Every girl should have a superhero as a dad.

My dad was just that.
He had these superhuman powers, too.
​He could launch me off his shoulders in a swimming pool and for a moment....
​I could fly.

He had this (and still does) incredible way of telling stories. Each time he would tell a story, they would just get better and the stories never get old.
How is that?

The most amazing superpower my dad had was changing radio stations. With a wave of his hand, he would say, "chaaaange." and the radio would skip stations. I would be in awe. Later, I found out that he would just hit the scan feature on the radio and time it just right with the wave of his hand.
No matter what it was, to a little girl who didn't have a dad until she was almost ten years old, it was unbelievable.

In all seriousness, the greatest gift my dad has is listening to others and having empathy for others. For as long as I can remember, I've always been able to talk to my dad about everything. About two months ago I called him up, I was having one of those moments that I really didn't know who I could turn to or talk to and the first person I thought of was my dad. Yes, I'm almost 34 years old and I still call my dad for advice.

My dad listened, shared his compassion about the situation and gave great advice. I walked away from that conversation feeling refreshed and felt like I could face the situation face on.

Have you ever thought about your gifts? What abilities you have to influence and impress upon others? Things that when people walk away from you, they walk away better? Some may even call it spiritual gifts. You may call it something completely different. Whatever it may be, what in your life do people say you give freely to others?
What do you love to do to help others?

I've heard it said it's like a tugging at your heart or something your soul can't ignore. It's something that can press and press upon you, that if you don't do something about it, you regret it.

I know in my life I've had those moments. I've been told I have the gift of encouragement & speaking vision into others and their lives. I've held back on it so much in my life, but I don't anymore. When I sense something that I can encourage or uplift or even speak vision into their life, I share it. I've seen life and greatness for others that they don't even see in their own life. It changes the way others think. It encourages and brings life. It brings HOPE.

Pay attention to those moments.
Those moments when you KNOW you need to do something.
​Ask for guidance from others around you that you look up to or are mentors.
Ask them about what that gift might be in your life.
You have something in your life that can bring life to others & hope.
​You may not know it yet, but you do.

You have influence.

You have the opportunity to make a difference.

There's something super about you.

Find it.

You may have thumbed through some of your grandparents records and heard some of his music on the record player. His music was some of the great standards that our grandparents, the Greatest Generation, loved and adored. Bobby Darin was one of the many who sang from the Great American Songbook. 

Most of his music is iconic; Mac the Knife & Beyond the Sea, just to name a few. Here's the thing about Mr. Darin: he really didn't have the smooth, suave voice of Dean Martin; the rich, baritone of Bing Crosby; or the bold, dramatic voice of Frank Sinatra. 
I would even wager to say, listening to his voice now, he may not have even had a record or music present day. He also had physical ailments that could have set him back. As a child he suffered from rheumatic fever and developed a heart condition that eventually would take his life before he was 40. Despite all of this, he won 4 Grammy's (2 during his life & 2 posthumously) and he was the only actor/singer to ever be contracted with 5 different Hollywood film studios. Bobby Darin had something that made him exceptional, something that brought him further in his career, talent, life that if he didn't have it, he might not have ever accomplished what he did.

Some call it passion. Some may even call it drive or desire.

Could we even possibly call it, "Just Showing Up"....?

In his book, "The War of Art" Steven Pressfield impresses this upon his readers:

“The most important thing about art is to work. Nothing else matters except sitting down every day and trying.” 

How about if pursuing your passion or calling doesn't even mean you need to be the best at it? Or that you need the schooling, the right timing, or even the perfect past? What if pursuing your craft means that every day you simply show up, put in 1000 percent of what you can that day, then start all over again the next? Don't worry if its not the greatest. Don't even worry if its not your best. Those fears that you have that you may not be good enough? Or possibly may not even be talented enough to be effective? Here's what Steven Pressfield continues on to say,

“Are you paralyzed with fear? That’s a good sign. Fear is good. Like self-doubt, fear is an indicator. Fear tells us what we have to do. Remember one rule of thumb: the more scared we are of a work or calling, the more sure we can be that we have to do it.” 

Someone once told me that the things that scare us the most to pursue or to go after.....those are the EXACT things that we SHOULD be doing. 

Don't let anything hold you back; things people say to you or bring you down. Don't let anything stop you from what you are passionate about. Let it drive you to be stronger, more compelling, wittier even. Let the distractions push you further into your passion. Let that very thing that could or has bring you down-- drive you to that goal that you want. Let it bring you to that place of fulfillment in your life where you know you are suppose to be. Where you need to be. 

Just do. Just work. Just try.

and every day

just show up.