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“You cannot swim for new horizons until you have courage to lose sight of the shore.”
Imagine swimming in the middle of the ocean with nothing but water around you. There is no shoreline in sight. If you’re not a great swimmer or can’t swim at all, this is a terrifying thought. But even the world’s best swimmer might have a twinge of anxiety in such…
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“Use action to cure fear and gain confidence. Do what you fear, and fear disappears.”
As a kid, you may recall being afraid of the alleged “monster under the bed”. Moreover, you may recall never actually looking under the bed to verify its existence. But doing so is exactly what was needed in order to realize there was nothing there, which would have removed the…
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“The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today.”
Sometimes we look forward to tomorrow and sometimes the day ahead can elicit fear, anxiety, and dread. This quote, by H. Jackson Brown Jr., reminds us that we can only do so much to prepare for tomorrow. And the most we can do, no matter what the circumstance, is our…
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“What we fear doing most is usually what we most need to do.”
This quote, by Tim Ferriss, serves as a great reminder that your fears may be holding you back. This idea is nothing new. Yes, fear can hold you back from doing things. However, this quote gives a deeper meaning to the concept. Unfortunately, with fear, you’re usually not held back…
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“Sometimes when hardships knock, it’s just life. Do not take it personal.”
If you’ve found yourself thinking or saying things like “Nothing good ever happens to me” or “I have the worst luck,” know that you’re not alone in these thoughts. It’s natural to fall into this way of thinking when nothing seems to be going right or when we’re met with…
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“Life can only be understood backwards, but it must be lived forward.”
This quote, by Soren Kierkegaard, explains that life is best understood backwards–in hindsight. But the trouble is that we must live it forward. We must live it in that unsettling space that falls between a confounding present and an uncertain future. As such, we often don’t understand why things are…
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“To be successful you must accept all challenges that come your way. You can’t just accept the ones you like.”
It’s usually considered a faux pas to “reply all” to a group email if the reply isn’t relevant to the entire group. But if everyone in a group email represents a life challenge, you do want to select “reply all”. According to this quote, by Mike Gafka, that is key…
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“When you’ve seen beyond yourself, then you may find peace of mind is waiting there.”
Consider your state of mind when you’re feeling stressed, anxious, or confused. Your focus suddenly becomes more limited to the one or several things causing that particular emotion. Everything else seems to disappear. However, this quote from a Beatles song by George Harrison, is about being able to notice things…
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“When one’s mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear.”
There’s something about making up your mind about something that has a way of silencing excuses, doubts, and fear. All you see is action. This quote, by Rosa Parks, encapsulates this idea. The higher your resolve, the lower your excuses, doubts, and most of all, fear. For instance, let’s say…
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“Look on every exit as being an entrance somewhere else.”
It’s physically impossible to leave a place and not find yourself in another. This quote, by screenwriter and playwright Tom Stoppard, is about applying this practical concept to life. Whether it’s leaving a room, a country, a relationship, or career, something else awaits on the other side of that exit.…