We Are Not "Just" Anything.

I'm writing this for my daughters. And for my friends and my sisters. 

I've heard this relatively often enough from my women friends for it to bother me ... "I'm just a Mom." or "I'm just a wife." Sentences that start with "I'm just...".

You may be a mom, a wife, a daughter or whatever you are. But you also are you. You are more than "just."

As my daughters get older, these thoughts go through my head more and more often. I hope my daughters become moms one day (far far far in the future)... and when they do, I want them to say, "I'm a mom". Not I'm "just" a mom. And if they have other ambitions, I want them to know that they can do what they set their minds to.

For so many years of my life I believed in my heart of hearts that "other people have talent" and "other people have the secret to success"... I literally felt like there was some sort of magic that "other people" had, and that I certainly did not hold the key. I thought I was "just".

Then one day it honest to goodness dawned on me... other people had what they wanted because they worked really really hard for it. Yes, people are born with certain talents and pre-dispositions, but they didn't hone their talents without really hard work.

Back then, I didn't even know what my talents were. I thought I was "just."

I've heard that it takes 100 hours of practice to get good at anything. That is probably a bare minimum.

But I believe something else. I believe that if you want to succeed in anything, you have to truly, deeply believe that you can... and that you will.

I also believe that you don't necessarily need a degree in that which you want to succeed in. You know, unless you'd like to be a doctor or a lawyer or whatever you want to do requires a certificate. Good grief, my degree is in Social Sciences with a concentration in Psychology and Women's Studies ... yes, that's a true story.

What you need is experience, commitment, a belief in yourself, and quite likely ... someone who strongly believes in you.

I believe that we can do what we set our minds to do. I believe that we are not "just" anything.

I believe that I can succeed. And I believe you can too. And not only that. I want you to. Because I want my daughters to believe the very same thing. They are more than "just".