The first time I saw this YouTube clip I was watching from between my fingers, a grimace of embarrassment on my face.
See, as a fairly typical English guy, this kind of thing makes me cringe. It’s just the sheer bloody awkwardness and potential for humiliation that makes me wince. But as I watched it that first time, I slowly took my fingers away from my face and watched closer and closer.
Something brilliant happened.
The unexpected.
I’ve probably seen this a dozen times over the last 3 or 4 months, and it makes me smile every time. Why? Well, the cute bridesmaids help, but the big reason is because it challenged me. It challenged me to think outside of the conventions and outside of the rules. Seeing these people having the time of their lives doing something new challenged me to enjoy what at first I thought I’d hate.
The unexpected does that – it makes you go out of your comfort zone and challenges you to adapt.
It’s not easy to open up to, feeling weird at first, scary even. But like new underwear, you soon get used to it.
The expected is predictable, safe and lacking in power. The magic of the unexpected is it’s power to show you something new in life; something that might just be amazing.
The question is, do you have the self-confidence to open your eyes and welcome it in?
- Other articles you might like:
- How to be comfortable going out of your comfort zone
- Confidence Bonanza – The Best of 2009
- The Confidence Catch-22
October 8th, 2009 at 1:50 pm
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October 10th, 2009 at 2:15 am
Wow! Amazing post! Thanks for sharing this and giving me a good cry too!
Check out Pam Belding´s last blog…Love
October 10th, 2009 at 10:26 am
Laughed out loud at your comment “like new underwear you get used to it” excellent. And the video is…heartwarming actually. Loved it.
October 11th, 2009 at 2:10 pm
@Pam: You’re welcome Pam, glad you had a good cry at it!
@Amanda: Hey hun – heartwarming indeed, the look on everyone’s face says everything doesn’t it? When are we going to catch up?!
October 13th, 2009 at 10:58 pm
LOL Steve – it must be something about being English. I cringed when I first began to watch it – but as it went on, it seemed like a lot of fun. Like you say, I guess it has a lot to do with accepting the unexpected.
Check out Cath Lawson´s last blog…Be Smart Like An Animal
October 15th, 2009 at 4:11 pm
@Cath: The English disease huh? I’m gonna become Canadian.