Courage to me was never about feeling completely fearless. It’s always been about looking my fears dead in the face and continuing forward no matter what.

I have lost countless times on this journey. The tally marks are well stacked up in the losing column and would probably be overwhelming to look at if I tried.

But I have had some wins. Big ones.

And, in life’s mysterious ways, some moments that were actually supposed to be wins turned out to be crushing losses. Those are a bit harder to stomach.

But when I look at all of it in total, I am reminded of my favorite speech my Theodore Roosevelt once again.

I would rather be defeated endlessly than to give up trying altogether.

No matter what I’ve gone through to get to this point, nothing can ever take away the experiences I’ve had, the relentless attitude I’ve built from the ground up and my will to continue moving in the right direction.

It wasn’t always that way and despite being confronted with moments that broke me, I have found ways to carry on.

It’s a surreal moment to be sitting here writing today knowing that I have reached the end of a very long path and am standing at the threshold of a door I imagined so long ago.

While my mind didn’t think any of this was possible, there was something in my soul that knew far better.

Of course there are answers. Of course there’s a way through.

To be honest, the hardest part of all of this was finding my way here and settling my mind enough to finally move forward and do it. What’s being asked of me is incredibly simple. It doesn’t demand a complicated plan or the might of the heavens.

It’s…well, just in sync with what I need.

And that’s that.

I’m going far beyond where I’ve ever been before. Even the last time I entered into the arena I didn’t fully give up the crutches that I usually fell back on.

I didn’t give it my all and I still had quite the adventure. This time around, it’s going to be pure. Through and through. All the way to the end.

I think when something really matters to you, you find a way to make it work. I haven’t always given my dreams my best because there was a piece of me that was worried about really going for it and failing.

But as I see it now, I’ve been failing all my life and that’s exactly how I’ve turned into who I am today and will be the primary reason for who I become in the future.

Failing is a gift.

It’s a mental, emotional, physical, spiritual course correction if you let it be.

Without it, I wouldn’t be in the place I am today, 1 day away from the greatest adventure of my life, with the beautiful intention of correcting past wrongs with one fell swoop.

So thank you for that.

Perspective is an interesting thing. It can be the thing that traps you in a cage or frees you to the endless possibilities of the future.

I’m sure that I will be spending the rest of my life dissolving old narratives that have restricted me in one way or another.

But I know this for sure – failure built me and will continue to forever.

Evan Sanders
The Better Man Project