I hope you have some fun plans for this holiday weekend celebrating our independence with your friends and family. What a perfect time to introduce you to retired staff sergeant and CEO of Boot Campaign, Joey Jones.

Hearing his story and perspective on life is something I hope all of you will take the time to do. We are so lucky to have the freedom that we do in America, and so often I think many of us take it for granted.

This time of year we are all so grateful for the many brave soldiers who choose to defend our amazing country, but I think it’s important to show gratitude continuously throughout the year. I feel so blessed to be able to share Joey’s message with you, it’s one that you won’t want to miss out on. Find out what Joey did after realizing he lost his legs and how that helped him move forward in an “annoyingly positive” way.

A thought that so many of us have when pinning down our dreams is “I could never do that”. Whether it’s starting your own business, joining the Marine Core like Joey, or anything else that may spark that fear inside of you. That feeling alone was enough for Joey to prove himself wrong and is a great example to us all. Don’t let fear determine your fate. Set out to do what it is you desire in life and let that fear go!

We are all given our own set of trials – some big and some small. As Joey said in the interview, the worst that has happened to him is equal to the worst that’s happened to you. Regardless of what we go through in life there are times you may wonder “why me?” and question whether or not you should continue to push on. You might avoid dealing with the emotion that comes with whatever is happening, but when we do things like taking five minutes a day to react to what’s inside us, that is being truly authentic. It’s important to realize that it’s okay to feel upset, to cry and scream, as long as you carry on and know that in the end, it’s all going to be okay.

Joey’s story is one of many that we can be inspired by from all of the incredible people out there who volunteer their time to serve our country. Did you know there are over 1.3 million people out there serving our nation? Joey is part of a great campaign that allows people to show their support for those serving by purchasing a pair of combat boots. The money made from each pair goes toward military housing, urgent financial assistance and family support – to name a few – and it’s called Fill In The Gap. For more information or to get your own pair of boots, head over to Bootcampaign.com!

How has this IL interview inspired you? How do you move through a challenging time in your life? Please leave your comments below because when you are inspired, you inspire others!