A Bit of Monday Inspiration

Embracing Imperfection

“I like flaws and feel more comfortable around people who have them. I myself am made entirely of flaws, stitched together with good intentions.” Augusten Burroughs

I came across this post the other day about models falling and how when gorgeous models fall, it’s hard not to laugh. Exhibit A:

I can’t say I agree with that sentiment. For me, when someone absolutely gorgeous and wonderful takes a tumble – physically or metaphysically – I can’t help but breathe a sigh of relief. It’s more of a, “thank heavens they AREN’T perfect!” kind of a reaction.

The most inspiring for me is when an outwardly perfect person, someone who many people – from young girls to grown women – want to be just like happens to fall and gets up gracefully. You know, with one of those “well, it happens, I’m human” type attitudes. A celeb with just that attitude towards life is exhibit B, Lady Gaga:

“I would say that a really big challenge, especially in high school, is the pressure to be cool, and to do things that people think is cool. My best advice is to just be yourself and to do what you believe in and, you know, that being yourself is the best thing to do.” Lea Michelle

I mean, who wouldn’t fall in the high boots and shoes Lady Gaga wears every day? And really, who doesn’t have flaws? Or have hard times, challenges, and difficulties – no matter how perfect they look on the outside? I for one just adore anyone who embraces their differences, and realizes that not only do these differences not make them flawed, but instead make them unique. I remember spending so much time growing up just trying to fit in with all my friends – do exactly what they did, wear all the same clothes, and look the same as them from how I did my hair down to what my face looked like.

I have to laugh as I look back, because today all I find myself doing I trying to set myself apart, embrace my differences and find my own style, niche, and life.

“Imperfection is beauty, madness is genius and it’s better to be absolutely ridiculous than absolutely boring.” Marilyn Monroe

We all have “flaws”, none of us are perfect, and once we realize that and embrace it, we are able to let go of a lot of the insecurity that holds us back.

Shape Your Attitude, Shape Your Life

“My theory is that if you look confident you can pull off anything – even if you have no clue what you’re doing.” — Jessica Alba

This quote applies to every area of our lives, whether it be as significant as the choices we make or as small as the skirt we decide to throw on one morning. A few years back, I had an interview for a short term job that was a little challenging for where I was in my career at the time – which in reality, was nowhere, because I was only a sophomore in college with very little real world experience. I thought the odds were stacked against me, but I gave that situation my best. I dressed to the nines, went to the interview, and offered my ideas as confidently as I could, not knowing if they would love or hate what I had to say. Despite my doubts, I got that job, and they explicitly commented that they thought I had what it took to tackle the task at hand. Since then, I have always done my best to rise to the occasion and give something challenging my best effort – even if sometimes it makes me feel like a fish out of water.

Attitude is everything when it comes down to anything.

We can’t always be positive that taking a bold leap is going to work out. We don’t have a magic window into the future that will tell us what is coming next. Sometimes we win some and sometimes we lose some. Sometimes we really do have to fake it until we make it. However, all experiences, whether they are expected or not, planned or not, desired or not, shape us into who we are. Be confident in every step you take and you are far more likely to make every experience a positive one.

Photo Courtesy of: style.popcrunch.com