“It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.”—Theodore Roosevelt, Speech at the Sorbonne, Paris, April 23, 1910

This Theodore Roosevelt quote inspired Brené Brown in her work. I am inspired by this quote very much today. I know my husband and I have dared greatly in our work. We have received both criticism and praise. As I ponder this, I realize that neither criticism or praise means anything if you do not know who you are and what you stand for. We are our only true cheerleader.

I am coming to understand that knowing who I am is the only thing that will carry me through everything I encounter in life. As I’ve stated before, I am a 5th dimensional being living in a 3 dimensional world. What does it mean to be a 5th dimensional being? For me, it means that I am Divine with the super power of choice and the gift of seeing those choices manifested. So, no matter what is occurring in my 3D world. I must bring that 5th Dimensional self to meet it. It is the only me that will succeed. It doesn’t mean I won’t be criticized or condemned by those on the sidelines. It just means I can hold myself steady and open, not without fear, but with courage.

If I know who I am, I can listen to the critic and then make the choice of whether or not there is any good there for me. The other choice is to become closed off and unable to see anything but one’s own point of view. We can miss a lot of gifts. As I shift and change paths in my ministry, as I make decisions of how to go forward, if I know who I am, I am then courageious while marching forward.

There is a song from the musical A Chorus Line that is called “What I Did for Love.” It speaks to me of daring greatly and being willing to stand strong knowing that what we did for love, even if it ended in what is thought of as failure, was the best journey we could ever take. We will never be sorry no matter the outcome.

How do we know if we did something for Love? Well, if we have to ask that question, most likely we didn’t. However, if we do ask the question, check in with your motives for taking part in any experience. Were we trying to control someone or something else? Did we knock other people down on our path? Did we deeply listen to ourselves and others? Did what we did bring a little more Love into the world? These are some of the questions I have been asking myself as I refocus my life, as I leave some things behind and embrace the new.

No one said it would be easy to dare greatly. However, if we do not, we will not have lived our 5D potential fully. That, for me, would be a great waste of my own life in time and space.

Love and Aloha,

Rita Andriello-Feren, Co-Founding Director CSL Kaua`i and the Institute of Magnificence and Author of “What Do I Need to KNOW? 101 Thoughts That Changed My Life” and “This Thing Called Treatment,” both available on Amazon.