Get Up. Dress Up. Show Up.
This morning I saw an image of a quote from someone’s social media account that said, “no matter how you feel, get up, dress up, show up, and never give up.”
I’m not the biggest fan of quippy, punctuated, life mottos but this one convicted me this morning because I did not feel like doing anything for the millionth time.
NO MATTER HOW YOU FEEL, GET UP. There are a thousand excuses not to do something. For most of life, there is be a sunny beach, a warm towel, a cool refreshing beverage, and a perfect way to relax somewhere irrelevant to where you are and what you are doing. That known, we still should do our best. For me, this starts with the first moments of the day. I try to take a few minutes before my feet touch the ground before I get up to get started, to soak in the fact that I’m alive another day, able-bodied, and with employment; breathe in life another morning; remember all there is to be thankful for; and then I can get going. Of course there are mornings, many mornings, when this little happy time routine of mine doesn’t get to play out. Those days, life still needs to get lived but I know I am slightly more prone to being irritable with myself and others, less forgiving and more distracted. But no matter how I feel, work needs to get done and others are living out their own story with their own set of complications good or bad. So regardless of how I feel, I will get up.
DRESS UP. There are versions of this quote that are attributed to Paulo Coelho. Maybe someone added “…and never give up.” It struck me that beyond getting up (arguably the hardest first step) and showing up (the next most taxing step), in between these two it stresses that you should dress up. I thought about this a while. Deciding to get started is so important (get up) but then so is “putting your game face on.” Dress up. Push the decision you made to take the steps by deciding next how awesome you will look and feel while taking those steps. Rev yourself up. This is a step I’d mostly overlook. But it’s an important step to orient the rest of your story… why did you get up in the first place? Is a bright color going to be the small perk you need? Will tighter fit pants be what holds you up and focused today? You have to do it anyway, why not do it beautifully and boldly.
SHOW UP. Be there. Just BEING there makes all the difference. Showing up makes ALL the difference. Whether it’s a class or a job or a relationship — showing up is so much of it. Everyone knows everyone is finite. You’d be surprised to see that people don’t necessarily need you to have all the answers but just to know that you’re there to help them search for it. Excellence is not perfection but just the best of what you can possibly do …and you cannot know what the best version of you-doing-whatever-you-are-supposed-to-be-doing is, if you don’t show up to try, fail, learn, and improve.
I think the last line is redundant and unnecessary because if the first things are upheld, you define perseverance. To everyone out there today, getting up, dressing up, and showing up [despite how you’re feeling]— your commitment is fuel for innovation. Find comfort in those around you that ‘showed up’ today and maybe share a word of encouragement with one another because everyone can use it.
