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Category “Quotes”

Tiny Wisdom: On Freeing Your Mind

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“I know but one freedom and that is the freedom of the mind.” ~Antoine de Saint-Exupery

In his book Wisdom 2.0, Soren Gordhamer explores a concept he calls cup mind.

The mind, he explains, can be like a cup or the ocean. When you place a drop of blue dye in a cup, the entire contents may change color, whereas when you place that same drop in the ocean, it barely has an impact.

Our thoughts and feelings can affect our minds similarly. They can completely consume us and alter our entire experience of a given day; or, if …

Tiny Wisdom: On Being Who You Want to Be

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“It is never too late to be what you might have been.” -George Eliot

I’ve talked to a lot of people who say that this is a lot easier to believe when you’re young–that it’s near impossible to believe anything is possible when there appears to be a lot less time left.

But do we ever really know how much time we have? When we’re young, we’re not as conscious of our mortality and the unpredictability of life, but that doesn’t mean we’re immune from unexpected hardships. It just means that we don’t yet know to focus on them.

The …

Tiny Wisdom: On Creating

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“Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun.” -Mary Lou Cook

To be fully alive is to always be creating, whether it’s love, joy, connection, purpose, passion, or possibilities. What are you creating today?

Photo by gfpeck

Tiny Wisdom: On Why We Change

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“You change for two reasons: Either you learn enough that you want to, or you’ve been hurt enough that you have to.” -Unknown

What are you waiting for?

Photo by Mary Sherman

Tiny Wisdom: On Life’s Beauty

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Man and Rainbow

“It takes both sunshine and rain to make a rainbow.” -Proverb

There are some things in life that just don’t make any sense. There are things we can’t explain or understand, no matter how hard we try.

There are events that seem to have no reason and mistakes that appear to bring no lesson. There’s darkness that can feel completely unbearable and light that can seem far too fleeting to trust. One day’s happiness gives way to tomorrow’s sadness. One day’s loss is tomorrow’s gain.

The only guarantee in life is that everything will transform, whether we’re ready for it …

Tiny Wisdom: On What We Imagine

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“Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.” ~Albert Einstein

For the past four weeks, I’ve been spending my off days at Disneyland. My boyfriend said that Walt Disney created something brilliant primarily because it gives the illusion of diverse experiences contained under one umbrella brand.

In addition to exploring a variety of fantasy lands, a Disney guest can also experience the western frontier, New Orleans Square, Hollywood, and the remote jungles of Africa and Asia. He can ride a steam-powered locomotive, a monorail, a double-decker bus, and a horse-drawn streetcar.

One day and $94 …

Tiny Wisdom: On Adapting

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“The art of life is constant readjusting to your surroundings.” ~Kazuko Okokaura

Oftentimes, when we don’t adapt to our surroundings, it’s because we refuse to see ourselves in new ways.

Maybe you think that you’re a shy person, so you let that justify sitting alone when an intimate gathering suddenly turns into a party.

Or you believe that you’re unmotivated, so you don’t make the effort to promote yourself when a potential new partner walks into your life.

Or you feel certain that you’re not tech-savvy, so you refuse to learn a new software that could make you far more …

Tiny Wisdom: On What We Believe

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Believe

“The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” ~Eleanor Roosevelt

Today I used the Twitter search functionality, looking for the phrase, “I believe in.” Here’s what I found:

“I believe in love.”

“I believe in magic.”

“There must be another way because I believe in taking chances.”

“I believe in people like me.”

“I believe in life itself.”

“I believe in dreams and that we control our destiny through our actions.”

“I believe in the sun even if it isn’t shining.”

“I believe in the words ‘never say never.'”

There’s something kind of beautiful about …

Tiny Wisdom: On Impermanence

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Huge Golden Buddha

“No feeling is final.” ~Rainer Maria Rilke

Most of the time, when we feel something overwhelming, it’s not just the feeling that weighs on us; it’s also the fear that it may persist.

That the deep sense of loss or longing will burrow a permanent hole in our hearts and we’ll never feel loved again. Or the disappointment will harden into an aching regret and we’ll never feel proud and excited again. Or the sadness will etch itself into our being and we’ll never feel happy again.

But everything eventually transforms. Happiness gives way to sadness gives way to happiness …

Tiny Wisdom: On Seeking Answers

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Buddha Statue

“Silence is a source of great strength.” ~Lao Tzu

Sometimes, when we feel stressed, frustrated, annoyed, confused, overwhelmed, or anything uncomfortable, it can seem tremendously helpful to talk about it incessantly.

But I’ve noticed that venting is often far less effective than I assume it will be. If you’ve ever talked yourself in circles instead of communicating and letting go, you know precisely what I mean.

All the words in the world can’t change the fact that sometimes we just need to sit with our feelings. No amount of validation, advice, or external support will change that we alone need …

Tiny Wisdom: On Where You’re Headed

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“The quality of your life is in direct proportion to the amount of uncertainty you can comfortably deal with.” ~Tony Robbins

One of life’s biggest challenges, I believe, is how to continually motivate yourself to keep going when you don’t yet know where your efforts are leading.

