We should make ourselves stop trying to explain our own difficulties. Our first impulse is to try to account for them, figure out why what has happened did happen. Sometimes such an effort is beneficial: more often it is distinctly harmful. It leads to introspection, self-pity, and vain regret; and almost invariably it creates within us a dangerous mood of confusion and despair. Many of life’s hard situations cannot be explained. They can only be endured, mastered, and gradually forgotten. Once we learn this truth, once we resolve to use all our energies managing life rather than trying to explain life, we take the first and most obvious step toward significant accomplishment.
— James Gordon Gilkey from book, “You Can Master Life“
This quote is good to see and think about, especially as my graduate program is drawing to a close in less than a month and I’m seeking opportunity on the job market. It can be difficult to keep plugging along, especially in the face of obstacles or when doors don’t open as easily as I’d anticipate. So in managing my job search, looking in any nook or cranny to break into the hyper-competitive feature journalism business, I gotta be tough; I gotta be strong. I will manage this.
For additional excerpts from “You Can Master Life,” read Brain Picking‘s article, “How to Not Worry: A 1934 Guide to Mastering Life” by Maria Popova.
Tag Archives: Inspiration
Life Reminders
“Be brave. Even if you’re not, pretend to be. No one can tell the difference. Don’t allow the phone to interrupt important moments. It’s there for your convenience, not the callers. Don’t be afraid to go out on a limb. That’s where the fruit is. Don’t burn bridges. You’ll be surprised how many times you have to cross the same river. Don’t forget, a person’s greatest emotional need is to feel appreciated. Don’t major in minor things. Don’t say you don’t have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Teresa, Helen Keller, Leonardo Da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Albert Einstein. Don’t spread yourself too thin. Learn to say no politely and quickly. Don’t use time or words carelessly. Neither can be retrieved. Don’t waste time grieving over past mistakes Learn from them and move on. Every person needs to have their moment in the sun, when they raise their arms in victory, knowing that on this day, at his hour, they were at their very best. Get your priorities straight. No one ever said on his death bed, ‘Gee, if I’d only spent more time at the office’. Give people a second chance, but not a third. Judge your success by the degree that you’re enjoying peace, health and love. Learn to listen. Opportunity sometimes knocks very softly. Leave everything a little better than you found it. Live your life as an exclamation, not an explanation. Loosen up. Relax. Except for rare life and death matters, nothing is as important as it first seems. Never cut what can be untied. Never overestimate your power to change others. Never underestimate your power to change yourself. Remember that overnight success usually takes about fifteen years. Remember that winners do what losers don’t want to do. Seek opportunity, not security. A boat in harbor is safe, but in time its bottom will rot out. Spend less time worrying who’s right, more time deciding what’s right. Stop blaming others. Take responsibility for every area of your life. Success is getting what you want. Happiness is liking what you get. The importance of winning is not what we get from it, but what we become because of it. When facing a difficult task, act as though it’s impossible to fail.”
— Jackson Brown Jr.
Every Person Has a Story to Tell
**Photo Credit: http://www.freshlygroundproductions.com
Those who do not have power over the story that dominates their lives, the power to retell it, rethink it, deconstruct it, joke about it, and change it as times change, truly are powerless because they cannot think new thoughts.
Grateful Sunday
**Photo Credit: thehappinesscoach.biz
Quite often, I’m so busy going, trying to accomplish the next assignment, goal, or dream that I fail to stop and take stock of my environment, internally and externally. I have so much to be grateful for!
This Thanksgiving, my mom provided a way for me to join her at my grandmother’s house, so I didn’t have to spend my favorite holiday alone. I was surrounded by family and ate some incredibly delicious food. Thank you!
I’m realizing that every moment, every day is worth showing appreciation. I shouldn’t wait until Thanksgiving each year to practice gratitude. There is someone or rather there are many someones out there praying for the very things I so often take for granted.
Lately I’ve been chasing happiness, but I think happiness has been here all along if only I would be more present and acknowledge all the blessings I have to be grateful for. I’m happy I came across this TED Talk by Brother David Steindl-Rast , a Benedictine monk, called, “Want to be Happy? Be Grateful.”
Brother David says it’s gratefulness that makes you happy. When you practice grateful living, you acknowledge that every moment is a gift and opportunity is a gift within a gift. The key to grateful living is to, “Stop, look, and go.” It’s important to stop, take stock, and remember there is so much to be grateful for, whether it’s for clean air that fills your lungs, a capable and healthy body, loved ones who pray for your success and happiness, or a roof over your head and clothes on your back. Those are some of the things I’ve been taking for granted lately.
Brother David’s message is just the wake-up call I need this Sunday and every day, so I remember that,
If you’re grateful, you’re not fearful. If you’re not fearful, you’re not violent. If you’re grateful, you act out of a sense of enough and not out of a sense of scarcity. You’re willing to share. If you’re grateful, you’re enjoying the differences between people and you’re respectful to everybody. A grateful world is a happy world and that changes this power pyramid under which we live. It doesn’t make for equality, but equal respect and that’s the important thing.
Thank you, Brother David Steindl-Rast for that reminder. I’m grateful.
What are you grateful for this Sunday afternoon?
Stop Stealing From Yourself
**Photo Credit: http://www.owningpink.com
I read this HuffPost article today by Andy Meindl titled, “The No. 1 Thing You’re Doing Every Day That’s Ruining Your Life” and it really spoke to me. I think we can all benefit from receiving a reminder from time to time about the power of practicing openness in our daily lives:
“Stop stealing from yourself. Stop being a thief, robbing yourself from your empowerment and joy by assuming the worst and selling yourself (and others) short. Stop hiding your light underneath a rock because you’ve made assumptions that people aren’t ready for your brilliance, or can’t handle it, or it’s too much. Stop making assumptions about what’s possible and what you think life is — or isn’t.”
To read more visit: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/anthony-meindl/making-assumptions_b_4269980.html?ir=GPS+for+the+Soul
Secret to Success
“The secret of success is to find a need and fill it, to find a hurt and heal it, to find somebody with a problem and offer to help solve it.”
Universal Truths About Life
I really needed to read this today:
“This life is what you make it. No matter what, you’re going to mess up sometimes, it’s a universal truth. But the good part is you get to decide how you’re going to mess it up. Girls will be your friends – they’ll act like it anyway. But just remember, some come, some go. The ones that stay with you through everything – they’re your true best friends. Don’t let go of them. Also remember, sisters make the best friends in the world. As for lovers, well, they’ll come and go too. And baby, I hate to say it, most of them – actually pretty much all of them are going to break your heart, but you can’t give up because if you give up, you’ll never find your soulmate. You’ll never find that half who makes you whole and that goes for everything. Just because you fail once, doesn’t mean you’re gonna fail at everything. Keep trying, hold on, and always, always, always believe in yourself, because if you don’t, then who will, sweetie? So keep your head high, keep your chin up, and most importantly, keep smiling, because life’s a beautiful thing and there’s so much to smile about.”
Life is short…
“Life is short. If there was ever a moment to follow your passion and do something that matters to you, that moment is NOW.”
As a twenty-something trying to discern who I am, figure out my true passions and devote time to them as well as pilot my journey to accomplish my ambitions and find true happiness, this quote really sings to me.
You’ll Be Okay…
“You’re not going to die. Here’s the white-hot truth: if you go bankrupt, you’ll still be okay. If you lose the gig, the lover, the house, you’ll still be okay. If you sing off-key, get beat by the competition, have your heart shattered, get fired…it’s not going to kill you. Ask anyone who’s been through it.”
–Daneille LaPorte
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