Occasionally at dinner time, my crew opens up the “101 Conversation Starters” box and takes a few sacred moments to intentionally connect as a family by asking each other random questions. Recently my daughter pulled out Question #72: “What is something in nature (plants, animals, fish, geography, weather, space, etc.) that truly fascinates you?” and we went around the table waiting for one another to answer.
My 13-year-old son said, “Football.” When I reminded him that football was not “nature,” he rebutted with, “Well, then, the football field.” My middle daughter said, “Animals,” and my youngest said, “Trees!” and then I was on the spot to give my answer.
Looking at my three children, it was easy to come up with, “Procreation, the miracle of life. Do you know how amazing and cool it is that people love each other enough to make a baby, and how amazing that these zygotes do their thing and then poof – life!” I tried to recall everything I learned ten years ago when I last read babycenter.com, but the best I could come up with was the word “zygotes.”
I don’t know about you, but I am a rabbit-hole kind of person. When something sparks my interest, I follow that path and learn everything I can. So, after my less-than-stellar dinner-time showing, I decided I had to learn everything from the scientific terms my mind had dropped over the years to the detailed tidbits that I did not care to discuss at the dinner table. You all, buckle up, this is amazing!
The Miracle of You
The statistical odds of your existence, of you being here, are mindboggling. There are a few different estimates out there, with the most common placing the odds around 1 in 400 trillion. Dr. Ali Binazir has created an illustration that concludes that the chances of you being here are basically zero. Let that resonate for a moment. The odds of you being right here, right now, are 1 in 400 trillion. I don’t even know how many zeros that is, but I do know that those statistics make you a miracle.
Hear it again: you are a miracle. Your life is a unique gift to your family, your community, and the world. What are you doing with that gift? Are you living a life of purpose? Do you recognize your potential and say “yes” to it? With odds like 1 and 400 trillion, it is evident that you bring something unique to the world. You are enough. Are you living that truth?
If you do not recognize that you are given a gift and that you are a gift, you can change the way that you see yourself. Maybe you suffer from imposter syndrome as I often do. I’ll advise you what I advise myself: get over it. Show up every day and do your best. Your work ethic and integrity will speak for itself and will even silence that nagging “imposter critic” that creeps into your thoughts. If you feel discouraged by negative feedback from bosses or colleagues, think about this: a naysayer’s opinion of you does not have to become your opinion of yourself. In the words of the astute Taylor Swift, “Haters gonna hate.”
When you suffer from negative self-talk or find yourself listening to the critics, take a moment to hit the reset button. Remember the 1 in 400 trillion odds of being here right now. You are a marvel! Then remember that your mind has a gate, and you can choose to feed your mind with positivity and success stories and close out the negativity and nay-sayers.
Of course, there is a time and place for constructive criticism. We all learn to recognize that even being the miracles that we are, we will fail sometimes. But you know what? That’s okay because what failure really becomes is an opportunity to learn.
I cannot tell you how important it is to the world for you to recognize that you have something to offer. You have a passion. You have a gift. If you don’t own that yet, think about these things:
Passion: What lights the fire in you that you can offer to others? Write it down, expose it to the light. There is something galvanizing about putting your passion and purpose on paper.
Action: If you are not pursuing your passion, why are you putting it off? What are you hiding from? Put on those sneakers, lace up your shoes, and run towards your passion instead of away from it.
Moxie: Now that you have written down your passion and purpose, you have captured what may be holding you back and you have laced up your shoes, show off your moxie! Be bold, be courageous, and be you.
If you are not living a life that you are passionate about, what are you waiting for? It is a miracle that you are here and you are not promised tomorrow.