I've come to understand myself better through Paul Born's stories (Founder of Tamarack, Ashoka Fellow). He has an amazing ability to open up your heart so you can take in what he is saying and translate this for yourself.
I often think about his comments on optimism. He described himself as someone who doesn't just always see the glass as half full, but overflowing. I love this description and it had a lot of truth in it for me too. I have a natural tendency to look on the bright side of any situation. It is my power that helps me persevere.
As I was immersing myself in Harry Potter this last week, it reminded me of the patronus. It is a kind of light-filled, animal-shaped guardian that a wizard produces to protect themselves from Dementors (beings that drain you of happiness). It's a fun image to think of now when things start to get dark/difficult I just need to call upon my optimism/patronus to keep joyfully moving ahead. It's also fun to think about what shape your patronus would take. They are usually real animals, but I do definitely imagine mine as this.
Being a Force for Good 