Today’s Lesson is from my daughter and editor, Cheryl Chancellor.

We know what we are, but know not what we may be.
William Shakespeare
1564 – 1616

Last week, Nyle DiMarco became the latest winner in the TV competition show Dancing With the Stars. That might not sound like an unbelievable achievement except for one fact: DiMarco is completely deaf.

Many people would say that even participating in such a competition was an impossible goal for a deaf person. Early on in the season, one of the judges suggested that DiMarco needed to work on his “musicality”; his partner and coach, Peta Murgatroyd, responded that it was very difficult to teach such a skill to someone who couldn’t hear music. But DiMarco proved himself capable of learning and adapting: by the season finale, his performances were so accomplished that no one would know he was any different from the other competitors.

Though DiMarco admits that he surprised himself with the level of expertise he attained, he never shied away from the challenge of dancing deaf. Instead, he embraced it; he refused to believe that dancing was a skill he wasn’t capable of learning. His positive attitude and persistent efforts made all the difference.

We’ve written before about individuals who refused to be limited by a disadvantage, but the lesson is one that’s well worth repeating. Far too many people secretly harbor goals they never pursue. Why? Because they told themselves “I can’t do it.”

Words are more powerful than we realize. It doesn’t take many repetitions before the words we tell ourselves become cemented into belief.

If you want to see your dreams become reality, you have to do two things: believe you can succeed and act accordingly. Don’t misunderstand me–I’m not saying that belief is a substitute for hard work or that you’ll succeed at everything you attempt. But not believing in yourself will undermine your efforts and make success that much harder. And you’ll definitely never achieve anything if you don’t even try.

If you truly want to accomplish something, believe in your abilities and give it a serious effort. You might surprise yourself with how much you can do.

The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our doubts of today.
Franklin D. Roosevelt
1882 – 1945

Copyright © 2016 Cheryl Chancellor