How to Live Life on Your Own Terms with Candy Motzek

Today’s Featured Uplifter: Candy Motzek

You know those rare conversations that feel like sinking into a comfortable chair? That's what it felt like talking with Candy Motzek. There's an immediate ease that settles over you – a superpower she didn't even recognize she had until people kept telling her how calm they felt in her presence. (Though she'll be the first to tell you that doesn't mean she's always calm inside.)

At 64, Candy embodies what it means to live life on your own terms. She's the engineer-turned-business-coach who takes ballet classes alongside teenagers, collects white feathers that fall from the sky, and chooses depth over small talk every single time. As the only person of color in her school growing up, she learned early that not fitting in could become its own kind of freedom.

What strikes me most about Candy is how she's transformed that early pain of not belonging into a profound sense of belonging to herself. It's a journey that's led her from corporate boardrooms to ballet bars, from engineering problems to solving the deeper equation of what makes a life feel meaningful.

Her Courage Practice

Every morning, Candy meets herself on the blank pages of her journal, creating a sacred space for reflection and possibility. But here's the twist – she saves the last pages of every journal for "great ideas that aren't ready yet," honoring the whispers of inspiration even when they can't be acted upon immediately. It's a practice that both grounds her in the present and keeps her connected to future possibilities, creating a bridge between who she is and who she's becoming.

"The relationship we have with ourselves is the only one that lasts for our entire life. Why wouldn't you give as much care and attention to the friendship with yourself as you would to your partner or to another person that you love?"

5 Ways She Shows Us How to Build Our Courage Capital:

1. Turn Your Differences into Your Superpowers: Instead of trying to fit in, use your unique perspective as a lens through which to see and serve the world

2. Listen to Your Body's Wisdom: Drop from your head into your heart (and gut) to access the intelligence that lives in every cell

3. Save Space for Future Dreams: Create a special place to capture inspiration, even (and especially) when you're not ready to act on it yet

4. Choose Depth Over Performance: Rather than trying to please everyone, focus on creating meaningful connections – starting with yourself

5. Let Your Weird Light Shine: When you fully embrace your authentic self, you give others permission to do the same

The Uplifters’ Web

Today’s opening is by Melanie Cohen.

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