Show Transcript

0:00:01 - (Kevin Lowe): Did you know that when I came up with the name for this podcast, grit, grace, and inspiration, I didn't do so just because it sounded cool. I did so because the name, grit, grace, and inspiration, it's a philosophy, it's a motto. It's a war cry to help you start living life a little bit better. And how that applies to today's episode is that today we're diving into how these three components can help you in the transition of life.

0:00:31 - (Kevin Lowe): Right now, at the time of this podcast release, we're transitioning from the summer vacation season back into the dreaded real life. So I thought you could probably use a little bit of help right about now. And that is exactly what we're exploring inside of today's episode, my friend. Welcome to episode 311. Yo.

0:00:54 - (B): Are you ready to flip the script on life? Cause those bad days, they're just doors to better days. And that's exactly what we do here at grit, grace, and inspiration. Your host, Kevin Lowe, he's been flipping the script on his own life, turning over 20 years of being completely blind into straight up inspiration, motivation, and encouragement just for you. So kick back, relax, and let me introduce you to your host, Kevin.

0:01:20 - (Kevin Lowe): Hello. What's up, my friend? I am excited to have you here today as we are exploring this philosophy of grit, grace, and inspiration, otherwise known as your new motto, your war cry. The three components that I hope are going to make life a little bit easier for you. So, obviously, we're going to start with grit. First off, let's get straight grit. It's way more than just another buzzword, grit. It's you running in a marathon.

0:01:52 - (Kevin Lowe): You can't even see the finish line, and you feel like quitting. Your legs are burning, your lungs are stinging, and you want so bad to just stop. You want a drink of water, you want a park vent. You want this race to be over. But deep down inside of you, all of a sudden, you hear that little coach, your own coach, they are telling you, you got this. Keep going, keep moving forward. And slowly but surely, you do just that.

0:02:22 - (Kevin Lowe): You start to feel a little bit more energy. You get a little bit more excited, a little bit more of this feeling, like, you know what? I think I can do this. Grit. It is that inner voice. It is the thing that's going to keep you going when you have nothing else to give. Basically, grit. It's going to be the drive you need when life is really getting to you. And if we're talking about life today, we're talking about when you are tired of alarms back on. You're tired of trying to get the kids out of the house onto the school bus.

0:02:58 - (Kevin Lowe): You're tired of having to yell at the kids to do homework at night. And you're really ready for life just to go back to some easier days in the summer. Well, you gotta call on your own internal grit to help you get through these hard times of life. And figuring that, you're probably saying to yourself, well, that's nice, but, kev, how do I actually acquire this grit? How do I get this internal coach cheering me on when I feel like life totally sucks?

0:03:32 - (Kevin Lowe): Well, I got a couple of ideas for you. If you're feeling stressed, overwhelmed, upset, angry, whatever it is, I want you to acknowledge how you feel. Stressed, overwhelmed, frustrated, acknowledge it. Then I want you to set a move on date, whether that's five minutes from now or tomorrow. I want you to give yourself that time to feel the feels, to cry if you need to cry, scream out loud if you need to scream, but then give yourself a move on date.

0:04:07 - (Kevin Lowe): Because once that clock hits zero, then it's time for you to move forward. By doing this, you are unknowingly tapping into your own internal grit. My second tip for you cultivating grit is to lean on your support systems. Do you know that when somebody climbs the top of, say, Mount Everest, they don't do so alone? No. They have their rope team, an entire team that's pushing and pulling and helping one another get up that mountain.

0:04:40 - (Kevin Lowe): Well, life, honestly, is like climbing Mount Everest. We can't do it alone. So find those people who you can lean on, who you can count on, who can help you to cultivate your own grit, when maybe you're feeling a little bit down on one particular day. My third and final tip for helping you to cultivate your own grit is to keep showing up day after day, each morning when you wake up and you decide, you know what?

0:05:11 - (Kevin Lowe): I don't care. I'm getting out of bed and I'm doing it. That is you showing yourself what you're capable of. You're showing yourself that no matter how bad the day ahead seems, I'm going forward anyways. So, in essence, whatever the hard thing is for you, I want you to keep showing up. I want you to keep giving it at all, every single day. Don't stop, no matter what. That, my friend, is what's going to have you cultivating your own internal grit.

0:05:43 - (Kevin Lowe): That going to make it so that there is nothing standing in your way now to balance out all that grit. Of course, we have grace. Grace. I like to think of it as your serenity in the storm. It's the eye of the hurricane. If you know anything about hurricanes, you know that in the center there's the eye of the storm. And all around the edges, spinning around, are horrible storms. Wind so powerful it can blow the roof off of a home.

0:06:15 - (Kevin Lowe): Lightning crashing, thunder booming, rain pouring down so hard that before you know it, the yard, it turns into a lake. But in the middle of all of that, there's the eye of the storm. There's a moment of calm. Literally, the sky turns to blue, the birds start chirping, and everything is all right. That is what I'm considering in this case, Grace. Grace is the thing that you're going to find even in the midst of the bad times, in the midst of the challenges.

