This vital reminder hangs above my desk; the space where I sit to write my book, blog and plan future chapters of my life. I absolutely LOVE it. Humility isn’t something I’ve always embraced as wholly as I’d like to report; looking back it’s embarrassingly absent. Kevin and I moved to Denver about 5 1/2 years ago and I typically refer to myself, prior to the move, as Old Reshma. Old Reshma was similar to New Reshma in that we both love food, family and good humor. Below the surface of my food loving self, though, there were some character flaws I chose not to see. After a few short months in Denver, Kevin and I experienced some humbling experiences and we were both awakened to the fact that we were not nearly as humble as we ought to be. Yes, in my pre-Denver days I had some degree of humility but not much. I wouldn’t have considered myself an outright arrogant person before the move but who does? In hindsight, I can see I made excuses and allowances for myself; I talked about being humble despite being far from it. Once in Denver, I had to closely examine my motivations and I came to realize they were disturbingly rooted in self promotion and self gratification. It wasn’t that my sole motivation was to receive praise in all I did but it was a large portion of it and without humility I lost sincerity, integrity and purity in giving.
After our life changing experiences the pendulum proceeded to swing severely in the other direction and I went through years of not feeling worthy. I grappled with my purpose in life and didn’t accomplish much of anything outside of my daily obligations. Because my confidence took such a hit, I wasn’t sure who I was without it. I was lost. It took quite some time for me to realize my need to embrace the humble hustle. We each have specific purposes to fulfill in our lives. Sometimes we have to chase down our dreams and work fervently in order to reach our goals; that’s a fairly decent summation of where I am in life currently. I’m working harder and more purposefully than I ever have before and I’m doing it with a purer form of motivation. I assure you, I’m not bragging about being humble; I’ve got a long way to go. I’m deeply flawed but perfection is not the goal. I am simply on a better course in that I’m able to focus more on who God created me to be and accepting whatever that is. I’m running with it. I’m not always clear what the end result will be but I am moving forward every day. Being a humble hustler means I’m constantly keeping tabs on my heart behind motivation and there are no limits to how hard I’ll push in order to live out my purpose.
#humblehustler
The above print is by Jennet Liaw. It, among other goodies, can be purchased here.
Here are a few photos of some other humble hustlers taking the #whoiampostitchallenge. I am LOVING this. Keep posting…I’ll be sharing more photos soon. Thanks for being a part of this. Haven’t heard? Want to be a part of the Who I Am Post-It Challenge? Read about it here!
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