Hi guys! I am so stoked about this page! Please post on here the best advice you ever received. I think that this will inspire and motivate people to keep going and also give tons of great insight. Lets make this into one of the biggest compilations ever.
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Evan Sanders
485 Comments
Post a comment“A man is only as good as his word.” – A oft remembered thought on integrity given by a high school basketball coach.
True – and I think to take it a step further, “and his word is only as good as his actions.”
Love for you to connect with me on FB too http://on.fb.me/RC57QW for tons of motivational & inspiring content – Don’t forget to click the LIKE button!
The best advice I ever got was from my father. He told me that no matter what I did to never, ever, ever, give up. That no matter how many times I failed I should just keep on trying. I’m glad to say I am still trying, no matter how many times I wanted to throw in the towel. And I’m the best damn janitor the world has ever seen. You can eat lunch outa those toilets Dad, I promise!
One thing I always like to keep in mind that always changes my day, is this:
“When have you ever regretted striking up a conversation with a stranger?”
or as I’ve seen on the internet: “We all start as strangers.”
I tell myself this pretty often. Because too many times are we in waiting rooms, or elevators, or in hallways with other people to whom we do not talk. But I’ve found that some of the best conversations I’ve ever had have materialized from a polite smile or a simple, “Hey, how are ya?” in a situation where I debated on staying silent. Other people are pretty darn amazing… you’ll see.
“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” ~ The Dalai Lama:
“There is a huge amount of freedom that comes to you when you take nothing personally.” ~Don Miguel Ruiz
I tend to take a lot of things personally so this really blew my mind and I’ve been so much happier since I read it!
It was a quote a recently heard on a podcast. I can’t remember who said it, but it goes something like this: “Ask not if you are worthy of your dreams, ask if your dreams are worthy of your life.”
This is advice I give my children: as long as you give the best of yourself it is always enough. Remember however to ask; did I give it my best? If the answer is no; take comfort in this, at least you learned something from the experience. Secondly, the things you’re most uncertain of; whether that’s trying a new position or play in sports, or working on a school project – even if you don’t score the winning goal or get an A+ on that project; take comfort in this, you can always go back to the first point. Creating a win-win for my children will be remembered long after I am gone. Therefore, it’s a win-win for me as well.
What my grandparents used to say to me and stuck in my head, “Nothing worthwhile comes easy.”
You are an inspiration. Thank you so much. I enjoyed your blog and i am continuing to be a BETTER man.
NEVER GIVE UP, ALWAYS LOOK UP.
Love your blog and all these replies. A few of my affirmations of advice
(1) Success is the quality of your journey
(2) be yourself, everyone is taken
(3) find your joy and keep it at the top of your daily list
(4) keep a gratitude journal. During tough times, read it, and always find something to be grateful for.
(5) smile at a stranger, make eye contact. You both will feel better
Don’t be so focused on the destination that you miss the journey.
Love your blog! Thank you for following mine!
If what you’re living for turns out to be a lie, will you still be happy with how you lived?
My favorite comes by way of Rosalind Russell as Auntie Mame and I believe these are words to live by,
“Yes! Live! Life’s a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death!”
The best advice I ever received was when I was working as a Resident Assistant in college: You are a person first, a student second and an employee third.
Although I’m no longer in that position, “you are a person first” gives me the permission to be kind to myself when dealing with difficult situations/people.
Thanks for the follow on my blog!
My dad told me many times that “you’re the only one who can save your money, because everyone else is out to get it.” So I turned into a penny pinching schrooge! But I have learned lately that generosity is certainly a higher virtue than hording and that joy comes from giving, not keeping. And that God’s shovel is way bigger than my teaspoon.
http://apprenticetothecarpenter.wordpress.com/
amazing advice.
Really like your posting bettermanproject! Thank you for visiting mine today!
Peace,
~JC
If you don’t like your life, change it!
When I was a little girl, my Dad and I used to go for long walks. On one of our walks, he was explaining to me that sometimes it’s better to just listen when people are discussing a topic. He was explaining that I could learn a great deal with open ears and a closed mouth. He said, ‘You don’t always have to have an opinion on everything.’ He was right. His advice freed me from the pressure of having to put in my two-cents-worth. Listening is a good option.
Thank you, Evan for visiting my new blog http://www.miraclemadness.wordpress.com. I hope my experience with miracles allows me to give my opinion. I think my Dad would say yes.
