I never felt like I truly belonged anywhere.
I remember when I was in high school, I went out drinking and getting drunk with my high school friends on a Saturday night and then wake up the following Sunday morning to go to church and lead my congregation in worship on Sunday morning.
I also worked hard to achieve the things most people say you should. I made a six-figure salary, had a nice apartment, and a nice sports car. And when that wasn't doing it for me, I even quit my job to move to LA and pursue filmmaking and even found some success with that. I got to make short films with various celebrities and even had one of the pieces I worked on garner over 23 million views online.
Since then, I did a ton of soul searching in my life. I went to the favelas in Brazil to serve a community that was dying from all the violence that occurred there. I went to Thailand to work with organizations that fought against child trafficking. I even went to serve Mother Theresa's organization in India to work with the famous house of the dying, where terminally ill people were picked up from the streets and cared for so they can die with dignity.
But the irony was that even after I did all of this, I still felt lost.
It too me over 20 years, but I finally figured out what it really takes to awaken your true potential.
What I've found is that there is a part of your brain that has your best ideas, the creative solutions and the action plan that gives you the clarity around how to live your best life, but you can't turn this part of your brain on until you do one thing.
And that's simply to feel safe.
There's too much in our environment that is preventing us from feeling safe. We live in a digital age where it's way too easy to compare yourself to others on social platforms. The news constantly talks about more shootings and crappy politics. High standards are placed upon us by a broken education system and even our family cultures.
So if I had one piece of advice, that would be it. Do whatever it takes to cultivate those safe spaces for yourself to grow.
When I became more intentional about this, I was finally able to truly see the things blocking me from living my best life. And it wasn't until I brought awareness to these things, that I finally was able to turn things around for myself. I'm still pinching myself at the lifestyle I have now being able to make money doing what I love and having the flexibility I want in my schedule.
So cultivate those safe spaces in your life that help you grow. Meditate, find a great coach, or do whatever else helps you feel safe to love yourself and move forward. You deserve it.