What are you advocating for?

Most people have the impression that advocates are synonymous to activists, that advocates run the gamut of being irritating to inspiring, pointless to life-changing. But whatever it may be, an advocate is always seen as vocally loud.

I mentioned in my post yesterday that an advocate is defined as "a person who publicly supports or recommends a particular cause or policy." Going deeper into the root meaning of this word, I copy below the exact words from my dictionary app:

ORIGIN Middle English : from Old French avocat, from Latin advocatus, past participle (used as a noun) of advocare ‘call (to one's aid),’ from ad- ‘to’ + vocare ‘to call.’


Hence, to advocate is to call. And if you really think about it, we call in many ways and not with our words only. The biggest form of advocacy of any one thing is in our actions. And our actions are driven by our beliefs, and our beliefs by our thoughts.

So you don't have to be Gandhi, a Barrack, Osama bin Laden, or any conventional form of leader to be an advocate. You, the way you already are, going through your life the way you already do; is a form of advocacy. You already have that power, because in your actions you have advocated your choices.

That policy may be "I don't make waves" - so you're advocating for a minor form of harmony, but at the price of maybe something bigger that can help change the course of your personal history (i.e. if you're a victim in an abusive relationship) or even impact your community or country (i.e. not fighting for your rights).

Why advocate? Well, because you already have been given that power to make a difference, to influence for contribution or otherwise, and.....you're already using it. Even if you are being a loser and a bum, you are still an advocate for the policies that are linked to being a loser and a bum.

So, what are you advocating for? To influence for the betterment of yourself and your community, or the ruination? Every choice matters you see. Every moment, every word, every action. To actively advocate for something is a scary thing, because you put yourself on the line, open and vulnerable to criticism and attack.

But you see, you are already an advocate, it's just the reach of your impact that's either small or large that's in question; that you are already advocating is not. So why not use all that power and energy that you are already using now, to really advocate for the beliefs, values, actions, policies and things that you really believe in? That's the difference between really LIVING versus just existing.

Make a stand. Advocate for the best in yourself, and what you want to be. It matters. You matter.

xoxo
Jamie