My motto for life was set at the age of four from a children’s book called the Little Engine that Could. It was one of my childhood favorites and my mom, dad, grandmothers and my cousin Charles Haigh probably read it to me a total of over 100 times.
When things got hard, my mind would chant, “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.” Not just as a child but as a young adult although the words themselves may have changed depending on the challenge.
The story is all about determination, perseverance, pushing oneself outside of a comfort zone and the power of telling yourself you can even before you know you can.
After Charles died by suicide, I used a version of this phrase. When considering whether I would forgive myself, I used a version of this phrase. And as I wrote my book, I did the same. And as a result, I have survived.
In case, you haven’t heard the story, it’s below.
I remember that book! How neat you used it for motivation 🙂