Good morning! Have you noticed how early this blog post notifications hit your inbox? (if you’re reading this, and you’re not subscribed yet, what ya wating for!?)
Yeess!! Very early! 6.30am! And, nope. I don’t send it myself, of course, not in real time, I schedule it. And that’s because…by the time it reaches your inbox, I’m in the middle of my daily gym training seshhh.
Every day, from Monday to Friday, I get up at 5.00am. At 5.45 I head to the Gym until 7.10, then go home, get my 3 kids and take them to school. Be back at 8.30, get my beloved coffee or matcha latte and start my morning routine of setting the 3 goals I want to achieve that day.
I get up very early and I love it! I have been getting up darn early since I have memory! I remember my mom telling me “Andie, school starts in 3 hours, go back to bed!” But I just liked so much the morning quietness, the fresh air and the feeling that I had so much time ahead of me until the day was over.
WHY AM I TELLING YOU ALL THESE?
Because I AM UNAPOLOGETIC of doing every single thing I do and for being the way I am. And so should YOU!
When I started my life transformation, I made huge changes in my life, like, changing my nutrition, stop doing things I actually didn’t want to do (like having too much social life), quit drinking in excess, prioritize what I want and learn to say no when I meant it. Doing all that is not hard…IS FREAKING CHALLENGING! Because everyone has an opinion, everyone is going to question you, we have an horde of nosy people lurking around, so, sadly, very few people are going to support you. And they won’t support you for a thousand reasons that don’t even matter right now, because my focus, today, is to empower YOU.
That’s why you need to be unapologetic about your entire self. Be unapologetically you.
Talking with my sister a few weeks ago, we were comparing both of our lives during our teenage years. I always say that she’s the most beautiful woman alive! She thought it was only because she has my dad’s beautiful Italian physiognomy. But her beauty to me, also lies in the fact that she has a beautiful heart, she’s caring, compassionate and her inner goodness doesn’t allow her to discriminate if you are poor or rich, black or white, Asian, Latin, alien, etc! She will treat everyone with the same kindness.
And she is very pretty! Hehehe (even though she hates to be considered pretty).
So, she was very popular because of her inner and outer beauty and because she was, and still is, a very social person. And I was, well…NO ONE lol! But don’t you dare read this as in “poor me I was an outcast”! I was “socially no one” because I chose not to have a social life, simply because I didn’t care about it. I preferred to play and create music with my best friend. I preferred to practice gymnastics, I preferred to joined the girl scouts and I preferred to enroll in acting and dancing classes. I preferred to chat on ICQ with my virtual friends from all over the world (yes! I’m that old! lol!) And, plus, I always chose my friends based on how interesting and unique they seemed to me. All those are choices that doesn’t take you to the popular tribes when you are a teenager.
Funny story.
I remember when I was 13 years old, the girls in my school started the trend to use a grey hoodie. At that time, I was living in a small city with few stores, so you could see moms desperately trying to find those grey hoodies for their daughters. I remember clearly that I thought “this is ridiculous”.
I actually did have a grey hoodie, but I didn’t use it again until the madness was over. And my mom knew about the trend and she asked me why I wasn’t wearing my grey hoodie. I remember I wore it for a class trip, only to get her off my back, because dshe was driving me crazy! lol!
My mom had a hard time trying to understand me. She used to be a model in her 20’s. So, obviously, she loved fashion! She is a very social person. She loves to gather with friends and assist to social events. But one thing I am grateful, is that she never tried to change me or even criticizes my personality.
Although, when I turned 17 years old, I remembered I questioned myself for a short period. I wondered if it was ok being the way I was. And, you know what?
My answer was a final and firm YES.
I have dealt with many things these last 20 years of my life. Eating disorders, binge eating, binge drinking, failure, depression. But the one thing that always kept me going and gave me the strength to overcome all my issues and choose to transform my entire life to pursue my life purpose, was to be unapologetic of who I am.
I am extremely proud of who I am. I am proud of my choices and my values. And I am unapologetic about my entire self.
Just as an example, I’m going to tell you what I personally have never gave a rat’s little butt about:
the car I or others drive
the house I or others may have
the brand of the clothes I or others wear
the profession, job or fancy titles I or others may have
how wealthy I or others may be
how many times a year and where I or others travel abroad
When you are unapologetic about who you are, nothing and no one in the world can make you feel less. No one has the capacity, even if they try, to make you feel bellow them. Because you now your value and you also know what truly matters in life. And you actually value life, because you see it from new eyes. Just like Neo in Matrix, you can take the red pill and you get to see reality (after reading this, I strongly recommend you watch that movie, again!)
When you are unapologetic, you no longer feel the need to hide or make an effort to be who you think other people want you to be. So, you no longer hold yourself back from saying and doing what you truly believe in or what you enjoy out of fear of being judge.
People will always talk. So, let them talk. And if they talk about you, be flattered! Because you are important enough for them to give you a space in their thoughts. But be prepared, because the more unapologetic you get, is the brighter you shine.
Some of the things I mentioned in that list are one of the biggest stressors some people have in their lives.
Trying to meet social expectations, getting over in-debt only to prove they belong and have the right to be and stay in some place.
Stress can make you sick, and even kill you. Is it worth it?
Plus, if you are trying to be self confident, how are you going to achieve that if your environment dominates you and have the power to shape who you are? I understand that it’s our innate human desire to want to be accepted, understood, seen, heard and to feel like we belong.
Since ancient times, humans have had the need to belong in a tribe out of
survival. If you were left outside of a tribe, chances were that you died. But the thing is that, nowadays, you can choose your tribe.
You don’t need to belong where you don’t fit. And don’t ever think that you don’t fit because you’re less than anyone. You don’t fit because you have different interests. Period.
I have been living unapologetically my whole life. And if ever anyone look at me over the shoulder, sadly for them I never even noticed! lol! And I never will. I guess I was born with the red pill’s ingredients in my DNA.
In this blog post I want to empower you to find your uniqueness.
To be grateful of your talents and who you are. Dare to be yourself. Be free and find your joy.
Learn more about yourself, by making a list of the things that you are currently doing that stresses you out. Things you do because you need to meet some social expectations. Or places you visit or activities you engage in only to socialize, even though to think of going there causes you anxiety.
After you have your list, find the reason why you’re doing that.
And, finally, replace that activity with something that you truly enjoy.
Yes, you gotta be brave to do such a thing! But I believe in you. You’re strong enough and you know you want to do it.
You just needed a push. So, here’s your push!
To your new unapologetic life!
Love,
Andie
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