“Begin at once to live and count each separate day as a separate life.” ~Seneca
At times, it’s seemed as though life contains an endless supply of days.
I thought this for sure when I was younger. It didn’t matter how long I held a grudge or how long I waited to do something I wanted—there would be an unlimited pool of other opportunities. At least, that’s what I thought back then.
Maybe it’s a rite of passage from childhood to adulthood, the moment when you realize life happens now and that’s all you’re guaranteed. It doesn’t really hit you …
“All appears to change when we change.”~Henri-Frédéric Amiel
I admit it, I’m a change addict. I love new cities, apartments, jobs, and friends. This can be both a strength and a weakness.
On the one hand, I never shy away from a new experience or opportunity. On the other hand, it takes a strong effort for me to stick with anything once the novelty wears off.
So today I started thinking about all the ways I can make a day exciting without changing any of the big things that need to stay constant if I’m to make progress on my …
“One day your life will flash before your eyes. Make sure it’s worth watching.” ~Unknown
Sometimes, for me, it’s not a matter of if I’ll work on the weekend; it’s a matter of how.
On the one hand, I’m committed to being mindful and creating balance in my life.
On the other hand, I have a lot of dreams and goals and I enjoy giving my all to pursuing them. Even if it sometimes means I write on a Saturday or edit on a Sunday.
I’ve decided that what’s most important is not to create a black-and-white understanding of …
“To change the world we need to combine ancient wisdom with new technologies.” ~Paulo Cohelo
This weekend I was honored and grateful to speak at Wisdom 2.0, a conference that addressed the question:
How can we use the technologies of our age, from cell phones to social media, with mindfulness, meaning, and wisdom?
Organizer Soren Gordhamer, author of Wisdom 2.0: Ancient Secrets for the Creative and Constantly Connected, created nothing short of magic by attracting participants from all sides of the conversation, from Twitter and Facebook to Yoga Journal and Samovar Tea.
If you’ve ever sat in a room …
Update: The winners have already been chosen for this giveaway:
- Josh Kimbell
- Rob Ruddle
- Nathan Atkinson
One of the founding principles behind Tiny Buddha is that simple wisdom, when applied, can have a huge effect on happiness, mindfulness and peace—not just for you, but also for the people around you.
The most helpful ideas might not seem so simple in the context of our complex lives; but oftentimes, we make things more complicated than necessary by filtering them through a negative attitude or thinking too much and applying too little.
That’s makes The Dalai Lama’s Little Book of Wisdom so …
“If you propose to speak, always ask yourself, is it true, is it necessary, is it kind.” ~Buddha
Nothing appears to be going right. The worst part? No one gets it, even though they might claim to.
Even though you know this is all temporary—it always is—you feel the need to ask other people what you should do. If they say what you want to hear, you’re relieved. But it doesn’t usually work that way. In fact, oftentimes you’re more frustrated than you were before once they put their two cents in.
We’ve all been there before.
Think back real …
“Happiness is a way station between too little and too much.” ~Channing Pollock
The vast majority of my life has been a giant race to get things I’ve assumed would make me happy.
More money so I could do what I want when I want. A more meaningful career so I could feel both fulfilled and proud of myself. More connections so I could feel loved and worthy. And mostly, more distractions so I could avoid acknowledging why I was unhappy with myself.
“I’m making progress,” I’d delude myself. “I’m pushing myself to accomplish big things that will help people …
“Every new day is another chance to change your life.” ~Unknown
You know the moment. It happens right after you realize you did something you wish you didn’t do. Maybe you broke someone’s trust and now the guilt is overwhelming you. Maybe you compromised your job in some way and now you’re terrified your world will come crashing down.
Regardless of what you did, you can feel your anxiety like a stack of red hot bowling balls surgically implanted in your stomach. (Dramatic? Yes. Regret is rarely reasonable!)
It’s that dreaded “Good God! Oh no! What was I thinking? Why …
1. Is this a site about Buddhism?
Yes and no. The blog focuses heavily on Buddhist themes, such as kindness, compassion, mindfulness, selflessness, and non-attachment. However, you’ll also find posts about living out loud, finding your purpose, and pursuing your dreams. Tiny Buddha is a little bit Buddhism, but also a lot of wisdom from all religions, traditions, and cultures.
2. Who runs Tiny Buddha?
My name is Lori Deschene. I am the founder and site editor, and author of the books:
…
“If you light a lamp for someone else it will also brighten your path.” ~Buddha
In our fast paced, always-on world, it’s not difficult to access information. It comes at you at breakneck speed. Articles, blog posts, status updates, tweets—there’s never a shortage of ideas to consider.
Gaining knowledge isn’t a problem. Applying it, on the other hand, is a lot more challenging, especially when you consider how little time we have throughout our busy days to stop, breathe, and just be.
