Did you hear about the man who was running for office? When he got to the courthouse to vote, he looked over the list of candidates who were running for the same office, and decided several were better qualified than he was, so he voted for someone else. This old boy was brimming with confidence, wouldn’t you say?
There is a famous poem titled “The One in The Glass” that I thought about when I heard this story. If we are to ever succeed in office or in life, we must have self-confidence. We must believe that we can do the job as good as, or perhaps better than, anyone else. Please let me share this poem with you and see if you don’t agree.
THE ONE IN THE GLASS
“When you get what you want in your struggle for self, and the world makes you King or Queen for a day, just go to the mirror and look at yourself and see what that person has to say. For it isn’t your father or mother or mate whose judgement upon you must pass. The one whose verdict counts most in your life is the one staring back from the glass. Some people may think you are a straight-shooting sort and call you a wonderful gal or guy, but the one in the glass says you are only a bum if you can’t look them straight in the eye.
“He or she is the one to please, never mind all the rest, for they’re with you clear up to the end, and you’ve passed your most dangerous difficult task, if the one in the glass is your friend. You may fool the whole world down the pathway of life, and get pats on the back as you pass, but your final reward will be heartaches and tears, if you have cheated the one in the glass.”
Well, how about that? It’s good, isn’t it? Now, I have no idea who wrote this, but I have used it several times in speeches. Perhaps you have used it or heard it before, too. The message that always comes to me is that, sooner or later, we must be willing to accept responsibility for ourselves. When we reach legal age and maturity, no one should ever have to accept responsibility for us.
We should be responsible for ourselves. Of course, you realize that I am not talking about people who are born with a disabling handicap or circumstances beyond their control, but individuals who grow up and are normal with a sound mind and body. Every living person who meets these conditions should be willing to accept responsibility for themselves, because no person ever fails in life until they blame someone else.
Now you may ask, how do I get self-confidence? The only way to get self-confidence is by doing, regardless of the way we choose to spend our time. If it’s sports, we have to practice, same with writing, speaking or any other people skill. We have to pay the price, realize that this does not happen overnight, and stay with it long enough to get really good at it. Then self-confidence will come. When you get right down to it, the vote you give yourself is the only one that really counts. Go back to the courthouse with me for a moment. If you are that man, next time you will vote for yourself, and I just bet you win. P.T.L.
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(Jim Davidson is an author, public speaker, syndicated columnist, and Founder of the Bookcase for Every Child project. Since its inception in the Log Cabin Democrat in 1995, Jim’s column has been self-syndicated in over 375 newspapers in 35 states. For a personalized copy of “Your Future Begins Today” send $20, which includes postage and handling, to Jim Davidson, 2 Bentley Drive, Conway, AR 72034.)