My Dad was a surgeon and a carpenter. His advice was “Think three times and cut once”.
If you’re not creating, you’re consuming. Create more than you consume.
Thank you deeply for following my blog Diary of a Person Being Human and liking what I do. You might like to check out my other blog IshaiyaFreshlySqueezed.com if you are after words of inspiration. The best advice I’ve ever been given? ooh, let me see…’Your point of power is NOW. You are at the centre of your experience, always have been and always will be. You are what you think, and everything is possible! Take responsibility for all that you are and that you experience and realise that it can only empower you.’ How’s that?
Ishaiya
One of the best advices I received for marriage was don’t make compromises. Talk about everything with your spouse. You are a part of each other. Communication is key. It’s worked wonders in my marriage!
Thank you for the follow!
“aut viam inveniam aut faciam” – it means- I will either find a way or make one. I just had these words inscribed onto the back of my brothers tags.
Thanks for the follow. Great to have you aboard. The advice that works for me is: Be Kind
I read this in a very hippie art studio in the middle of East Austin; it was painted directly onto their fridge in the craziest letters:
“Everything in my life happens in divine timing; there is no reason to get in a hurry or frustrated, but just be in the moment and let things happen.”
The best advice I’ve ever received is: If you are going to evolve do so without your ego; If you are going to love than prevent your ego from killing it. If you allow ego to get in the way it will destroy you.
Great advice in these words of wisdom from one of my Teachers:
“There is always something more to know;
There is always something bigger to become;
There is always a greater step of freedom;
There is always a deeper.” ~ Malcolm Ringwalt (www.earth-heart.net)
many blessings,
Rod
Not really advice, but words to live by. Whenever I say them people think I’m a recovering alcoholic. I’m not, but I grew up with someone who was. I read this many times as a child, it’s helped me a lot – then and now:
The Serenity Prayer
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change,
The courage to change the things I can,
And wisdom to know the difference.
– Reinhold Niebuhr
Whether you believe in God or not the premise is the same.
God’s plan is best. If he wants something to happen, it will happen. Don’t stress about making it happen.
Thanks for the follow!over the moon!
Please follow me ( futurepmlabour.wordpress.com )
The best piece of advise I have had is to follow your dreams even though I know its cheesy xxx
You will either become a product of what you experience or a product of your reaction to what you experience. One is beyond your control, the other is well within your control.
Jesus Christ offers the very best way to freeing yourself from becoming a victim of your experience. He is the model of choosing the reaction of His Father and finding the power in the Father to remain faithful, despite the experiences and treatment. He offers that to all who trust in Him and call upon Him for salvation and freedom.
Simple but oh so true: never write an email when you are angry
When I was competing, I liked to remember the first line of a poem,….
‘If you think you’re beaten, you are,
My Dad always said to us,,,,,
‘No matter what anyone ever says or does to you, never put yourself in the wrong’
Thanks for joining my blog. I admire your quest to become a better man. My quest – living the Italian life – is much more shallow, but it’s all about following your dreams…and this was mine when trapped in the rat race. Life’s what you make it.
http://magicspello.wordpress.com/
Glad you stopped by so I could see what you are about. Pretty genuine and conscious guy, Honored to know you. Will check in again.
Listen with the intent to understand, not reply.
That’s a keeper.
I got that advice from Ze Frank’s How to Fight As a Couple YT vid. I have adopted it as a lifestyle change.
The best advice I ever got was to learn how to let go.
Amish Proverb – “No one ever learned anything by talking.”
I have so many favorites!
At the moment I can only think of “Follow your heart”
People are illogical and unreasonable. Love people anyway.
I came across this quote “Courage is when you jump off a cliff and build wings on the way down” I loved it instantly, the words ringer in my head everytime I’m about to make a difficult decision. They eliminate my fears.
This is a great bog to live by day by day. I’m glag to join the band wagon of go getters. I wish everyone on here success to archieve their dreams. Those that have made it, its great of you to shade a light that all is possible. Have awonderful weekend.
I really like that quote! I have never heard it before, but it captures a lot of what my past year has ben like. Thanks for sharing!
Being is enough. Just be.
I was offered this tidbit of wisdom when I was about 13 years old from a very old man: The best advice, is no advice – just be happy and keep smiling when times are not so inviting.
My Drill Sergeant signed my graduation picture with the words, “Don’t Look Back.”
