“The challenge is not to be perfect, it’s to be whole,” Jane Fonda.  While I still believe the little pieces of us can add up to have a big impact, putting them all together makes a far bigger impact.  We have to release the fears of what people think, stop pleasing everyone, and learn to trust our instinct and all of that inner work will bring us to a clearer picture of who we are.  It doesn’t matter if we look perfect or if people think we are perfect—we become perfect when we embrace the entirety of who we are.  Life isn’t meant to be what others consider perfect.  In finding what works for us we learn that the definition of perfect varies from person to person anyway.  Finding wholeness within ourselves is key.  Trusting that what makes us feel whole is enough is key.  We don’t need to be more than what we are, we don’t need to push ourselves to create more than we are capable of, we don’t need the accolades of the entire world to be worthy.  We simply need to embrace the entirety of who we are.  When we choose to show the curated parts of who we are, we hold back from the greatness of what we can be.

I’m not saying to not strive for greater—I believe we settle for mediocrity far too often (myself included).  I am saying that we need to strive to be the greatest version of ourselves rather than being perfect.  When we are secure in our identities and we know the goal, we should constantly seek ways to improve, to develop, and to learn.  But that motivation needs to come from the innate desires we feel, the things that drive us.  It isn’t about looking to be the greatest/most/ best or to attain the greatest/most/best.  It’s about allowing the greatest expression of who we are be enough, understanding that all of those little pieces, all of those splinters, those sparks we carry are perfect as they are.  It’s understanding that each of those little pieces contribute to who we are.  The sum of our parts is greater than anything we can imagine.  Holding that back out of fear of rejection (or any fear) is one of the saddest things we can do—and we all do it.

So see the perfection in who we are and allow all of that to show to the world.  Embrace it, love it, share it.  I understand there are those who think that all of these avenues of acceptance are detrimental because we are working on accepting things that aren’t always healthy.  But the concept of acceptance in itself is one of the greatest steps in our evolution that I can think of.  We really are all perfect and we don’t need someone else to tell us we are in order to express that worth.  It isn’t our job to live up to billions of other’s definitions of perfection or answer to how they think we should live our lives.  It’s our job to become who we are meant to be, fully, and to embrace that, and share that with the world.  It really comes down to being whole in ourselves so that we don’t have to break off the pieces to feel worthy.  We don’t have to break off pieces so others feel whole in themselves.  Stand completely in who we are, help others find themselves so they can stand on their own, and see the perfection in simply being complete just as we are.