Author: The Eternally Hopeful

Stay True

Stay true to yourself, yet always be open to learn. Work hard, and never give up on your dreams, even when nobody else believes they can come true but you. These are not cliches but real tools you need no matter what you do in life to stay focused on your path.

– Phillip Sweet

         No matter what you may face in this life, you must always remain true to yourself. Have faith that your path will lead you to achieving your dreams. But as you travel along your path, you must be open to learn and willing to work hard to tackle whatever awaits around the corner.

 

Introspection

“Did I offer peace today? Did I bring a smile to someone’s face? Did I say words of healing? Did I let go of my anger and resentment? Did I forgive? Did I love? These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will bear many fruits, here in this world and the life to come.”

– Henri Nouwen

           Each day you should strive to be a better version of yourself. This includes evaluating at the end of each day your actions and emotional responses throughout the day. You must focus on the tough questions and be honest with yourself. Did you act out of kindness today or did you give in to frustration and short tempers? By focusing on these real questions, you allow yourself the opportunity to do better tomorrow.

Do Your Best

My life motto is ‘Do my best, so that I can’t blame myself for anything.’

– Magdalena Neuner

         You should always strive to do your best in everything you do. Life isn’t meant to be full of regrets or what ifs. So, make it your goal each and every day to never hold back and to dedicate your focus to being fully present in the here and now.

A Positive Focus

Successful people maintain a positive focus in life no matter what is going on around them. They stay focused on their past successes rather than their past failures, and on the next action steps they need to take to get them closer to the fulfillment of their goals rather than all the other distractions that life presents to them.

– Jack Canfield

            Your quality of life depends largely on your attitude and perspective. So, if you choose to go through life with a negative, pessimistic attitude, you will find it difficult to see the good around you. Whereas, if you choose to embrace a positive focus, you will find more joy in the simple act of living.

Moving Forward

Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.

– Albert Einstein

          Life will undoubtedly be filled with good and not so good moments that will halt you in your tracks. The key is to keep moving forward regardless of what impedes your path. By continually moving forward, you maintain balance and create stability in your life.

Happiness

Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.

– Buddha

         Life is all about creating love and sharing this love with those around you. True happiness is sustained from spreading that same joy you’re feeling to others to enrich their lives.

Give Thanks

When you rise in the morning, give thanks for the light, for your life, for your strength. Give thanks for your food and for the joy of living. If you see no reason to give thanks, the fault lies in yourself.

– Tecumseh

          No matter what you are going through in life, there is always something to be thankful for. It can be as simple as being grateful for being alive, for your health, or for your shelter from the cold. There should never be a moment when you feel you have no reason to give thanks. For you must always take time to step outside of your situation and really see what good still surrounds you.

How You Respond

Bad things do happen; how I respond to them defines my character and the quality of my life. I can choose to sit in perpetual sadness, immobilized by the gravity of my loss, or I can choose to rise from the pain and treasure the most precious gift I have – life itself.

– Walter Anderson

          You will undoubtedly face many storms in your life, but how you choose to weather the storms defines who you are. You can allow yourself to sink into despair every time something bad happens or you can choose to rise from the ashes. For it is up to you to decide your life and the gift of life in general is worth fighting for.

The World Does Not Owe You

Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.

– Mark Twain

           One should not go through life with an entitlement attitude. No one and nothing in this world owes you a damn thing. If you want something in this life, whether it be a job or material object, you must work hard to obtain it. If you want happiness or success, then you must create it instead of waiting for it to happen to you.

Lighten Up

Lighten up, just enjoy life, smile more, laugh more, and don’t get so worked up about things.

– Kenneth Branagh

          Don’t take life too seriously. Life is too short to allow yourself to get worked up over the meaningless bullshit that happens everyday. And if you allow yourself to get stressed out about every little thing, you’re going to drive yourself crazy and be miserable. So, instead, choose to smile and laugh more. You will find that you feel lighter, freer, and happier by not getting worked up about everything that happens.