Tiny Buddha is about reflecting on simple wisdom and learning new ways to apply it to our complex …
Update: The winners have already been chosen for this giveaway:
We all know the old adage “enjoy the little things,” but how many times throughout the day do you stop to actively enjoy them? Not just notice them, but absorb yourself in them, without letting your thoughts wander to something else you need or want to do?
When a baby unclenches his chubby fist and gives you high-five. When you see someone barbecuing and really selling it, like his skewers are his paintbrush and your burger the Mona Lisa. When you catch someone singing in the car …
“Every day may not be good, but there’s something good in every day.” ~Unknown
We all get in bad moods, no matter how positive we try to be.
Maybe you didn’t get enough sleep last night. Or you feel overworked and overwhelmed. Or perhaps something happened and you keep dwelling on it, going over and over in your head how you froze up in a meeting or spoke too aggressively to someone you love.
Whatever the case may be, you feel something you don’t want to feel and you’re not sure how to change it. You just know you need …
“All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think we become.” ~Buddha
You didn’t get the job. You couldn’t raise the money. You missed the deadline. You hired the wrong person.
You didn’t ask for help. You let someone you love down. You failed to plan in advance. You bit off more than you could chew. You forgot something important.
Worst of all, whatever the case, you set the stage for a million questions about what it means and what you should have done.
When you don’t do something …
“Why worry about things you can’t control when you can keep yourself busy controlling the things that depend on you?” ~Unknown
CNN reports that psychic businesses are thriving in this challenging economy, and the clientele has expanded to include more business professionals who are worried about their financial future.
According to Columbia Business School’s Professor Gita Johar, who studies consumer behavior, the greatest motivation for visiting a psychic is to feel a sense of control.
Sure, there are lots of things we can’t control: businesses may fold, stocks may plummet, relationships may end—the list is infinite, really. But wouldn’t we …
“To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did.” ~Unknown
You’d like to start presenting to clients, but you’re afraid of looking like a deer in the headlights if they ask questions you can’t answer. So you keep thinking about it, waiting for a time when you feel more prepared. More ready. More in control.
You’ve considered telling your friends you want to publish your novel, but you can’t stand them knowing you failed if things don’t pan out. So you keep it inside, protecting your ego but reinforcing to yourself that you likely can’t …
“Open minds lead to open doors.” ~Unknown
We start forming opinions at an early age and continue all through life.
We decide what we think is right and wrong, what’s good and what’s bad—not just on a larger scale (religion, politics, ethics) but also in every-day interactions.
How people should act. What people should think in certain situations. What it’s okay to feel and express, and when it’s smart or polite to do so.
We develop ideas about how the world should be to support our beliefs and views—things we learned from our environment and experiences—and inevitably feel a sense …
“Peace is not something you wish for. It’s something you make, something you do, something you are, and something you give away.” ~Robert Fulghum
Recently I’ve been spending a lot of time visiting 1000 Awesome Things, a blog devoted to the many simple pleasures in life. Some of them remind me of being a kid, like this one about celebrities on Sesame Street. Others remind of me I’m stronger than I think, like this one about getting through difficult situations.
With that in mind, you can imagine how excited I am to receive a copy of Neil’s …
“When you are content to be simply yourself and don’t compare or compete, everybody will respect you.” ~Lao Tzu
Conventional wisdom suggests that if you want to be happy you shouldn’t compare yourself to other people. Conventional wisdom isn’t always realistic.
Try as you may to completely stop making comparisons, you’ll likely come back to the instinct at least on occasion.
Discontent is part of the human condition—the nagging sense that something’s missing, even when you seem to have it all. We’re constantly evolving, growing, and looking for new ways to expand our impact on the world, new ways to …
“If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.” -Milton Berle
The people who are the most successful in life are the ones who create their own opportunities. Since I’m a work-from-home freelance writer who prefers beadworking to networking, I have to be ultra creative.
I’ve identified seven simple ways to find opportunities in everyday situations. Here’s what I got:
1. Wear your resume while running errands.
Last year I read an article about a woman named Kelly Kinney who printed her resume on a T-shirt. What a brilliant idea! I always notice words on shirts; I’ve even been known to …
“In a gentle way, you can shake the world.” ~Gandhi
Both the industrial and digital revolutions promised increased productivity, meaning people could work less and live a more balanced life. We all know that’s not how history has played out.
Even as technology advances, we work longer hours than ever and ironically, struggle financially and accrue more debt with each passing year.
If you haven’t noticed adverse effects on your personal relationships or the other areas of your life, you’ll likely keep plowing full-steam ahead and only stop when you have a compelling reason.
So here’s my proposition: Work as …
Though I run this site, it is not mine. It's ours. It's not about me. It's about us. Your stories and your wisdom are just as meaningful as mine.