Arnold Inspires Authenticity...

An occasional dose of Arnold does wonders for my motivation and drive.

Last night we watched the documentary "Bigger, Stronger, Faster" with some friends and even thought it was not meant to be motivational or inspiring, I found inspiration once again in the snippets of Arnold in there. He managed still to come out clean. He always does. He is such a great representation of my overall philosophy "aspire. act. achieve." it is not that simple and yet it is. Arnold has had many lucky breaks along the way and aligned with the right people at the right time, but he has this "can do" attitude that is so strong.

What I felt from Arnold, that I did not necessarily get from others highlighted in this movie, was a sense of authenticity.

The theme of authenticity was evident to me through the main character of this movie also - the 3 brothers. The narrator / producer of the movie was one brother. The steroid discussion was played out through his experiences (non steroid user) and his brothers' experiences (the steroid users).

Both of his brothers were admitted steroid users and one seemed to represent the hard core powerlifting scene and the other the WWE / bodybuilding "gym rat" segment of the population. One seemed to be more authentic than the other in that he has pretty much accepted that steroids are a part of his life and likely always will be. Had a very "shrug it off / whatever" attitude about it. The other brother was clearly a mess and living a delusion. He was for sure in BS-land.



Authenticity, to me, one of the most important characteristics. The people I am most drawn to and respect the most, both personally and professionally, are authentic - they seem to know themselves, are open to learning more about themselves. They are real.

On a deeper level, we all want authenticity... from our partners, our family, our friends, consumers and products, our co-workers, our music and movies, our community (here and where you live) and society as a whole.



I think it is important to differentiate between a bullshitter and a liar. We all lie. We know when we lie. We make a decision to lie and are willing to suffer the consequences. A bullshitter lives a false reality and tries to convince themselves they are something they are not. A bullshitter is a broken person because they are not true to themselves. A bullshitter lies to themselves first and foremost and then, as an extension of that, they lie to everyone else.

I have been a liar, a bullshiter, a lying bullshitter and a bullshitting liar. But I feel that I have found authenticity in myself.

Why?

Because it makes me healthier, stronger and happier - all the things I strive for in my life... for myself and my husband, children, family, friends and clients.



Whatever your daemons or deepest fears, bullshitting yourself about them doesn't make anything better. And it actually makes it worse in the long run.

So once again, Arnold, thanks for a memorable and though provoking evening.

I look forward to our "big night" soon. I can't speak for Arnold, but I will be keeping it real.

K