“Don’t compare yourself to others. Be like the Sun and the Moon and shine when it’s your time.”
The Sun is about 400 times larger than the Moon at 1.4 million km across versus the Moon’s 3,474 km across. The Sun is also 27 million times greater in mass than the Moon (Source). Sometimes we compare ourselves to others, like the Moon in comparison to the Sun. We perceive another person’s light as shining brighter–bigger–better. However, despite the Sun’s greater size and mass, its orientation in the solar system makes it look to be the same size as the Moon when viewed from Earth. Furthermore, the Moon, despite its much smaller size in the solar system, entirely blocks the Sun during solar eclipses. And while the Sun is…
PositLive Music: “The Climb”
“The Climb” Written by: Jessi Alexander and Jon Mabe Released: March 5, 2009 This song is about overcoming the obstacles we face in life. The songwriters experienced their own obstacles in the music business. So they wrote this song about their experience (Source)–acknowledging that life is not a race but a journey–a climb. Select PositLive Music: Lyrical Playlist to view all playlist songs as they’re being added.Select Exploring New Ways to PositLive to read about the inspiration for PositLive Music. “The Climb”: Cover sung by Point of Grace The Climb: Original Lyrics I can almost see it.That dream I’m dreaming, butThere’s a voice inside my head sayingYou’ll never reach it.…
“I never lose. Either I win or learn.”
Whenever someone doesn’t win, the assumption is that they lost or tied. However, this quote, by Nelson Mandela, reminds us not to think in such absolute terms when it comes to winning and losing. Moreover, it reminds us to rethink what losing actually means; or rather, what losing actually results in. Yes, it often results in sadness and disappointment–But it also results in learning. No matter what, there’s something to learn. There’s always a lesson. Unfortunately, feelings of sadness and disappointment have a way of overshadowing the lessons loss teaches us. But if we find a way to learn the lessons, then our losses are never in vain.
“You can’t go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending.”
Have you ever wished you could go back in time and start over on something? Maybe you want to start over on your entire life. The desire to go back in time to change something is not uncommon. You may have had a rough start in life or on a particular endeavor. However, this quote (perhaps by the author, James Sherman), reminds us that we don’t have to be limited by the past. What we know now and do now can change our future.
“If Opportunity doesn’t Knock, Build a Door.”
Sometimes opportunities present themselves right at your feet, and all you have to do is take a small step forward. Better yet, the opportunities come knocking at your door, and you only have to invite them in. This is ideal. However, it’s not always the case. This quote, by Milton Berle, is for the many times opportunities do not come knocking. Building a door means finding an alternate route or creating that opportunity. It may mean a leap of faith. Who knows where that new door you build might lead.
“It’s never too late to be what you might have been.”
This (possibly anonymous) quote is often attributed to the novelist and poet, Mary Ann Evans, who went by the pen name, George Eliot. However, there is no substantial evidence that she said or wrote these words. Nevertheless, these words were fortunately recorded by someone. Therefore, they continue to serve as inspiration. “It’s never too late to be what you might have been,” speaks to our untapped potential–our “dreams deferred”–our fading hopes. Being the best at whatever that thing we wish we could have been is a great ambition to have. However, that is not the point. What matters here is that we do whatever it is while we can. Because…
“Success does not consist in never making mistakes but in never making the same one a second time.”
It’s our tendency to assume that a person is successful because they rarely make mistakes. We may think, they never mess up in any major way, which is precisely why they’re successful. However, we’d be surprised to find that many successful people not only make mistakes, but they’ve made quite a few of them. The difference is that they learn from their mistakes. Therefore, they are capable of making fewer over time. This quote, by George Bernard Shaw, reminds us that success is not about never making mistakes. Success consists of not making the same mistakes. Thereby making every misstep a leap forward.
“Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor.”
Given a choice, most people would rather have only success and no failure. However, this quote, by the writer Truman Capote, reminds us that failure is what makes success more sweet. This makes sense. Without failure, success is taken for granted. In fact, the idea of success loses much of its meaning without its direct opposite. It turns out, the two go hand in hand. So the next time you are experiencing failure, just think about how much more rewarding success will be having failed first.
“Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.”
This quote, by the inventor Thomas Edison, gives us another perspective of failure. Yes, failure means not succeeding at something. However, a deeper and more consequential deffiniton is that of not yet succeeding and giving up. Moreover, giving up when you’re close to success and not knowing it. This is a perspective of failure that’s far more devastating than simply failing. The key is to be perceptive about when you need to pursue a new path vs when you’re close to success on your current path.
“Go as far as you can see and you will see further.”
A phenomenal thing happens as you move toward a horizon. It moves. –And what seemed like a finite view suddenly becomes infinite. As you go as far as you can see, you see even further, as stated in this quote by Zig Ziglar. But more importantly, this quote tells us that progress (going as far as we can see) leads to more progress (seeing further). Progress rarely leads to stagnation or regression. Instead, it more often becomes the catalyst for even more progress. The key is to hold on to the lessons and growth we’ve had along the way and apply them as we continue to move forward.