0:06:52 - (Kevin Lowe): Think of it as that one ray of sunlight that you need breaking through the clouds to remind you that there is hope for a better day, that there is peace on earth, that things will get better and things will be easier soon enough. Right now, in this period of life transitioning from summer back into real life, well, Grace, it's going to keep you grounded. It's going to remind you that it's going to be okay, even through the stresses of it all.

0:07:21 - (Kevin Lowe): If you want a few tips on helping you to find grace, to cultivate grace in your own life, well, I got you three right here. First and foremost, surrender to your situation. I want you to understand that nothing in this life is forever. The feelings you feel right now, the stresses, they will go away. So just understand that it's okay that this is not forever. Allow yourself to have that peace in knowing that this too, shall pass.

0:07:56 - (Kevin Lowe): My second piece of advice is to understand that some things take time. Now. I understand that time is one of the most frustrating things because we want it now. We want to feel better right now. But sometimes it just takes time. And so I encourage you to give yourself the grace of understanding that it's not going to happen yesterday, that it might take a little bit of time. And that's okay. Because soon enough, it will get good.

0:08:29 - (Kevin Lowe): Once again. My third tip is for you to start treating yourself a little bit better, for you to show yourself a little bit of grace by not beating yourself up. We have a tendency to talk to ourselves like total crap. Instead, I want you to treat yourself better. I want you to remind you that you've been through a lot, but you're capable. You're able. You're able to keep going. And darn it, you will.

0:08:57 - (Kevin Lowe): I want you to build yourself up, stop beating yourself down, stop talking negatively about yourself. Start talking positive, because I'm telling you, all of that self talking down to yourself, that is not what you need right now or any time of life. So I encourage you to think, what kind words can I say about myself today? What grace can I show myself? What source of grace can I lean on? Because, well, we all have to have a little bit of grit and grace to make the day go round.

0:09:37 - (Kevin Lowe): Now, of course, last but certainly not least, is inspiration. I like to think of inspiration as the lighthouse that's helping ships find their way in the darkness of night. It's the same for you. It's the light that pierces through the darkest days, showing you the way, letting you see that there are better days to come as you transition into this real life scenario that we're talking about after summer vacation.

0:10:09 - (Kevin Lowe): Let inspiration be the thing that keeps you smiling, that keeps you focused, that helps you to remember that. You know what? Every day is amazing. Whether it's stressful or not, every day is a gift. Let that inspiration light a fire in you. Let that inspiration radiate from you and become an inspiration to others. For the fact that even in the midst of the chaos of life, you're smiling, you're laughing, you're having a good time, because, well, they don't realize that you got grit, grace, and inspiration happening inside of you.

0:10:49 - (Kevin Lowe): And if at any point you think, well, I got grit, I got grace, inspiration, maybe it's not always necessary. Well, friend, I'm here to tell you that is totally wrong. Because without inspiration guiding your way, you are certain to run out of steam. You got to have a reason why that you are doing the things you are doing. What is your reason why? And it's got to be bigger than yourself. The big reason, the reason why you do the hard things.

0:11:23 - (Kevin Lowe): I need you to find what that is, figure it out, decide on it, declare it, and be sure that that is always in the forefront of your mind. Now, if you would like a little bit more inspiration in your life, because inspiration is contagious. If you hear something inspiring, then, baby, you stand a better chance of being inspiring yourself. I encourage you to fill your life with uplifting, encouraging stories of people overcoming the odds.

0:11:57 - (Kevin Lowe): If you've been listening to this podcast for any length of time, you know that some of those stories can be found right here. But there's many other podcasts out there as well. Find something. Whether it's a podcast, a YouTube channel, maybe even a book, find something that inspires you, that gets you motivated, that makes you realize, oh, my gosh, if they can do it, then why can't I? My second step is for you to find people who've already walked the walk that you're on right now.

0:12:30 - (Kevin Lowe): There's always somebody one step ahead of us, somebody who's already gone through these dark times. Find them, lean on them. Take support from them. They can be such a valuable asset to you. Find them, use them as your own inspiration, that things will get better. And my third tip is for you to be an inspiration yourself. One of the greatest things that you can do for yourself is to lift others up, to be an encouragement to other people, somebody who, you know, might be struggling.

0:13:06 - (Kevin Lowe): I want you to be that source of inspiration you're giving to them, and in return, you are receiving so much. It's kind of like the age old thing of you grow up and you realize it's so much better to give gifts than it is to receive because you get this amazing satisfaction of helping somebody, of making somebody smile. It's the same thing with inspiration. I encourage you, be an inspiration, and you will receive inspiration.

0:13:38 - (Kevin Lowe): And, of course, my friend, when you combine grit, grace and inspiration, well, you've just now got your resilient blueprint. So as you head into this new season of life, whatever season it is, I encourage you to let these principles guide your way. A little bit of grit, a little bit of grace, and a whole lot of inspiration.