You need to write part of the book to even open the path to getting it published, but you don’t know for certain that you’ll get a deal. You need to push yourself to work toward profitability with your business, especially when the odds feel insurmountable, but you can never know for certain …

Tiny Wisdom: On Finding Your Purpose

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“There is not one big cosmic meaning for all, there is only the meaning we each give to our life, an individual meaning, an individual plot, like an individual novel, a book for each person.” ~Anais Nin

Someone asked me recently if I feel as though my life has changed since I found my purpose and started living it. This struck me as odd because it seems to imply before I discovered a professional path that felt meaningful to me, my life was meaningless.

It’s a logical conclusion: The opposite of having a purpose is being purposeless, doing without intent …

Tiny Wisdom: On Being Vulnerable

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“What makes you vulnerable makes you beautiful.” ~Brené Brown

To be vulnerable is to be free.

It gives you a break from trying to pretend you’re always right and you don’t have any flaws. It gives you permission to show your authentic self and stop taking responsibility for the way other people perceive you. It allows you to try new things and take the risk of feeling awkward or uncomfortable.

It also opens you up to the possibility of pain. We never know when we let our guard down that other people won’t hurt us, unintentionally or otherwise.

We can…

Tiny Wisdom: On Runaway Thoughts

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“Your worst enemy cannot harm you as much as your own unguarded thoughts.” ~Buddha

For the vast majority of my life, I took pride in being a fighter–which meant I was always ready for an attack so no one else could hurt me. The irony is that because of this mindset, I frequently hurt myself.

I was too busy guarding myself against other people’s negative intentions to create positive intentions of my own. I was too preoccupied judging and doubting people to connect with them on a meaningful level.

The people and things I fought weren’t the problem; my thoughts …

Tiny Wisdom: On the Future

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“Whatever the past has been, you have a spotless future.” ~Unknown

Everyone has something in their past they wish they could change. Whether it’s a mistake, a regret, a disappointment, or a deep pain, we’ve all had moments that can feel overwhelming if we try to hold onto them while building tomorrow.

We can never change what’s come and gone, but we can always choose instead to focus on what’s coming and where we’re going.

The future is never set in stone, no matter how limiting the past may have been. The only thing standing between us and new possibilities …

Tiny Wisdom: On Living with Honor

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“The greatest way to live with honor in this world is to be what we pretend to be.” ~Socrates

Most of us live the majority of our lives for other people—trying to do what they want us to do, aiming to meet their expectations, and hoping to be seen as we’d like them to see us.

Trying to sway perception is exhausting and oftentimes fruitless because we can never dictate what other people think. We don’t get to control our reputation; we only get to shape our character.

Today, if you find yourself fixating on other people’s perceptions and judgments, …

Tiny Wisdom: On Becoming Again

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“To live is to be willing to die over and over again.” ~Pema Chodron

A lot of times we say we want to expand our world, but without realizing it we attach to the way things are.

We attach to our feelings, relationships, and circumstances, and then fight to hold onto them for dear life. It’s scary to let go of what is and what works, and sometimes even what doesn’t work. Familiar and bearable can be a lot more comforting than the unknown and potentially dissatisfying.

And yet tomorrow is always unknown. No matter how secure we may feel …

Tiny Wisdom: On Being Fully What You Are

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“By accepting yourself and being fully what you are, your presence can make others happy.” ~Jane Roberts

I suspect we all want permission to be exactly who we are—to accept ourselves instead of feeling unsure of ourselves, and then somehow find a balance between being and improving.

When we see someone else who appears to do that, despite their weaknesses and flaws, it’s immensely inspiring and gratifying. Why? Because we all want to believe that even if we can be better, there’s nothing wrong with being exactly who we are.

Yet only we can give that feeling to ourselves. No …

Tiny Wisdom: On Perfect Plans

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Green Buddha

“A good plan today is better than a perfect plan tomorrow.” -Proverb

Tomorrow always seems like a safe bet for action. Then you’ll be ready to get started, or get serious, or get over it, or get on with it. Tomorrow you’ll finally set your plan in motion instead of shaping it into something just right. You’ll take the offer, the plunge, or the road less taken tomorrow, when you feel sure.

Tomorrow can become a moving target while todays pile up and expire.

Sometimes we need to be patient, but oftentimes we use it as an excuse to wait …

Tiny Wisdom: On Enthusiasm

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“Enthusiasm is the greatest asset in the world. It beats money, power, and influence.” ~Henry Chester

Money can leave you feeling emptier than you were before you had it; it can buy you everything yet give you none of the feelings you hoped it would provide.

Power gives the illusion of control, when in all reality, everyone must come to terms with our universal vulnerability. And influence—well, it might make people follow you, but it doesn’t guarantee you have something worth following.

Enthusiasm, when directed toward something healthy, gives you the power to imagine, create, and enjoy, all rooted …