You Can't Change What You Won't Acknowledge

About the Author: Hannah Breal, PT, DPT is the co-owner of Made 2 Move Physical Therapy in Charleston and Charlotte. She helps athletes and active adults rebuild strength, mobility, and confidence so they can move pain-free for life.

Made 2 Move Physical Therapy – Charleston | Daniel Island | Mount Pleasant | Charlotte

I had this quote by Charles Swindoll framed on my wall for years growing up:

"Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you respond to it."

A teacher gave it to me, and apparently I took it so seriously that I won the "best attitude" award in high school.

I'm not kidding. I referenced the quote in an interview, and apparently it hit home.

My family was SHOCKED (lol) and they still joke that they must have confused the "best attitude award" with the "most attitude award" (I'll take either, tbh)

In all seriousness — maybe reading that quote every single day for years did engrain it in me, because ownership is one of my core values. In health, in business, in relationships, and in how I try to show up in my own life.

That doesn't mean I'm perfect at it — of course not. It means I constantly come back to it, like a north star, to guide my actions and decisions, and I ask myself:

Where can I take ownership in this? How can I respond better next time? How will I move forward?

The Key Differentiator

I've seen this mentality play out as the key differentiator between people who grow, improve, and feel content in life, versus people who always feel stuck and complacent.

The things we want in life come from a change in our actions.

But if we're always pointing at outside sources and never willing to acknowledge our own faults, we never actually get the chance to change anything.

So we'll keep getting the same result, over and over again.

Taking ownership breaks that cycle.

Because you can't change what you won't acknowledge.

Another quote that hits SO hard, by Leland Val Van De Wall:

"The degree to which a person can grow is directly proportional to the amount of truth they can accept about themself without running away."

OOF.

The Hard Questions

When something happens that didn't go your way...

When you're not meeting your business goals...

When your health isn't where you want it to be...

Are you willing to see how your actions and decisions play a role? How can you handle it differently? How are you going to respond?

What result do you actually want from this, and what actions can you take to get that?

There are plenty of things we can't control. We can't dwell on those. There are plenty of horrible things that happen to people that are NOT their fault.

We might not be able to change the situation entirely — but we can control how we respond to it.

This is still something I struggle with and have to work on daily — it's not a box you check once. It's something you have to constantly remind yourself of.

Two Patients Who Showed Me What Ownership Really Means

There are two patients that really showed me what it means to take ownership, even when dealt a horrible hand.

The first was diagnosed with cancer with a poor prognosis.

Between the medications, the scans, the bloodwork, and the constant appointments, there was a lot he couldn't control.

But he looked at his life and asked: what CAN I control?

Exercise was one of his answers.

He hadn't worked out in years, and he was tired, sore, and achy on most days — but he started doing it anyway, because he decided that even in the middle of all of it, he had the power to add quality to his life.

The second patient had battled health issues for most of her adult life.

She'd been a fitness instructor in her 20s — strong, capable, very active.

Over time, her diagnoses took a lot of that from her. There were hospital stays, setbacks, days where just walking was hard.

She came to see us three times a week for months. When she traveled, she walked, hiked, did her exercises in hotel rooms.

When she was in the hospital, she'd come back to see us a week later, ready to get started again.

She couldn't control everything that had happened to her body, but she controlled everything she could.

These two people showed me what it actually means to own your health.

If they can find something to own in those circumstances, I think most of us can too.

What Ownership Actually Gives You

Taking ownership means you get to decide how you respond.

You get to decide how you act and react — in every situation.

You get to decide that your health, your life, and the way you respond to all of it — is yours to own.

With the cards in your hand right now, what can you do?

Own your health.

- Hannah

Book a free phone consult at www.made2movept.com/contact and we'll help you solve it for good.