I have lived for so long that I have seen so many dreams get shattered, so many inventions remain uncreated, so many songs died unsung and so much greatness inside of a young man or woman die without being tapped into... all because someone failed to believe in themselves; all because someone failed to look in the mirror and tell themselves “I believe in myself! I have what it takes to do this and I am going to step out of my home and do it”.

There’s nothing more painful than seeing a person settle for a life they don’t and never desired, all because they don’t believe in themselves enough to rise every time they fall, to believe in themselves even when no-one does, even when all odds are against them.

You will never defy any odds in life until you believe you can. You will never achieve anything until you believe in yourself that you’re capable enough to! Bona, you can walk on hot coals, fly to planet Pluto and back: hell, you can even do a “vosho” hundred times without stopping (and I dare you to do that if you want to spend the rest of your life in a wheelchair) but the sad truth is this: if you don’t believe in yourself... everything and anything you want will always be self-doubt away. What self-torture and self-inflicted pain we personally subject ourselves to by simply failing to do what we have to do - shame on us!

Look, I don’t know what your aspirations are in life, nor do I have the slightest idea of what you’re dealing with every single morning when you wake up and every night when you go to sleep. But let me tell you what I know about YOU; you were wonderfully and purposefully created, wired with the ability and capability to do and achieve about anything you want to.

So forget about your past attempts and failures in life, forget about millions of people who you saw fail... an experience that made you doubt yourself and ask yourself what’s so special about you that  makes you think you can do it if so and so failed; forget about billions of people who told you that you don’t have what it takes...

Take this moment and look at the person you see in the mirror. You see that? That’s the ONLY person and the only thing standing between you and the life you desire. Nothing and no-one can ever make you believe into something without your consent. Stop giving consent to people and your circumstances to convince you otherwise, to make you doubt your capability.

Gents, you see that beautiful woman who has captured and captivated your heart? Yes! That one whom you’re so scared of that every time when you see her gorgeous sight, you get cold feet and your knees start to tremble as if there’s an earthquake underneath your feet...

For as long as you don’t believe in yourself to have courage enough to walk up to her and pour your heart out; she will always be SELF DOUBT away. You will wake up each and every morning and go through each and every day wondering what could have been.

It is inevitable that there will always be people and things that will crush your confidence and make you feel worthless and cheap but always remember that how people treat you says a lot about them and nothing about you. So, never let actions of others determine how you see and feel about yourself. Always think and see the best in you. You owe it to yourself.

Today being FIGHTDAY... never stop the fight of believing in yourself.

Happy FIGHTDAY!

Fannie Zim is a practicing and Admitted Attorney of the High Court of South Africa.