Live Fiercely

Live Fiercely

If you are a client of mine, or attend a workshop, at some point you’ll probably hear me talk about values. Growing up, I only learned about things like trust, honesty, respect, and mostly just being told to obey my parents and teachers. I was taught to not make waves, and do what I was told.

And I did.

And then I grew up.

Being my own person

I learned what it meant to be my own person. Through martial arts, I discovered a system of personal growth that put words to everything I felt inside me. In TaeKwonDo, there are tenets such as perseverance and indomitable spirit that captured the spirit of what I had been doing as a 24/7 single parent, raising my girls, working, going to school, and working toward a career. In martial arts, I worked toward belt ranks, learning different forms and board breaks. I pushed and persevered, kept going, kept getting up again, staying focused on my goals.

Failure was simply not an option. I told myself that every day.

Prevail

Now, I am inspired to sum up the fiery passion and persistence that has burned within me by saying:

Live Fiercely

To me, living fiercely means that I always find a way to accomplish something. I use intellect to gain perspective. I see options and weigh choices. I become aware of fear but use wisdom to reason with the fear. Living fiercely does not mean rushing blindly into foolish choices. It means pushing past the natural fear (which we all have) when I sense the unknown, and when I can’t control the outcome. It means believing in myself, and in what my heart tells me to do. It means following my purpose in life. It means making the sacrifices to achieve my goals. It means acting boldly, making choices based on courage not fear. It means trusting myself that I will ALWAYS have indomitable spirit. 

And so it is that I bid you to also live fiercely. 

Take hold of your goals and ask yourself what you are willing to do to achieve them.

What values will you apply to motivate yourself to get up, and work toward what you want to achieve? 

At the end of your life, do you want to look back and say, “I was afraid so I stayed where I was,” or do you want to say, “I was afraid, and I did it anyway, and I was so glad I did!” 

This is not about being perfect. This is about living your life rather than watching it go past you. This is about moving around in your life rather than being stuck. 

This is about being able to follow what is in your heart rather than following the negative programming that may have been holding you captive for years.

If you struggle with fear and anxiety, get set up with some counseling (shameless plug for my therapy services!) 

This is your life, and you’re worth it. Live fiercely!

by Diana Zilly, MS, MA, LCPC. Diana is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, Hypnotherapist, Life Coach and Educator, and former Adjunct Professor of Psychology at Joliet Junior College.