Got my red belt in karate this weekend. My first coloured belt; I’m no longer the lowest on the totem pole! My gi has pizzazz now: and I’m proud fit to burst. So often, in the dojo and out in the world, I see people brushing off their achievements.
“Yeah, I just ran a 10k, but it’s not like it’s a marathon or anything.”
“I did just work for 5 years to lose that weight, but it’s no big deal; I really shouldn’t have been fat in the first place.”
“I got my red belt, but it’s just red – I have a long way to go before my black belt.”
Seriously. Can we cut out the false modesty? Achieving things makes me happy and fulfilled. As it should. I work deliberately to get things done. I’m not the kind of person to whom things come naturally. My fitness level? Worked my ass off (literally) to get here. I still work extremely hard; if I didn’t, I would be much weaker and flabbier. My pear-shaped body likes to be softer; I was never the skinny kid, and I never will be able to just eat whatever and not gain weight. So I take pride in completed workouts in which I did my best. My business? I went through a lot of change and learning to open it. Then a lot more to transition it to so