“At the end of life, our questions are very simple: Did I live fully? Did I love well?” ~Jack Kornfield
When I was seven years old, I almost died.
My family and I were at Central Station in Sydney, Australia …
“There is no reason to reach high for the stars. They are already within you. Just reach deep into yourself.” ~Unknown
I left a big job at a hedge fund in New York City nearly eight years ago. I was …
“Make the best use of what is in your power and take the rest as it happens.” ~Epictetus
Performance reviews. Assessments. Evaluations. The dreaded annual review. Most of us have run into some kind of quality assurance technique while employed …
“The quality of your life is in direct proportion to the amount of uncertainty you can comfortably deal with.” ~Tony Robbins
I’ve recently begun to feel as though I am at a crossroads in my career and, as a result, …
“Stop beating yourself up. You are a work in progress; which means you get there a little at a time, not all at once.” ~Unknown
Ten years ago, when I was in my early twenties, I wasn’t really my own …
“Remember that happiness is a way of travel—not a destination.” ~Roy M. Goodman
After graduating from college I took off to explore Europe for four months with one of my best friends.
We backpacked through fourteen different countries and learned …
“If we look at the world with a love of life, the world will reveal its beauty to us.” ~Daisaku Ikeda
I have always loved that scene in American Beauty when Ricky Fitts shows his video of a plastic bag …
“It’s not the events of our lives that shape us but our beliefs as to what those events mean.” ~Tony Robbins
Daughter of an alcoholic. Welfare recipient. Teenage mother. Non-college attendee. Poor decision maker. Unhealthy relationship participant. Financial disaster. Evictee.…
“What you do today can improve all your tomorrows.” ~Ralph Marston
Have you ever been stuck and felt like you’re spiraling around the same space over and over? It’s just like Groundhog Day.
Every day, you have new intentions about …
“Man is only truly great when he acts from his passions.” ~Benjamin Disraeli
Like many of us, I had a difficult childhood. My parents’ relationship was unhappy and unhealthy, and their misery left me feeling alone, afraid, and anxious most …
“You’re imperfect, and you’re wired for struggle, but you are worthy of love and belonging.” ~Brené Brown
I believe that it is part of the human condition to want love and connection with others. For some of us this comes …
“Serenity comes when you trade expectations for acceptance.” ~Unknown
How many of us have caught ourselves feeling as though we’re imposters when we’re trying to talk about a difficult situation in a positive light? We’re often fed the idea that …
“Letting go gives us freedom and freedom is the only condition for happiness.” ~Thich Nhat Hanh
First, let’s be clear about something…
Surrender is not about giving up, handing power over, or failing. It is not waving the white flag …
“Silence is a source of great strength.” ~Lao Tzu
For over two years I spent one out of every four weeks in silence. At the time I was living at a Zen Monastery and every month we would have a …
“Don’t wait for extraordinary opportunities. Seize common occasions and make them great.” ~Orison Swett Marde
I stood at the library counter waiting to check out a stack of books when I overheard an overworked woman explain to the librarian why …
“Perhaps many things inside you have been transformed; perhaps somewhere, someplace deep inside your being, you have undergone important changes while you were sad.” ~Rainer Maria Rilke
When I was twelve years old, I figured out how to get out …
“If you do nothing unexpected, nothing unexpected happens.” ~Fay Weldon
In September of 2012, I flew from Idaho to Spain and began a 500-mile pilgrimage walk on the Camino de Santiago. I arrived in St. Jean Pied-de-Port without any expectations …
“Believe nothing no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and common sense.” ~Buddha
Dad, who at the time was a fighter pilot in …
“Sometimes the heart sees what is invisible to the eye.” ~H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
In my late thirties, I attended a workshop that was led by a group of coaches. One of the exercises we did was called the “future …
“In daily life we must see that it is not happiness that makes us grateful, but gratefulness that makes us happy.” ~Brother David Steindl-Rast
A few years ago, my life was chaotic. I drank too much, slept too little, and …
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