Outgrow yourself---oh yes you can!

Nothing is permanent and this is one of the beauties of life. As a society, we are too comfortable in the known; we know our past and we see it as power. Before you embark on a new journey, before you face a new opponent, you study it. We learned this from the great basketball players, the football players who have won championships. They study the opposite teams for weeks, watching videos, going over their plays to put all the chances on their side to secure a win.

In our personal life, we do the same. Knowing our past and what we had to endure to push through certain obstacles, we tend to always refer or go back to the hell endured because it is known. It is the demon we have defeated so we feel comfortable. Who doesn’t like to win? But our past becomes irrelevant when we are stuck in it. I have seen people try to motivate others by telling them to forget the past and move on. I say you are discrediting yourself and your hard work. Your past should never be forgotten; we just have not used it the way it is meant to. No, I do not want to forget my past. It has shaped me into the resilient person I am. We owe it to the tears shed, the sleepless nights, the fear won over to convert and help them fuel our present so our future can be the one we have dreamed so many years about.

So can you outgrow others and yourself eventually? Yes, no disrespect to my circle or even to my present self; but I want to outgrow you, my vision needs to be bigger than I have ever imagined if I want to soar to a level I have always dreamed of. We like to sell ourselves short. You get a bachelor’s degree and say that is it. I am a college graduate, I do not want any more loans. I want to be married but my boyfriend is comfortable living together so that is the next best thing; we can play house until he is ready. I have an entry-level job in my dream field; that is all I can accomplish. I am content. Are you really or you are just cheating yourself of your own potential.

Nothing scares me more than settling, and that is in all aspects of my life. I remember when I decided to go back to school for my second masters. I already had a master in Organizational Communication with a focus in Project Management but not fulfilled with the career path. I wanted to do something more impactful with my life after the earthquake in Haiti in 2010. I knew I did not want to be a physician as my dad and brother are and being a female in my late 20s, I wanted a little bit more freedom but always knew medicine would be the purposeful change I needed and wanted. So many were surprised I would go back to school after already holding a master.

You know who was not surprised, ME! Yes I love studying. Yes it is one of the things I excel in but I did not let the fear and doubt of others cloud my dream and lessen my worth. Friends, unbeknownst to them, will speak their fear onto your journey. It is up to us to let it shatter our vision or fuel our goals. I had to outgrow myself first, before I could outgrow them. Sometimes your own enemy is looking at you in the mirror. You can talk yourself out of everything. Believe for a moment you cannot finish the program you enrolled in; guess what, you will find all the “good” reasons why you cannot.

When I packed my bags and drove down to Miami to attend the physician assistant program, the excitement helped me push through my fear. The first couple of months, reality kicked in and I was asking myself every night how I would conquer this new challenge. I had to quiet the noise. I went back to my “why”, I bought some motivational artwork and decorated my room so I can remind myself of my potential daily, prayed and reached out to people who would speak only positivity over me. The key is to outgrow your own thoughts, your own fears and boundaries, outgrow your past self and you will easily outgrow your circle. Again, this is not a bad thing. Do not ever feel ashamed for becoming a better version of yourself. It often takes one person to soar past their goals to elevate a clique, a community, a whole society. Be that one person!

What are some of your goals? Are you following them? Share your JOURNEY!