B.O.L.D member Richard Taylor wants people to tell themselves: “You ain’t s**t!”
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A few months ago at a mentoring conference in Chicago there was a segment in the program where youth were encouraged to speak openly, what happened next blew my mind.
Five young people walked on stage to repeat a phrase that was said to them, a phrase that still haunts them to this day. One young man, when he got his chance to speak, said:
“You ain’t shit, and you ain’t never gone be shit!”
The audience gasped and moaned; you could feel his pain. Though the conference ended on a very high note, it was hard to reflect on all magical connections I made because that young man’s comment replayed at high volume in my head for days. The phrase “You ain’t shit” had been said to me; my friends; people I loved and care about.
The following week I spoke at my former high school. I decided to start with an icebreaker where I asked students to stand if the question or comment I say applies to them.
The first two things I said weren’t controversial. However, when I stated “if someone has ever told you, ‘You ain’t gone be shit in life,’ please stand or remain standing,” the room went silent. Pain had taken center stage on the faces of the young men and women in the audience; the number of youth standing was staggering.
I did this exercise in five separate, 20 person classrooms. Each time an average of 7 students would stand and admit that this was said to them. Some students laughed as they stood, almost as if they had heard the phrase so many times they were completely numb to its traumatic effects.
After leaving the school that day I could not get those faces out of my mind, or the question of how many more of the 7 billion people on Earth have heard this about themselves. And of those who’ve heard it, how many walk around to this very day believing it? I was mortified at the thought that this is something that has – and is – being instilled into people at a very young age.
I’m all about being real, raw, and uncut; so allow me to say to you, the reader, truthfully, honestly, and with all of my heart:
“You ain’t shit, and you ain’t never going to be shit!”
Huh?!!?!? We all know shit is a term created to describe fecal matter. But there is one particular definition of the word that I want to focus on and that definition says shit is: “something of little value or quality.”
This, my friends, is why I said you will never be shit; because you have a value that no one in this world can take away, no matter how hard they try!
You weren’t born lacking quality or value, although sometimes it may feel that way when you sit back and reflect on how fucked up your life is; or when you feel like your dreams aren’t manifesting fast enough. That feeling is completely normal, but dangerous if you feed the beliefs that “this shit is never going to work” or “maybe they were right when they said I ain’t gone be shit!”
I’m sure you all have heard the phrase “you are what you eat.” This statement might seem cliché, but it is the honest truth. You are exactly what you feed yourself—both physically and mentally.
So now you’re faced with a dilemma: how do I get this dead weight off of me, Richard? How am I supposed to move on when my body can collapse at any moment because I have allowed myself to believe I won’t amount to anything?
The solution is as easy or as complicated as you allow it to be… DETOX! I have found that some people need to detoxify “self” first, while others may need to detoxify their waste. Either way, you must rid yourself permanently of the negative things and thoughts that helped create the dark hole you’re in.
When I first started working out and getting down to a manageable weight, I had to rid my body of all of the poisonous substances that were causing me to be overweight. This is the same thing that you have to do mentally. You have to detoxify your mind and all of the negative things that were ever said or done to you. Yeah, I know this is hard to do, but like I said, it can be as easy or as hard as you make it.
You might find it hard to get over the malicious things that hurt you, but if you continue to hold on to something that you claim you don’t want, maybe you need to consider detoxifying yourself first. You need to get rid of the mindset that allows you to hold on to and recycle all of the waste that has been thrown at you over the years.
Today is a new day. Look yourself in the mirror and shout proudly: “I ain’t shit and I ain’t never gonna be shit!”
Thanks for reading!
B.O.L.D member Richard Taylor, considered the voice of Chicago, is a best-selling author, motivational speaker and star of the weekly webisode “Getting Over the Hump!” CLICK HERE to learn more about B.O.L.D!
Source: TBO Inc®
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