Photo by Melanie van Leeuwen on Unsplash

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.

Theodore Roosevelt

What defines a person is the effort that they put into accomplishing something in the world during their lifetime. We all have one life, and we have to make a decision about how we want to use it. We make a decision, whether it’s conscious or not. We can choose to be an active participant or a passive observer. As an active participant, we consciously make the decision to strive for something greater, no matter how out of reach it may seem initially. By doing this, we fully realize our potential because we expand our possibilities. The domain and purvue of what life is capable of is broadened by our efforts. This is the full expression of a life well-lived, something that gives and brings meaning to its existence. We can also choose to be passive observers, not just in our own lives but also in the lives of others. By not making the conscious decision to reach out for something more, you’re making the unconscious decision to give in to something less. Not utilize the full potential of opportunity available to you. By criticizing others “who stumbles….while daring greatly,” you only serve to take away from the full realization of the life experience. Someone who critiques others is living less and is doing less justice to the life they have than someone who tries and fails. When it comes to the life that you live, you can be a critic, and never remembered. Or you can be in the arena and know that no matter the outcome, you will be part of the pantheon of people who expanded what life is capable of being.