When I think about becoming relentless, a lot of different things come to mind. And when I look for a definition, I often find myself returning to Tim Grover’s book, Relentless: From Good to Great to Unstoppable. In it, he asks this question: “What would it feel like to just let go of all the external pressure and expectations and just be yourself?1
Just. Be. Yourself.
As 2024 drew to a close, I struggled to just be myself. Because it’s not easy to buck the trend and be yourself in a world that expects you to be on-call 24/7. It takes great focus and confidence to tune out all the noise and everything that is being thrown at us. I foolishly tried to keep up with the pressure and expectations, but somewhere along the way I lost myself. I’d forgotten who I was and what I was trying to do in the world.
Finding Myself Again
As this new year begins, it is my goal to be more intentional, to focus on the things that matter most. Looking back over 2024, I realized that stepping away from social media helped me the most to find myself again. It was the surest way to clear away the clutter and noise, to not be persuaded by other people’s expectations or opinions. It took a while, but I could really hear myself think and I found my voice again.
Finding myself is one thing. Hanging on to myself is something else. It requires that I dig deep and understand what it is that I want—and not acquiesce to what others expect of me or who they want me to be. And it is outmanoeuvring others’ expectations that sometimes make ‘just be yourself’ hard advice to follow.
Be Yourself
As I mentioned in my previous post, my hope is that 2025 is a year of growth, opportunity, self-discovery, and self-love. A year of self-mastery. That is why I will just be myself. To focus on what I feel called to do without external pressures, without spending time on things that are contrary to my will. Now is the time to stay grounded in who I am, and live up to the expectations I have set for myself.
In these first days of 2025, remember: just be yourself.
I’m reminding you today that you are loved, you are worthy, and you matter. And you don’t need anyone’s permission to be—wholly and unapologetically—who you are.
- Grover, T. (2013). Relentless: From Good to Great to Unstoppable, New York, Scribner, p. 78–79. [↩]
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