Grace in Action – The Power of Acceptance on the Path to Achievement
- Aug 4, 2025
- 9 min read
Arthur J. Rutledge is a mindset and leadership speaker, coach, and trainer. He helps people to beam with their dreams and how to put fire on their desires. Best selling Author of the new book "11 Pillars of Confidence" published by the L.A. Tribune. Also an entrepreneur and co-founder of Peoples Pride.
No one walks through life untouched by what gets imprinted in them from their past. The mind, like a canvas layered in memory, carries the colors of our joys, wounds, and quiet lessons. Over time, these experiences solidify into patterns. Ways of thinking, reacting, and behaving that often go unseen, therefore, unquestioned. These patterns, born from survival or circumstance, can begin to govern us. Fear can disguise itself as logic. Emotional withdrawal can masquerade as strength. Comfort can camouflage as contentment.
“The first step toward change is awareness. The second step is acceptance.” – Nathaniel Branden
A pivotal truth: It’s only once we see things as they truly are that we can begin to make meaningful change. That type of vision takes us to the clear, unfiltered, and empowering beginning with acceptance.
Acceptance isn’t passive
Let’s be clear: Acceptance is not giving up. It is gearing up. It is the quiet, potent act of reclaiming authorship of your life story. It requires more strength than denial and more courage than resistance. To accept your life, yourself, and your circumstances is to stop arguing with what is and instead, begin partnering with it.
“If I could define enlightenment briefly I would say it is ‘the quiet acceptance of what is.” – Wayne Dyer
Acceptance means choosing to stand in truth, not hide from it. It is not the absence of action, but the wisdom to act from a grounded place. In fact, to accept is to allow space for clarity, to welcome full awareness without defense, and this is where meaningful change can begin.
In philosophical and moral discussions, the concept of “the allow” offers further richness to this idea. In her paper “Doing, Allowing, Framing: A Case for Moral Heuristics,” Camilla F. Colombo explores the ethical difference between actively doing something versus allowing something to happen. Within her framework, “allowing” isn’t passive; it’s a moral distinction that takes place inside a complex causal network. Whether someone is judged as doing harm or simply allowing harm often hinges on whether their actions deviate from or align with the “default” path of events.
Translated into mindset and achievement: there’s a difference between avoidance disguised as allowance and acceptance rooted in conscious awareness. In other words, to allow does not mean to disengage. It means to be fully aware of your influence in a process, system, or situation, and to choose a response over a reaction.
In this light, acceptance becomes the act of acknowledging what is, understanding your place in it, and choosing your next step deliberately. Whether it’s dealing with colleagues in the workplace, peer relationships, or self-purpose searching, it’s a form of doing that begins with being. The kindness you give to yourself will translate into the allowance you grant others. It is not an omission, but wise positioning.
This is why acceptance is the birthplace of accountability. It takes you out of fantasy, denial, blame, or victimhood, and places you squarely in reality, where power lives.
“Accept then act. Whatever the present moment contains, accept it as if you had chosen it. Always work with it, not against it.” – Eckhart Tolle
The 5 acceptances of high achievement
True achievement is not born only from drive or desire–it is forged through intentional, inner alignment. And that begins with five key acceptances that transform self-awareness into self-actualization:
1. Exercise your ability: own your inner power
You are more able than you allow yourself to believe. Deep within you lies untapped potential, waiting not for perfect timing, but for your permission. When I decided to make the huge move from Detroit to New York City, I wasn’t at my best. 1999 was a bad economic recession and I was also unprepared to make such an enormous transition in my life. I didn’t have a security blanket or an exact plan. I remember that what I had was a lot of faith that I could do what I set out to accomplish for my life, and the confidence to see. Certain allowances I made then led me to finding my ultimate self today. I followed my intuition and found acceptance at every stage of my growth since. It molded me into an element that enabled me to elevate throughout the experience I encountered. Acceptance means acknowledging that you are a gifts that exist and that your consent makes you ready. You do not have to be fully prepared to begin; you simply have to begin to become fully prepared.
Exercising your ability is an act of self-respect. It’s the moment you stop waiting for external validation and start walking in inner conviction. Each step forward strengthens your belief, and each repetition reinforces your readiness. This is how confidence grows. The Good confidence I talk about in my book “11 Pillars of Confidence” happens through conscious practice and self-acceptance.
“Nothing I accept about myself can be used against me to diminish me.” – Audre Lorde
2. Excite your purpose: Ignite what moves you
Your purpose is not hiding from you, it’s buried beneath layers of overthinking, fear, or external noise. To accept your purpose is to say: “Yes, I was born to be significant. Yes, I have something unique to offer the world.”
Exciting your purpose means reconnecting with what brings you alive. Accept that your presence is meaningful, and live like your contribution matters. Your path becomes clearer not when you chase everything, but when you align with what excites your soul. When your purpose is accepted, honored, and lit from within, it becomes a compass, not just a concept.
3. Expect the best: Stand in bold belief
There’s nothing arrogant about expecting the best when your intentions are rooted in growth and grace. Expectation isn’t entitlement, it’s alignment. You rise to the level of what you believe is possible. And that belief begins with accepting your worthiness to receive it.
When you accept yourself fully, you begin to unlearn the habit of preparing for disappointment. You stop settling for scraps and start setting standards. You become unavailable for self-sabotage because you now expect alignment, not just achievement. And from that place, everything shifts.
