Last Word

Oprah Winfrey says “With every experience, you alone are painting your own canvas, thought by thought, choice by choice”.

My question to you today is “Are you taking life’s challenges as an opportunity for growth?”.

Someone once told me that “Goals are in concrete, and plans are in sand”.

Life is not a textbook, plans change and situations change. We go through tough times that we didn’t expect would happen. It’s important to have goals but make sure you take the opportunities you have today, to better your tomorrow. You’ll go through rough patches that may be scary and out of your comfort zone. You may even experience failure, anxiety, or sadness.

It’s not the challenges that define who we are, it’s the way we respond to these challenges today, that builds our character for tomorrow. Our responses are our thoughts, actions and decisions that we make. So think good thoughts, act in a way that you’ll be proud of tomorrow. Even the smallest decisions count towards the bigger picture.

Remember that you are the artist painting a masterpiece, which is your life. What colours, textures, paints will you use? How is your painting looking so far? What do you want your painting to end up looking like? What needs to be done to get your painting from where it is now, to where you want it to be?

Don’t let your challenges or other people take the brush from you and paint the picture. You are the artist, so you get to choose your mindset and your attitude when faced with challenges. 

Be true to yourself and don’t let others decide what you can and cannot do. At the end of the day, you are the one living your life.

Take action and paint the picture you want for yourself today.

Don’t tell yourself that you’ll do that thing tomorrow. Put yourself to the test, don’t delay your life waiting for the perfect time, because the time is now. So take that next step. Trial for that team, apply for that job, build that friendship, ask that question.

Picasso didn’t paint a masterpiece overnight, nor did Richie McCaw become a well respected rugby player overnight.

Creating a masterpiece takes time, as does reaching your goals.

Each one of you in this room has the potential to become the masterpiece you’ve always dreamed of.

So pick up the paint brush and start painting.