Shine Your Light in the Arena

Shine Your Light in the Arena.

Stepping into the arena takes on many forms, showing up on the field to making your voice known.

Merriam-Webster defines arena as…

• an area in a Roman amphitheater for gladiatorial combats
• an enclosed area used for public entertainment
• a building containing an arena
• a sphere of interest, activity, or competition
• a place or situation for controversy

Shining your light in the arena is getting in there and doing something, having the courage to take a risk even if you fail.

The words “daring greatly” in the title of Brene´ Brown’s book, Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead came from a speech that Theodore Roosevelt gave in 1910. The famous passage from his speech sometimes called, “The Man in the Arena” reads:
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“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause;who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly.”

Think of a time when you were sitting somewhere doubting yourself.

Now think of a time you showed up on the field or stood up to make your voice known...I’m here and I’m going to try this triumph or not.

For me, I have found that when I doubt myself I need to find people and places that take me out of this line of thinking. We can find ourselves falling down a rabbit hole if we let our mind wonder into the abyss of doubt.

In many cases while we are doubting ourselves there are others sitting around afraid of what we are capable of.

It is time to play, go shine your light in the arena.