potential. We fear taking the next step towards becoming great. We fear that we will fail, we will suffer, we will lose. But rather than fearing inadequacy, we are actually fearing our potential, our power. “Our playing small does not serve the world.” I think about this every morning when I wake up. Who am I not to be the happiest, the fittest, the smartest, the best at something. Am I not to be that person because everyone around me has told me no? I have been told over and over again no. No you cant do that, you wont achieve that. Which brings me to my next quote over my door.
“All your life you are told the things you cannot do. All your life they willsay you’re not good enough or strong enough or talented enough; they willsay you’re the wrong height or the wrong weight or the wrong type to playthis or be this or achieve this. THEY WILL TELL YOU NO, a thousandtimes no, until all the no’s become meaningless. All your life they will tellyou no, quite firmly and very quickly. AND YOU WILL TELL THEMYES.” ~ Nike

Hell yes. Try to stop me. The funny thing is, that quote for me was ripped out of a book and pasted into this black journal from last year that I have yet to burn. I need to burn that thing. When we shine, we give people unconsciously the light to shine also. We give them the courage, the strength, the energy to be their best and do the best they can. I love writing here almost every day. Not because it is some sort of way to make myself look good, but because I know that in my journey to achieve what I am trying to, I am giving people the reason to do the same. You can become who you want to be, you can be that person. You have to be patient with yourself, and you have to be patient with others. Change does not happen over night. In fact, I don’t think I will ever stop changing. Like a piece of clay, I want to continuously reinvent myself, make myself better, improve and change. Never do I want to just sit down one day and say, well thats who I am. Wrong, because everything in our lives changes, thats the one constant. Change will always occur. We all should change the things that are bad about us. We all have those things, and if you don’t think so, then you should change lying to yourself.

There are few times where you have the opportunity to really see how much you have impacted someones life. Today, I got the opportunity to be told exactly that. I didn’t ask for it, but when I was told I sat there and was just stunned. I have never been so complimented in my life. More importantly, I was humbled. I was told that the way I wrote, the way I got through things, the way I moved forward passionately and with fire, gave that person the reason to do the same. I motivated them to act. To become a better person, not because I told them to, but because I gave them the reason to want it for themselves. That is what life is about. It is also unreal to meet someone with so much energy. I could almost feel it. On the path, when your not looking, there is always something that surprises you. This, was the best surprise. We have all these people around us who are our friends, our boyfriends and girlfriends, our parents, etc…and we only know them so well. I am a firm believer that people should know really everything about you before you can really truly become great friends with them. I have found this to be the truth…just look and see how great of friends me and Greg have become. But it is our calling to impact those around us. To help them rise when they fall and to give them the courage to achieve their greatness. To become legendary.

“Happy are those who dream dreams and are ready to pay the price to makethem come true.” ~ Leon J. Suenes

“It was a high counsel that I once heard given to a young person, “Alwaysdo what you are afraid to do.”” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

“The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond theminto the impossible.” ~ Arthur C. Clarke

“Our greatest glory is not in never falling but in rising every time we fall.”~ Confucius

I know why I wake up every day. Mostly to love everyone around me as much as I can, but also to make an impact in a positive way. When we become fearless, there is nothing that can stop us from achieving our dreams. We must pay the price to achieve them, but it is worth the blood, sweat, and tears. Its worth every ounce you put into it. Look at the quotes above. Failure, limits, impossible, dreams…but the one thing they all have in common, drive.

You must be willing to do the thing you are afraid to do. And when you do that…you become great.

Evan Sanders
The Better Man Project