When a person discourages another person, it's NOT realized the impact negative words have on their life. You might think LIFE is a strong word, but life is exactly what can be changed when someone shatters a person with a negative statement.
Example: I dreamed of being a dancer. My fifth-grade dance teacher would always chop my butt and tell me to tuck it in. There's only so far, a big butt can tuck under. During exams he came to me and said, "You'll never be a dancer." He failed me out of the school. Forty years later I can still see his face and hear his voice. The impact of his words was so great I felt I suffered a loss in my life. Years later in the eleventh grade I got the opportunity to prove to myself I could be a dancer. My build was different, my butt was bigger and now I had a pregnant belly. After a lot of hard work and PRACTICE, I Aced the class which helped build character in me, allowing me to know with each challenge I face, I have the opportunity to overcome them if I put my heart and mind to it. Amazingly throughout my creative journey I've had people pour out negativity on me using words like you can't do that (Buy a bigger house) or you’re not educated enough (Director of a camp) or even why are you doing that? (Write a book). Many times, my excitement about something I felt was great was diminished by someone's negative words. But I didn't let the negativity stop me. With their words eating at me, chipping away my self-esteem. I over road their words with positivity, remembering encouraging words from people who promoted me by "saying good job. You got this. Go for it," along with the song from my childhood, written by Matthew Wilder in 1983 called "Break My Stride". The words go like this, "Ain't nothing gonna break my stride, ain't nothin gonna hold me down oh no I got to keep on movin." those words helped me to push the limits of who I am out.
As you've read, you may have had a moment of reflection over an incident that occurred in your life where negative words were used, and it impacted you greatly. Hold on to your seat I have a secret to share.
You have the POWER within you to overcome the negative things people have said to you. I love the scripture verse in Romans 5:3-4 not only that but rejoice in our SUFFERING, knowing that suffering produces ENDURANCE, and endurance produces CHARACTER, and character produces HOPE.
In the suffering of a person's negative words, we can be strengthened to do even better. Take your suffering and CONVERT it to power, knowing you can do all things if you put in the WORK. Don't LIMIT your creativity, your gifts, your strength because of what someone else thought was the right thing to say. Once you have the necessary TOOLS. Once you know what your capable of, the only person who can stop you is YOU. Don't get me wrong roadblocks come along the way, you have to know how to climb over or go around them to finish your RACE.
