Just Do It is a well known slogan and a trademark of Nike. This phrase has reinforced Nike´s position as a global leader in sports and casual living merchandise brand more than the sneakers or footwear product. This catchy slogan though was initially launched as a marketing brand, on hindsight, brings a powerful message on a personal note. In this piece, I would like to share with you my personal view on this million dollar phrase, Just Do It.
Just Do It for me is very similar to seizing the day, living by the moment or simply put, Carpe Diem. In the evolution and transformation of my life, as a daughter, sister, wife, mother, friend, co-worker, I have dealt with numerous experiences that have caused me joys and sadness, triumphs and losses and laughters and tears, and in all of these occassions, I got by simply by just seizing the day and going with the flow. This mantra and this attitude has enabled me to adapt in the most challenging times of my life.
Just Do It is going with the flow. When I was learning the Spanish language, I was intimidated. The confident speaker in me was suddenly tongue tied. But the eternal optimist and my "can do it" attitude enabled me to come up with a gameplan that helped build my skills and confidence on learning my officially 3rd language, Spanish. Of course, my journey to learning and speaking Spanish was made easy by my husband and my colleagues at Telefonica de España. They were instrumental in encouraing me to speak despite my accent, lack of vocabulary and lots of uhms and ohs as fillers. I devised an all Spanish conversation challenge with my husband and we just switched to English on Thursdays. This has increased my need to use Spanish in daily conversations. I also made a commitment to memorize at least 10 new words everyday to increase my vocabulary. I watched TV shows in Spanish, listened to radio programs in Spanish and read a lot of magazines, newspapers to increase my comprehension. Little by little, I gained confidence and though my accent and sometimes Spanglish manner of speaking is evident, I am thankful that I gained traction and now I can say that I am proficient, if not bilingual in Spanish, speaking and writing. Though my grammar is not and will never be perfect, I am able to defend my thoughts and my ideas and express clearly in Spanish.
Just Do It is not having any excuses. It is having the guts, the will, the drive and the determination to achieve your goals. Rome wasn´t built overnight so we should be capable of celebrating small successes and baby steps. After all, great things start with small beginnings. Just Do It is starting to work on your objective, at all cost. This proved true to me when I quit smoking (oh yes! there was a time that I smoked cigarettes and I smelled like an ash tray), when I started my diet and doing physical cardio activities such going to the gym, yoga and fitboxing for a healthy lifestyle. It will not be always a straight path, there will be pitfalls and obstacles but the beauty of it all is just getting up, embracing the routine and doing it all over again. It´s the never say die attitude. Since then, I have quit smoking, I gave up caffeine coffee and when I have the cravings for coffee, I drink decaf, I have a routine for my gym and cardio activities; I regularly go to the gym though I had to give up fitboxing because of my tendiditis and I am now a mindful eater. I have yet to give up though my sweet tooth.
Just Do It is a mindset and a way of life which I have embraced and I am generously inculcating to my son. My son is now in middle school and is adapting to the rudiments and challenging demands of secondary school. It is a mindset that must be internalized because in our life, sometimes, we just don´t have a choice; we have to live with a system or follow the norm. And that´s a student life. As a student, you will be faced with assignments, homeworks, exams and extracurricular activities. That´s your life, your indicators, your objectives as a student. Instead of complaining big time, accept the situation and adapt, that way, you will concentrate your positive energies and convert them to productive efforts.
Just Do It is having the courage to rise above new and difficult challenges. At one point in our lives, we go out of our comfort zone to experience life. In my professional life, I have made difficult decisions and dealt with all sort of characters and personalities. But the beauty is rising to the occassion and staying true to yourself. When faced with a new role, a new job or a new task, there will always be uncertainties, fear, a period of adjustment. There will never be a perfect approach but it is through engaging and working iteratively that we can get the fruits of our labor.
We are all winners in our way. Let us celebrate our individuality and our ability to deal with life. Life is unfair, is diffcult, is challenging but all worth it because life is beautiful.
Happy weekend to all. And yes! Let´s Just Do It!
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