There is power in showing up. I am a survivor of several chronic illnesses, and with that comes days that I just don’t feel good. I’ve spent over a year dealing with the ramifications of being incredibly sick (and still continue to deal with it), but I always showed up–regardless of how I felt and regardless if I wanted to. It made me a conqueror, and people noticed. 

Whether or not you want others to watch and judge you, they do. They take into account what you do when things don’t go your way. They see what you do in the face of trials. And it matters more than you think it does.

I have amazing people in my corner, and those people would probably show up for me regardless of my actions. But let me tell you, when I continued to show up, it got attention. It got respect. It got me into places I probably wouldn’t have gotten into. My persistence got me opportunities that I couldn’t have dreamed of, including writing this to all of you. 

When you choose to show up, it definitely magnetizes what shows up for you. Showing up gets you to the plate where you can swing at what life throws at you. You will never get the option of hitting a home run if you stay in the dugout. I’m sure there were days that Babe Ruth didn’t want to step up to the plate, but if he had let his feelings or circumstances dictate his actions, he probably wouldn’t have hit 714 homers during his career. 

The same goes for you and me. Listen, I had no idea what the power of my showing up all those months would do for me. It was grueling and hard. But all the gruel and all that hard brought me into something amazing. I look at my life now and I couldn’t imagine it. So show up–on good days AND bad days. Persevere. Step up to the plate again and again. You never know where it might lead to.

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