Born without legs, Jen Bricker defied all odds when she began her career as an acrobat and aerialist. Her childhood passion for gymnastics competing against able-bodied athletes led her to become a state champion in power tumbling. Since then, Jen toured around the globe in Britney Spears’ World Tour and is now an accomplished speaker and author of Everything Is Possible. Here, in anticipation of her talk at this year’s Leadercast Live, Jen shares a message on resilience for leaders.
Life isn’t always black and white.
Sometimes life can be really colorful and complicated, and things you never could have seen coming in a million years just happen. What then? You have to adapt. My pastor said something one Sunday at church that has stuck with me: never put anything past yourself, and never say “never.” You may think to yourself, I would never do this or I would never do that. But the fact is, we are human and we make mistakes. This is why we need to show grace, compassion, empathy, and forgiveness. Everyone’s path is different. Everyone has different struggles, challenges, childhoods, joys, triumphs, defeats. We cannot fully relate to one another because we will never walk another’s exact path. I’ve made mistakes, I’m not perfect, and I’ve done things I’m not proud of. But I’ve also shown forgiveness. I know life isn’t always simple and clear-cut, and we can’t judge someone for doing what they do. That’s between them and God. The only person you can hold accountable is yourself.
