Happiness is…being proud of who you are!

larees24
Oct 3, 2021
4 min read

When our loved ones, especially our children, do well, we feel proud of them. We appreciate them and their work, celebrate their successes, and encourage them towards their next endeavour. When my Sam does well, even if it is a simple life skill, I appreciate him.

I have realised, I do not stop to give myself such appreciation, or celebrate my achievements. I simply move onto the next project or task. I am very hard on myself, on most days, pushing myself to excel.

Striving for excellence (not perfection), and being a better version of oneself daily, are good personal goals.

However, it is important to stop, and celebrate our successes, give thanks for these, and appreciate our personal and professional growth.

In the past 17 years, I have had some ridiculous statements dished out to me…

· You are a woman, this business is not suited for women!

· You are too old to become a concert pianist (when I resumed my piano studies at 36 yrs).

· Those who can’t perform, teach (when I started teaching music). Music will be the bane of your life!

· You are not good at decision-making!

Throughout my adulthood, career, motherhood, I have put up with such statements, and I found myself giving more than a 100% percent, to prove my worth, as a Professional, as a Mother, as a Musician! Well, considering my efforts, I have done well in all the above, and more, but, I also went through undue stress, and frustrations.

This year, I have stumbled upon and internalised some important realisations:

· People are hardly ever happy with what we have to offer, even if we offer them the moon!

· Most of what they say, comes from a space of their own lack, and or fears!

· Such statements are mere projections onto us, and we do not need to take any of these personally!

These are fabulous realisations! These have set me free, and have empowered me to take a leap of faith towards my dreams.

When I look back at my life, I have shouldered mammoth responsibilities, personally and professionally. And none of it was easy. I have not just survived, I have thrived! I feel very proud of this (though, not on all days; on some days I feel low, and my close friends remind me of these!)

So, let us take stock of facts, against the previously stated ridiculous statements…

· During my corporate career, I did reasonably well, led and mentored several teams, got several promotions, bagged a Masters’ Degree in Marketing and International Business.

· Now, I am a woman entrepreneur, managing my own business for the past 7 years.

· My son is healthy, doing reasonably well; we love each other and enjoy many similar activities.

· I teach music, and I perform whenever, and where ever possible; I am independent in creating my own opportunities for performance, for myself and my students. So, music has not been a bane! It has and will always be my soul’s pleasure and life’s passion and purpose.

· I now have 2 Blogs (a Music Blog and this one that I call my Zen Blog), that I write for. I have a Youtube Channel, and a Facebook Business Page, for which I have several ideas.

· My head is constantly buzzing with many ideas, that I intend to convert into viable fun projects. I am doing reasonably well in all areas of my life. So, I must be making good decisions!

Let us not let anyone tell us what we can or cannot do, or what we should or should not do! This prerogative belongs solely to us. Let us not get bogged down or influenced by what others’ project onto us. We need not react brashly to it, but, we do not need to take any of this personally either.

I often tell my students (and myself)…Put on your blinders, and keep your eye on the ball! Let everything else that is insignificant, fade into the background.

We are, and will be, what we chose to be, and what we work towards. In every moment, we must feel proud of ourselves, and we must stop to celebrate our successes, before we move on to the next endeavour.

SoulNotes to Self: Happiness is…being proud of who you are!

I will do my best to not take anything too personally.

I will take feedback, just as it is, and look for ways to improve myself and my craft, and focus on my continuous and consistent progress.

I will surround myself with like-minded, positive people, who share my values of integrity, mutual respect, dignity; who enrich my life, and fuel my passion for life, music, and my work.

On days, that self-doubt may creep into my mind (cause years of programming won’t just go away that easily), I will speak with my loved ones, and lean on their faith in me, to lift me up.

I am blessed in so many ways. I am committed to my life and its purpose. I am more than driven and passionate about my life and my commitments.

All-in-all, I can say with certainty, that I am proud of what I have achieved. But, more importantly, I am proud of the person I have become. I love myself; I love my Sam, my family, and my close friends; I love my work and Projects; I LOVE MY LIFE!

Love, from my soul to yours!

Soulful

"Proud" is a song recorded by Macedonian singer Tamara Todevska.

Composer: Darko Dimitrov, Robert Bilbilov and Lazar Cvetkovski

Lyrics: Kosta Petrov and Sanja Popovska