If you haven't checked out my Inspirations page, I suggest you do so. Especially since today's post features one inspiration that I have revisited again and again over the past few years.

The Last Lecture is a speech that was given by Randy Pausch, a man with pancreatic cancer who knew he was going to die, and soon. He created the Last Lecture: the lecture you would hypothetically give to your students if you knew you were going to die.

You can watch the ten minute version of the speech he gave on the Oprah Winfrey show here, or you can watch the full length speech (which I totally suggest because it is beyond worth the hour and forty-five minutes) here.

There are a lot of things that Randy talks about that are really moving, eye-opening, and thought-provoking. It is truly inspirational. But I have come to realize that this blog is sort of my Last Lecture. All of these things that I have been writing about are the things I would share with the people I know and love if I knew I was going to die. Love yourself. You are beautiful. I love each and everyone one of you. You are important to me. Find the beauty in yourself. Take baby steps, and be proud of yourself when you are successful. Be independent. Ask for help when you are struggling. Don't let others define you.

Originally, I was going to write about Randy's Last Lecture, but instead I'll take one piece of his advice and make that another part of my Last Lecture.

"The brick walls in our life are there for a reason."

I believe in this 100%. The struggles we face aren't for nothing. They have a purpose. Maybe it is to show others, or ourselves, how strong or competent we really are. Maybe it is to protect us from another brick wall. Maybe we won't know the purpose for years. This is the hardest part to deal with.

Recently, I have been dealing with a brick wall. And I have no idea what the purpose of it is. But I have renewed faith that there is a purpose to this wall. One day I will discover what the purpose of this brick wall is. And I will be stronger for having dealt with it, and stronger for finally knowing why the wall was built in the first place.

Embrace your brick walls. Climb them, take them down brick by brick, blow it over with a bulldozer. But understand that the wall is there for a reason.

I feel like the purpose for many of my brick walls has been this blog. Because of brick walls I have knocked down, I created this blog. And I couldn't be happier. I am glad to have dealt with some difficult things if this is what the purpose was. Because helping myself, my friends, people I may not even know, is worth any brick wall no matter how high or how thick.

Again, feel free to contact me on Twitter, via email, or by commenting below.

Spread the word, and spread the beauty.

Shannon

Another video that is completely worth the watch. I don't even know who this guy is, but he's brilliant.

He is completely right. I don't know anyone who is ugly. I don't. The only people I have EVER thought as "ugly" have been people that I have found rude, disrespectful, or downright mean.

"We are all born beautiful." This is so true. Every baby is born onto this planet as a beautiful human being. We grow into beautiful children. It is not until we are old enough to judge others that we can become "ugly". And by "ugly" I mean internally. This internal attitude, your personality, does truly have a huge effect on your external beauty.

"The more you love or adore something, the more their internal beauty takes over everything." I love this statement. And I want you to start applying it to yourself. The more you can love yourself (your physical attributes and your personality) the more beautiful you will be not only to yourself but to others.

People always notice those who beaming smiles and happy personalities. These positive and upbeat people are attractive. Not because their nose is just the right size or their skin is perfectly tanned, but because their internal beauty outshines any external characteristics that the media has convinced us is "unattractive". Love yourself because you are kind. You are thoughtful. You have a good work-ethic. You like to help others. There are a million things about you that you should love. Value them.

The best news is that internal beauty is something you can find if you have lost it. If you are thinking to yourself, "I am not nice. I am mean and rude. I am not beautiful on the inside," it's okay. You can become beautiful. You can change your attitude. You CAN be a better person. You know what to do, you have spent your whole life learning how to be nice to others. Just start doing it, and don't let others convince you that being mean is better.

I have so thankful to have see this video. I hope you are too.

Don't forget to follow me on Twitter or send me an email or comment below.

Spread the word, and spread the beauty.

Shannon

Watch this video. It is totally worth the three minutes.

Watching this video may have been the most inspiring three minutes of my life. Everything about this video is absolutely true. And not just for women, but for a lot of men as well.

We absolutely are our own worst critics. We look at ourselves and see our flaws. We decide that there is so much wrong with us. But we ARE beautiful. Every single one of us. There is something amazing about each of us. This video shows that the people we meet see the beauty in others. They look at us and see these great features, physical AND internal. So why can we still not see them ourselves? Stop picking out your flaws. Pick out something beautiful.

I hope after watching this video, you feel like I did: just a little more confident in yourself.  Others see our beauty. We should see our own beauty too.

Spread the word and, of course, spread the beauty.

Shannon