Quotes in category: “Life”:

Respect people's intentions, but believe their actions. Meaning well and doing well are two different things

When things don’t make sense to you, try not to waste time being upset about it. Stuff works out the way it’s supposed to. Some things just take longer than others.

I learned that it was in hard times that people usually changed the course of their life; in good times, they frequently only talked about change. Hard times forced them to overcome the doubts that normally gave them pause. It surprised me how often we hold ourselves back until we have no choice.

I want you to remember who you are, despite the bad things that are happening to you. Because those bad things aren’t you. They are just things that happen to you. You need to accept that who you are and the things that happen to you, are not one and the same. 

Don't put your happiness in other people's hands; they'll drop it. They'll drop it every time. 

For most of life, nothing wonderful happens. If you don’t enjoy getting up and working and finishing your work and sitting down to a meal with family or friends, then the chances are that you’re not going to be very happy. If someone bases his happiness or unhappiness on major events like a great new job, huge amounts of money, a flawlessly happy marriage or a trip to Paris, that person isn’t going to be happy much of the time. If, on the other hand, happiness depends on a good breakfast, flowers in the yard, a drink or a nap, then we are more likely to live with quite a bit of happiness.

When the time comes for you to make a change, to grow, to do your life in a different way, the universe will make you so uncomfortable, so unhappy, you will eventually have no choice. If you insist on staying in a place you no longer belong in, if you do not grow the courage to do what is necessary to propel yourself forward, you will suffer the consequences, whatever they may be.

It was so easy to disown what you couldn't recognize, to keep yourself apart from things that were foreign and unsettling. The only person you can be sure to control, always, is yourself. Which is a lot to be sure of, but at the same time, not enough. 

Almost. It’s a big word for me. I feel it everywhere. Almost home. Almost happy. Almost changed. Almost, but not quite. Not yet. Soon, maybe.

You waste your time questioning life instead of living life. When you order something and you say “Can I have?” instead of “I’ll have.” Before every act of impulse you ask, “Should I?” or “What if..?” Stop questioning. If you keep on doubting throughout your whole life, on your death bed you’ll still be questioning “what could have been.” Do you want to die wondering? Or do you want to live entirely?

One day I just woke up and realized that I can’t touch yesterday. So why the heck was I letting it touch me? 

You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I have lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’ You must do the thing you think you cannot do.

Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need to know. 

You never know what worse luck your bad luck has saved you from. 

One day, you’ll just be a memory to some people. Do your best to be a good one.

You will always be too much of something for someone: too big, too loud, too soft, too edgy. If you round out your edges, you lose your edge.Apologize for mistakes. Apologize for unintentionally hurting someone — profusely. But don’t apologize for being who you are.

Beautiful things happen when you distance yourself from negativity.

One of the most courageous decisions you will ever make is to finally let go of whatever is hurting your heart and soul.

Don’t talk to yourself in such a way that if you did so to a friend, it would end your friendship. If you had a friend dealing with the same things, you wouldn’t berate that person, say, ‘You’re not working hard enough,’ ‘You suck,’ or ‘You’re not as good as [whomever].’ You’d offer your friend encouragement, you’d try to point out all the things your friend did right, and how much progress your friend had made.You should do no less for yourself. Be very careful how you talk to yourself. Because you are listening. 

Sometimes we just have to cut off the dead branches in our life. Sometimes that’s the only way we can keep the tree alive. It’s hard and it hurts, but it’s what’s best. 

Sometimes when you finally find out, you realize that you were much better off not knowing.

Learn the difference between quitting and accepting an ending. 

You don’t need anyone’s affection or approval in order to be good enough. When someone rejects or abandons or judges you, it isn’t actually about you. It’s about them and their own insecurities, limitations, and needs, and you don’t have to internalize that. Your worth isn’t contingent upon other people’s acceptance of you — it’s something inherent. You exist, and therefore, you matter. You’re allowed to voice your thoughts and feelings. You’re allowed to assert your needs and take up space. You’re allowed to hold onto the truth that who you are is exactly enough. And you’re allowed to remove anyone from your life who makes you feel otherwise. 

I walk slowly, but I never walk backward.

Sometimes the decisions that seem the most illogical at the time, later on turn out to be the best decisions of our lives.