They aren’t who we thought they were

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IzbWUJxDZw

Remember the Denis Green meltdown from a couple of years ago when the then coach of the Arizona Cardinals went on an absolute tirade following a blown win against the Chicago Bears? If not, the short recap is that Green cursed and ranted his way into NFL history with the famous words, “They are who we thought they were” as he answered questions about how the Cardinals squandered a magnificent effort against one  of the leagues best teams.

But all NFL coaching career changes aside, I love the famous words turned axiom and they are indicative of one of my most prized lessons – that you actually ARE NOT who you thought you were. Look around you and at you, consider the mistakes friends make and perhaps loved ones have made. Refrain from judging but undeniably you can admit that you know people you never thought would go to jail, never thought would have children while in high school, never thought would walk away from their Faith, etc. Better still, gaze in the mirror and admit the condition of your life today, the non-romanticized version. You thought you were better than that, above those immoral tendencies and strong enough to evade the stumbling blocks of youthful ignorance but it turns out you weren’t. You were and are just as capable of failure as the person you’ve judged.

You’ve learned , are learning or will learn that three perspectives are worth having in mind and they are that: #1 You need to know who you thought you were #2 You need to start thinking honestly about who you want to be and #3 You need to determine the steps it will take to move you from where you are to where you were meant to be.

Here’s my Dennis Green coming out. “I’m tired of people pretending and letting themselves off the hook.” I don’t know how we develop false senses of identity but the value of honest evaluation of one’s life + the resilience to respond to the assessment should equal righting of the ship like you’ve never seen. You may not be who you thought you were but now is the optimal time to become who you know you really are.