For almost my entire life I had this fear of being average. In everything, almost everything. I had to be somebody, I had to stand out in some ways, else I felt like I did not matter.
Looking back I realize the drive to excel may not always come from the right place within ourselves. Like in my case, it came from fear…fear that I had to somewhat shine in some ways.
Today I still want to excel and give my best in everything I do. But at least now it’s motivated by the belief in my own potential, and also the desire to make a difference in my circle of influence and be a blessing to the people around me.
There is such a huge difference between striving to be outstanding because we are insecure, and just being motivated to reach for the stars because we believe we can. The latter journey is so much more fun.
This post is part of SoCS:
http://lindaghill.wordpress.com/2014/09/19/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-september-2014/
People, Places, and Perspectives. 
One should try to be the best we can. Good post.
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Thanks John 🙂
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You make an excellent point, Alexis. It’s important to know why we reach for our goals, and that we understand that the more grounded the reasons, the more likely we are to succeed. Thanks very much for this thought-provoking post. 🙂
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Thanks Linda! Can’t agree more with you – the more grounded the reasons, the more likely we are to succeed 😀
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Excellent points. We should strive to reach our potential because it is a gift to ourselves and not because we need to prove something. 🙂
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Thanks! Yes, you are right! Having to prove something only leads to frustration 🙂
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