The following was originally written on LovingOnMe.com
“Success means having the courage, the determination and the will to become the person you believe you were meant to be.” – George Sheehan
Recently, a dear sweet friend of mine and I were having an open and vulnerable conversation about the importance of not only accepting who you are, the good and the bad, but having the courage and the confidence to be true to who you are meant to be.
My friend was venting about how she was tired of not being accepted for the characteristics that make her uniquely her, like her loudness and infectious laugh. She felt people sometimes judged her because she does not whisper and sometimes breaks the invisible sound barrier that others can inflict upon us. Notice I said “us”. That’s because I know those judgmental and annoyed looks (you do too!) all to well, because I, too, am a person whose voice tends to rise and break invisible sound barriers when I am passionate about a subject. Is that wrong? Is it a crime? Should we be made to wear the scarlet L (for “loud”) for it? I think not. I think we should be celebrated for being passionate!