When You Believe...

Ok I admit it – I watch American Idol…sometimes. And The Voice,too, which I must say definitely has more soul, in my humble opinion, but that’s not the subject of this blog. As an artist, I find the premise behind these kinds of shows fascinating. The idea of turning something as precious and sacred as music into a competition runs counter to my innate understanding of what creative expression is all about…and yet I find myself strangely drawn in because I believe there is something special to be learned from these shows.

Despite the over-dramatization of every unfolding on the shows, they provide us an opportunity to witness growth. They allow us to see people at various stages on their creative and spiritual paths come face to face with their most deeply desired opportunity, and along with it, their deepest demons.

In the midst of all the sensationalizing of the simple, yet profound act of singing, one Uni-versal truth continually re-surfaces: BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. Believe in yourself and you can make a believer out of anyone. Believe in yourself and what could have been an average performance has the potential to be transcendent and undeniable.

And there it is. For me, the reason I keep coming back to these shows is to witness this truth being on display time and time again. It appears in the behind the scenes interviews, in the performances, in the feedback from the judges and in the contestants’ demeanor at all these various stages. And it’s also evidenced in the striking contrast between seeing the often shy or uncertain hopefuls that walk in on day one to the auditions and the confident finalists that emerge as the seasons progress.

And there’s no doubt that having the mentoring and encouragement of the superstar coaches plays a part. Of course, the mere experience of performing to a large live audience and on a broadcast that reaches millions has something to do with it. And yet all of these things serve the same end, which is giving these artists, these HUMAN beings an opportunity to believe in themselves in a way that they never have. And at the same time, all the lights and Hollywood-ism create the illusion that all those factors are what make or break the artists and the truth is that the defining variable is actually whether or not that moment comes when they begin to believe in themselves.

And when it happens, when those moments occur, you can see and feel the difference. It shows up in the twinkle in their eyes, in their posture, their movement, their sound bytes and of course, their performances. The more they believe, the better they become.  And the better they become, the more they believe.

My only wish is that we all find this belief within ourselves and that we realize that it’s not going to come from anyone else telling us we can or we are worthy or we are enough. We’ve all heard those truisms a thousand times, and just in case you need to hear it a thousand and one times, I’ll remind you:

You are enough. You are worthy. There is no one else like you and no one else’s success diminishes the possibility of yours. You can be, do and have anything you set your sights upon. But YOU have to believe in you. Deep down in your heart and soul, YOU have to know who you are and what you’re capable of for yourself. No one can do it for you and once you have that belief, no one can ever take it away from you.

What if your belief in yourself is the difference between being average and being undeniable? What will it take for you to choose to believe that you can do anything, that you are enough, and that you are worthy once and for all?

Much love, Chris

Published by The Daily Love (May 12th, 2013)