Get the Best Seat in the House

Ok, I just had the opportunity to listen to a long diatribe performed by someone I know and love very much about how much their life sucks.  Honestly, I hear people do this too often it seems that some people do it for a living and if I have to hear one more person say, "There's nothing I can do! I'm such a looser!  My life sucks!" I think I'm going to have to slap someone!

Or, maybe I'll just slap a copy of Rachel Hollis' Girl, Stop Apologizing in their hand instead.

The crazy thing is that up until last year, I had NO IDEA who Rachel Hollis was.  But, I happened to hear her speak at an event and after listening to her live, I wanted to know more about her and her message.

How can I sum her up?  Hollis is a petite blonde bomb of positive energy and a fire cracker of support and encouragement for anyone who is looking to live life like "one day" is today.

To me, Hollis is the female version of Tony Robbins (sans the "Say I" call outs and all the jumping of course).  She will inspire you with her intense desire to build a world where people needn't feel badly for wanting something more for themselves and for others.  She's a feminist on a mission to end shame and empower women across the continent.

If she were with me that day when I had to endure the "my life sucks and there's nothing I can do about it" private performance, she would have have had a few things to say.

Now don't start to cringe at the fact that I used the "F-word" earlier (kudos to those of you who automatically scanned the previous paragraphs to find it - did you find it?).  The fact of her being a capital "F" feminist makes some people start to get a bit squirmy, I know.

But with Hollis there is no male bashing.  There is no "Down with the man!" chanting or burning of the bra.  The only bashing she really relies on is one that attacks of our tendency to bash ourselves by falling into old habits of self deprecating language, bad relationships, personal hang ups and straight up lies about who we are, what we are capable of, and what we deserve.

Admittedly,  Girl, Stop Apologizing had some similarities to her 2018 Girl, Wash your Face but even though there were parts of the two books that felt a bit repetitive, I'll be the first to admit that I didn't care.  If she writes another book like either of these, repetitive or not,  I'll be sure to read it too.  I will read as many as I can get my hands on.

Here's why: I know that the only way one can stop looking at life as one sucky moment after another is to start looking at it as NOT one sucky moment after another.  And if you can't do this yet, Hollis can get you started and keep you going.

What this book does is to show you how to see you and your goals differently.  In her approach there is no better way change your perspective than to let go of the excuses you're hanging onto, adopt behaviors that lead you towards personal success and acquire the skills necessary to achieve your goals.

Ain't none of that gonna happen if all you do is repeat the "there' s nothing I can do" mantra.

I'm sorry (not sorry) I'm calling it - complaining for a living is BS.

Check yourself and check your point of view.

Can't change your perspective on your own?  Then surround yourself with people who see things differently.  Read as many books like Hollis' as possible that help you find out how you can change the things that you believe are completely out of your control.

Put it this way, if you were at the Oscars and wanted to get a clear view of your favorite celebrity on the red carpet you wouldn't say, "Oh well! I'll never get a good look at good old blue eyes cause I'm not tall enough".  No!  You'd move around the crowd.  You'd keep poking and peeking over the heads of the people in front of you.  You'd find a spot where you could see your dream boat.  In fact, you'd get the best seat in the house!  You wouldn't wait for another day.  You wouldn't make a lame excuse and say, "Sorry, I failed."

Get out there and expose yourself to anything and everything positive.  Read as many books, blogs and posts as you need to until your attitude starts to change.  Listen to podcasts.  Surround yourself with positive messaging.  As you absorb it your attitudes will begin to shift.  As your attitudes shift so will your actions.  As actions shift so will your attitudes.  It becomes a positive feedback loop.

I'm sorry, but I cannot tolerate the negativity.  Go find a better view.  Upgrade your seating today.  Change your life and seek out your dreams without apology or excuse.