One of the reasons that I was not the success that I dreamed that I would be, is because I was afraid and anxious about being vulnerable. I was super worried about being shamed or laughed at over starting a business and having it fail, creating a product and only selling 10 units, or writing a song that no one wanted to listen to. All the while, I missed the lesson that failures are often proof that we have made some effort towards success.

Even though most of us know in our hearts that these things are true, there are times when we don’t feel the positivity reeking out of our brains. Some of us attend life coaching sessions and even listen to self-help books. With all of the wisdom out there that we could gain from adult conferences and other family and friends that we trust, I found another source of teaching. I found another way to get inspired and to hear positive words that help me to develop a way to consistently think about my thinking. After all, we must be aware of our mindset at all times. We have to make sure that we are checking ourselves, to monitor our demeanor and levels of motivation.

So anyway…my alternate source is …. cartoons. Yes, that’s right. I did say children’s shows. Below are a few quotes that I heard while watching some animated movies. These comments instantly stuck out to me and gave me something to think about as I continue on this journey of inventing myself.

Snow Dogs: “You’re just doing what you can to make the world a better place and being true to yourself along the way.” 

Zootopia: “… we gave up on our dreams and settled; If you don’t try anything new you will never fail and that’s the beauty of complacency.”

The Croods: “(Following) the rules kept us alive; that was not living, it was just NOT dying.”

Pets 2: “The first step to not being afraid is to ACT like you’re not afraid”

What have you seen or heard, in what seems like a random place, that instantly spoke into your life? Have you seen a billboard, an ad, or a commercial that was answering a life question that you had? Tell me about it in the comments below.