The world didn’t end after the U.S. elected its new president.

My friends haven’t started moving to another country.

And nobody’s bought a bunker to my knowledge. (But text me if you did because I’d like to say farewell to my brothers and sisters.)

The Days Before the (Re)Public Spoke

It was painful as crap.

I couldn’t visit Facebook without witnessing a vicious attack against one of the candidates. Yep, on most days it was like “Oh no (s)he didn’t!”

So Instagram got my attention leading up to election day. But why was IG more pure than FB? Was it harder to cross-pollinate the anger and frustration inside the beauty of photos?

Anyway, I couldn’t avoid the impact of my vote because everyone had a stake in the outcome. In fact, on the morning of the election (yesterday), a close friend made one final plea to sway my vote. This person sold me hard and smart, too.

But the funny thing was that this person didn’t even know which way I was going. Shh, it’s a secret ballot if you didn’t know. 😉

New Days Ahead

So today feels a lot like yesterday.

The elected president doesn’t know my name. The elected president won’t pay my bills. The elected president can’t give me the answers I need in my everyday life.

Fortunately, I’m done looking to my elected officials or anyone else to help me reach the places I want to go inside this short life I get to thrive.

So I’ve made one simple choice.

I’ve decided to choose myself.

Except it wasn’t easy to get here.

Because I’ve listened to more advice from outside influencers about politics, my business and more in the past year than I care to share.

Friends gave me the hard sell on which candidate to vote for. Colleagues offered me advice on how to best position my blog. Mentors gave me feedback on which way my novel’s plotline should go.

I kind of invited anyone and everyone to help me decide what was best for me.

Welcome Back to the Past

I used to be a selfish fool. (Blah, maybe I still am!)

Yep, I used to be a stubborn brat who awkwardly danced to my own off-key tune. I used to be the guy who typically chose what I believed was best for me.

But I changed somewhere along the way. I stopped looking to myself for my own gut-reaction guidance during the past couple years.

Don’t get me wrong, I still listened to my instincts, and I often did what I thought was right on my end.

But please get me right, I’m suddenly wondering if I permitted other’s opinions to imbalance my internal guidance systems.

That’s why I’m taking back the united nations known as Me, Myself, and I.

That’s why I’m doubling down on what I believe is right for Me.

That’s why I’m getting back to being a bit selfish for Myself.

That’s why the most trusted advice now begins with “I.”

With all of that in mind, I don’t know how much I’ll screw up. I don’t know how many times I’ll fail. I don’t know how often I’ll choose the wrong thing.

But that’s a liberating thing.

Appreciate the Difference

Choosing yourself doesn’t mean you don’t listen to others.

It simply means you know yourself better than anyone else.

It means you can proudly announce the choices you’ve made. It means you can honestly proclaim the commitments you’ve made to yourself. Such as:

I choose to make a difference in this quick-hit life.

I choose to show up for the humans I care about and love.

I choose to properly support the lucid storytellers inside this community.

I choose to finish my novel once and for all despite my full-time career and growing online platform.

I choose to help people regardless of the money because I’m committed to starting in the heart, and not in the wallet.

So what do you choose? Who will you choose?

My vote’s for you.

P.S. I wrote this piece on Tuesday afternoon before I began watching any of the election news in any way whatsoever.

P.S. 2.0. My wife didn’t immediately get this piece. I hope you do. Either way, it was something I felt compelled to share. (Yikes, I chose expressing myself in this case!)