The “Life Maze”
There’s a big difference between the maze you see drawn on paper and a physical maze one, typically made out of hedges. Sometimes, when we’re not sure which way to go in life, it helps to imagine our life as a physical maze. This depiction reveals three important realities about life that can help put our uncertainties about which way to go into perspective.
“If you make a mistake and do not correct it, this is called a mistake.”
This quote, by Confucius, reminds us that our actual mistakes in life are ones that occur and are never corrected. Not correcting a mistake is what makes it be called a mistake. However, when we correct our mistakes, they are no longer called a mistake. They can then be called a lesson.
“Don’t bury your failures, let them inspire you.”
Inspiration is often the spark that leads to meaningful action; and one great but under appreciated source of inspiration is actually failure. However, when we fail, we tend to want to forget it ever happened as quickly as possible. But as this quote by Robert Kiyosaki suggests, we shouldn’t bury our failures, which is the natural thing to do. Instead, we can hold on to failures just long enough to learn something from them or at least long enough to try again with the new perspective that the failure gave us.
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“It must be borne in mind that the tragedy of life doesn’t lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goal to reach.”
“It is our attitude at the beginning of a difficult task which, more than anything else, will affect its successful outcome.”
“Do not pray for an easy life, pray for the strength to endure a difficult one.”
“Sometimes failure is the beginning of success.”
This quote comes from a novel by Astrid Scholte. It makes us imagine ourselves accomplishing a particular goal with our first step or attempt being falling flat on our face. It reminds us that sometimes there’ll be failures on our road to whatever destination we’re trying to reach. And sometimes that failure happens at the very beginning. The key is to not take that initial failure as final. It may just be the perfect beginning.
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“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”
The Effect Negative Self-Talk
“There is no royal road to anything. One thing at a time, all things in succession. That which grows fast, withers as rapidly. That which grows slowly, endures.”
“When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.”
Sometimes we look at something one day and appreciate its beauty. But when we look at it another day, we might barely noticing it. Perhaps we do notice it, but we only see its flaws. Meanwhile, the thing we’re looking at is still the same. Whether it’s something physically around us like nature and people or something intangible like life changes or a difficult situation, changing our perspective on things can be very powerful. As this quote by self-improvement author and speaker Wayne Dyer suggests, changing the way we look at something can almost change that thing itself.
“Forget your past, forgive yourself, and begin again right now.”
We tend to be the harshest critic of our own shortcomings and failures. While a little introspection is good, constantly beating ourselves up over past shortcomings and failures means constantly being stuck in the past. As a result, we’re not able to focus on the present. We become so stuck in the past that we may miss the great opportunity life gives us to learn from our mistakes and begin again. Interestingly, at the literal center of this anonymous quote is forgiving yourself. Meanwhile, this is also central to the quote’s message. It’s only when we aren’t stuck in the past (having forgiven ourselves) that we can be “present” enough…
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Anxiety Part 2: How Knowing the Way Anxiety Develops Can Reduce Shame, Increase Understanding, and Inspire Action
“If you don’t have time for the small things, you won’t have time for the big things”
“So we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, our inner self is being renewed day by day.”
“Failure is the only opportunity to begin again, this time more intelligently.”
Failure provides some of the best learnings and insights. But sometimes we don’t try again at that thing we failed at. This quote, by Henry Ford, reminds us to take advantage of the opportunity to try again. It reminds us to apply the knowledge that failure brings. Sadly, so many endeavors go unaccomplished when failure is perceived as an end to their pursuit instead of as a new and better beginning.
“Success is no accident. It is hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice and most of all, love of what you are doing or learning to do.”
When we do something by accident, it simply means we do something we didn’t intend to do. We may take a wrong turn, press a wrong button, or forget to turn something on/off by accident. This quote, from former soccer player Edson Arantes do Nascimento (aka Pelé), reminds us that the same doesn’t apply to success. Instead, success is on purpose. It happens with intention. More precisely, with “hard work, perseverance, learning, studying, sacrifice, [and] love of what you are doing or learning to do.” In other words, we can’t sit on the sidelines and wait for success to happen by accident. Rather, one and most likely all of the…
“Light tomorrow with today.”
If we look hard enough, we can usually find a life lesson or something positive in each day. Unfortunately, these lessons and positives often go unnoticed. And when they are acknowledged, it may only be for that day. Therefore, they remain in the past. This quote, by the poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning, reminds us to “light tomorrow with today.” In other words, to create a brighter tomorrow by not only acknowledging the lessons and positives from today, but also carrying them forward to the next. Imagine your life a week from now or a year from now if you were to make an effort to do this each day? Now…
“The moment you doubt whether you can fly, you cease forever to be able to do it.”
This quote is not to be taken literally. It’s from the classic children’s story, Peter Pan, by J.M. Barrie. In the story, Peter Pan’s ability to fly is significantly influenced by his belief that he can without any second thought or hesitation. While the story is made-up, the core principle is real. Nothing kills our ability to do something more than doubt. The moment we doubt whether we can is the moment our likelihood of doing it significantly decreases. Unfortunately, believing in yourself can be easier said than done. So, if self-doubt does creep in despite your effort to fight it, there’re a couple things you can do. First, it…
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“If you know you are on the right track, if you have this inner knowledge, then nobody can turn you off… no matter what they say.”
“Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars. You have to let go at some point in order to move forward.”
“Happiness is your nature. It is not wrong to desire it. What is wrong is seeking it outside when it is inside.”