“My happiness grows in direct proportion to my acceptance, and in inverse proportion to my expectations.” – Michael J. Fox
4. Expand your efforts: Grow beyond comfort
Comfort is not your calling, growth is. A tree that doesn’t grow is stunted at the root. Acceptance of that truth liberates you from stagnation. To expand your efforts means embracing discomfort, stretching past self-imposed ceilings, and showing up consistently even when motivation fades.
Your effort is not only proof of your ambition, but it is also the expression of your belief. How deep is your belief? You expand your life by expanding your willingness to try, to fail forward, and to keep showing up fully. There’s power in persistence, and even more power in understanding that the journey is just as sacred as the result.
Abundance is getting good at living out loud!
5. Create new narratives: Become the author of your becoming
Your inner dialogue shapes your outer destiny. Many of us live in stories that were handed to us, not written by us. We have let others put their hands on our narratives. That alone gets me fired up! Even so, acceptance gives you the pen back. It allows you to say, “This may have been my past, but it is no longer my script.”
Creating new narratives means rewriting the stories you tell yourself about who you are, what you’re capable of, and what’s possible. It means speaking from your healing, not your hurt. It means choosing words that reflect the you you’re becoming, not just the you you’ve been.
“Belonging starts with self-acceptance… Believing that you’re enough is what gives you the courage to be authentic.” – Brené Brown
“Self-acceptance begets acceptance from others… But no one is going to bestow it on you. It is a gift only you can give yourself.” – Camryn Manheim
Your past is over, your present is becoming!
Acceptance and gratitude to forgiveness: The inner trio of liberation
True transformation begins when we combine acceptance with gratitude. Two inner truths that open the heart wide enough to hold healing and trust.
Acceptance helps us see life clearly. Making us amiable in recognizing/reflecting on the rationalizing of our intrinsic controllables.
Gratitude helps us honor people, places, things, and ideas with kindness and persevere in the essential aspects of appreciation.
Together, they make forgiveness possible.
In the Bible, Peter asks Jesus how many times he should forgive his brother, suggesting seven times. Jesus replies, "I do not say to you seven times, but seventy times seven," according to Matthew 18:21-22. Frankly speaking, that’s 490 times. Have you been counting what that may look like in your life so far? In this text, this is generally interpreted as an indefinite number, indicating that forgiveness should be unlimited. The phrase "seventy times seven" is not meant to be taken literally, but rather as a way of emphasizing that forgiveness should be given without limit. If you make a practice of clearing your heart to protect your spirit, you will find an empathetic grace over time.
This means by the time you get to 490 times of clemency to yourself and others, you will be at a space to keep a peaceful heart. That’s one of the only things that can bring lasting change in the world.
Whether we’re forgiving others or ourselves, we’re not forgetting, we’re freeing. We’re releasing the emotional residue of unmet expectations, past mistakes, and old identities. Forgiveness is not a surrender of boundaries or accountability. It makes us mature in our integrity. It is the soft but solid reset that returns you to alignment with your wholeness.
“Forgiveness does not change the past, but it does enlarge the future.” – Paul Lewis Boese
This inner trio, acceptance, gratitude, and forgiveness, doesn’t weaken you. It liberates you. It allows us the mental/emotional space to adhere and admire our resilience. Think about it. Aliveness in decisions, actions, creativity of ideas, commitments met, and conscious awareness. From this space, achievement becomes not just probable, but natural. Because now you’re no longer trying to outrun your past… you’re building from your truth.
Action through acceptance o’clock: The inner work of becoming
Let these five acceptances fuel not just your thoughts but your forward effectiveness. Here’s how to apply them deeply and boldly in your daily life:
Take accountability by facing risks and threats. rather than avoiding them. Avoidance delays growth. Acceptance accelerates it.
Learn to trust your emotions on your terms. Emotional honesty is power. You decide what they mean, how they move you, and where they guide you.
Expose your vulnerabilities. What you hide from, owns you. What you vulnerably reveal, heals you.
Expand your social worth by showing up whole. The more you own your truth without egotism, the more others see your value and respond with genuine respect.
Shift your mindset from survival to intentional living. You don’t have to be perfect to be powerful. That’s your authentic potentiality. You just have to be present with your application and approach to acceptance.
Sculpting destiny with courage
“You have to accept whatever comes and the only important thing is that you meet it with courage and with the best that you have to give.” – Eleanor Roosevelt
This is the heartbeat of achievement: courageous, consistent, self-belief, determination, hope, and conscious acceptance.
You don’t rise by ignoring your reality. You rise by engaging with it truthfully and powerfully. Acceptance clears the fog, gratitude opens the heart, and forgiveness adds to the salvation of the spirit.
From this trinity, belief grows strong. From belief, character builds. From character, achievement becomes not just a result…but a reflection. So accept. Accept your journey. Accept your inner fire. Accept your next breakthrough. Then rise, not from perfection, but from presence. Not from pressure, but from purpose. As you do, you will realize: you were never waiting on the world to change, you were waiting to accept your role in shaping it! Shine on!
Read more from Arthur J. Rutledge
Arthur J. Rutledge, Author, Leadership Speaker & Coach
Arthur J. Rutledge is a thought leader with an unwavering mission to enhance, cultivate, and empower over a million leaders to fulfill their pure potential in life. Starting from a young age, his love for people became fundamental and sparked his passion for giving back by supporting people in their personal growth. 2024 marked the fruition of that endured vision with the new book " 11 Pillars of Confidence, build and Lead an Empowered You." He is also an entrepreneur, owner of Kap Group Events NYC, and co-founder of the online store Peoples Pride. His abetment in life is to continue helping people to reinvent and reinforce the vertical mindset, the words he is known to say as an encouragement to all, "Shine on!"