Those words have taken me through so many rough patches in my life, and kept the demons of my past at bay. Those are the three little words that mean the most to me.
“Don’t look back” is great advice. Besides, as baseball pro Satchel Paige once said, “…something might be gaining on you.”
Open your mind. If you close the door, you’ll never see what’s waiting outside to come in.
He who cannot Find hapiness within himself..would search for it in futility elsewhere….Hapiness Come from within!!
He who cannot Find hapiness within himself..would search for it in futility elsewhere#
I was having a conversation with my Dad and he told me : Son, a problem that doesn’t have a solution isn’t a problem.
Learn to be still and you will hear the truth.
Not so much advice but a quote from Socrates – ‘he who sees with his eyes is blind’
Thanks for the follow, love what you are doing with this blog too!
Everything is what you make it.
No one is responsible for my happiness but me~
“You don’t have to respond bitterly to a bitter situation.”
“What happens is not as important as how you react to what happens. You have a choice.”
-This aspect of your blog is wonderful.
“A person who won’t stand up for something will fall for anything.”
When life becomes “too much” and all the wonderful advice and suggestions just won’t cut it, I tell myself:
Just breathe.
Thanks for the follow. Enjoying your site so far and looking forward to reading more!
Take your time, don’t live too fast.
Haven’t quite managed to follow that advice, but it is good advice, I think.
Thanks for the follow. Very glad to follow you too.
Nia
First of all its awesome to read the best advice people gets in their life. As soul we all are connected ( I mean it truly).
There is so many advice & good thing which I learned from my life but if I need to pick one I will say……DO YOUR BEST & LET LIFE DO THE REST
the best advice i ever got was.. that the best advice comes from people who take their own.
“Stop calling pain” in regards to having contact with my husband of 14 years who has left me for a younger woman, her children and the fantasy life of freedom that his mid-life crisis is promising him.
I am sorry for your loss. I recently experience a break up myself. Visit lovesagame.com, it really helped me. One of the steps is “stop calling pain.” Good luck!
“Just Live”
I got this advice in a dream I had with my Grandfather in it…I was asking him all the questions like ‘are you proud of me?’ and his response was “Just Live…”
It is that simple! Life is going to throw a lot at you but you can handle it all otherwise it wouldn’t of been tossed your way- so just live…(with a smile on your face is important too:) )
Lovr your nlog. Best advice: NEVER put in writing anything that can (and probably will) come back to haunt you and: Never ask a question unless you REALLY want the answer.
The responses you received were unbelievable- great responses.
Use the common sense God gave you, and trust your gut.
Thank you for the follow. Nice site.
The best advice I ever got was actually the secret to living an extraordinary life.
The secret is quite simple, really. The secret to life is action. Take action and you can have whatever you want. But you have to take action. You could wish and hope and dream, and it will never come. But take action, and it could be yours tomorrow.
Never stop fighting for what you want, and it’s already yours. If it’s important, you’ll find a way. If not, you’ll find an excuse.
Thank you for the reminder.
.
I totally agree with that! action.
Obey God and Leave all the Consequences to Him,
Have faith.
That is from my mother.
Part the clouds.
A good college buddy told me that on a very rainy night.
Be sure to let people know that your birthday is soon. Then they can’t forget.
Another one from mom.
If you’re going through tough times, don’t worry; it’ll change. If times are great, enjoy it; it’ll change. The only constant thing is change! (from my awesome and wise Mom)
“Hold your head high.”
Listen. Learn. But above all, Listen.
Thanks for following my blog! Wordcrafting is such a pleasurable task as well as reading the fruits of such labors–I’ve enjoyed your posts!
Two pearls of wisdom. One from my Mother…
There’s no such word as can’t. What you really mean is that you don’t want to.
One from my Father….
You can have anything in this world. You’ve just got to want it enough.
Both passed on to my Kids and I’ve heard them say them both to other people.
Use the second one wisely!
I love this. so true and gorgeous.
“Everything in life is a choice.”
My father has said that to me on more than one occasion in my life, and it’s something that has helped me out of a rut more times than I can count. If I’m in a bad place in my life, I simply choose to do what needs to be done to change it.
“Is it worth it?”
This is something I had to ask myself when in a particularly bad relationship, but I’ve found that it has helped me out in many different areas of my life. It’s definitely helpful in raising my daughter… Especially in a situation where she’s challenging me. “Is it worth it to argue with her over what clothes she’s wearing today?” Probably not. (She’s only four, so we haven’t delved into appropriate vs. inappropriate yet. My answer to that question will probably change once she hits puberty.)
