Every morning, I witness GREATNESS.

I am lucky. Every morning, I witness GREATNESS. It’s not the Lance Armstrong/Michael Jordan kind of greatness. It’s the kind of greatness that lies in all of us but often goes untapped or unnoticed.

People define greatness in different ways. Many people think it is climbing Mount Everest or winning an Ironman. Some people think it is being a CEO of a Fortune 500 company.

This is my definition:

Greatness is the mother of three that stays up late to clean the house and finish her office work despite her exhaustion, only to get up at 5 a.m. and workout the next morning.

Greatness is the mother who is 7 months pregnant and still gets up every morning to improve her body despite the fact that it is getting bigger every day.

Greatness is the 60-something woman who has never been much on exercise but commits to boot camp anyway, despite the fact that most of the participants around her are 30 years younger.

Greatness is the person that persists through an exercise program and remains patient despite their lack of immediate results.

Greatness is defying the odds. Greatness is getting up every morning when the rest of the world is still in bed. Greatness is persisting and continuing to work at something even when everyone around you seems to do it better. Greatness is shutting off your inner slacker and doing what is necessary even when it’s not always fun. Greatness is overcoming fear and participating in the unknown.

Greatness is in the most common people and in the most unlikely places. Greatness is all around us. I know, because I see it every day.