“Beats a poke in the eye with a sharp stick.”
Another one of my father’s little pearls of wisdom. Just reminds me that things could always be worse.
Thank you Evan for putting this page up. I really enjoyed reading through everyone’s responses. We can all use a little reminding of what’s important, and it seems like most people’s advice does just that. Congrats on your book, and I look forward to more from you in the future!
“Even this shall pass.” – A high school teacher told me this when I was going through a rough time. It’s always stuck with me!
I just love this saying. Its 100 % works for me always
“You can’t get it wrong and you’ll never get it done.” Abraham Hicks
“Don’t do it for tomorrow what you can do for today”. hmmm.. I slowly doing it and applying it in my day to day existence…
The best advice I have ever given is to my child-”If you are not proud to repeat it then don’t do it and always remember respect self and others because no matter how much money you have if no one respects you then it’s not worth it as it will make you unhappy.
Simply Jyune
xo
“No one Is promised tomorrow so enjoy everyday with your child as if it’s your last.”
Simply Jyune
Thanks for the Follow and expanding my ream of blogs.
Try to remember what you were worried about two weeks ago.
“It’s not about the destination, but how you get there.”
I don’t remember where I heard or read this but it has always stuck with me. And I always try to focus on how and what gets me to where I want to be.
The best advice I ever got was to ask myself before I act “If there is a God… would He want me to do what I’m about to do?”
its not an advice but its what i have learned lately , i’ve learned that you
have to be strong and independent enough to face life,
you have to do what you want because its never too late,
you have to learn to have your own life build and achieve your success
visualize your dream and achieve it dont ask for help ,work
hard because nobody will care for you as much as you
” Don’t ever take anyone for granted because you never know when you might lose them and you’ll never get the chance to tell them how you really feel. ”
” There’s nothing greater than ‘ thank you’. That’s what you say to God is ‘ thank you’.”
” Don’t be afraid of change, embrace it. Be willing to surrender what you are for who you could become. ”
I once asked my grandmother ( at her ripe old age of 87 ) what she thought the meaning of life was and her response was so simple yet so deep with the weight of her years.
” Even at my age now having raised the children of my children, lived in different countries always trying to survive, I think the meaning of life is to help whenever you can, love your family above all else and always take time to appreciate the wonders of God all around us. The trees and and animals because they were here before and will be here after. “
I was fly-fishing mid-stream, when the waters rose suddenly and at a faster pace up to my chest — the dam upstream had released a torrent. I froze with fear. My brother watched from dry land.
I shouted, “I’m going to float downstream and hope to swim to the edge.”
It was my first day fishing on a stream, and such a move, unknown to me, would have filled my outfit with water, almost certainly drowning me.
My brother shouted back, “Wait! Use your pole ahead of you slowly and take one step at a time.”
Obviously, I survived. I also learned to respect the current.
Whenever I have fear now I do two things: take stock in what I have that may help me and take one step at a time to safety. Works every time.
Wow. Nothing like a true-life story to provide the analogy for advice! Thanks! Really brings it home in the midst of great quotes and suggestions.
My Dad told me there were three things I had to protect: my good name (family), my credit (finances) and my reputation (honesty). I was eleven at the time and never have forgotten his advice for over 50 years. At 92, he’s still with us.
Really like this Ronald!
Don’t borrow trouble.
For those of us trying to understand and perhaps control our wanderlust:
“Maybe the yearning to wander is the same as the yearning to be home, for in contains within it the desire to be home anywhere”
From a fellow wanderer – http://ourwildhearts.com/
Entropy
Refuge for the exiled
At age 26, my boyfriend, (while watching me stuff the last of my food into my mouth while moaning about how full I was) told me to stop eating when I was full.
Sounds silly, but we were raised to clean our plates no matter what. I have never been overweight since (over 30 years!)
so true my friend so true
My Dad taught me the same about cleaning my plates, but my Mom said I, of all eight children, had a “hollow leg” — I’ve never been overweight. Go figure!
My family were poor farmers, and a neighboring farmer visited our farm to discuss with my father some work he needed done. At the conclusion of their talk, they shook hands. The elderly man turned to my sister and me and said to us, “You know your father is good to his handshake. That is important.”
I was young enough I did not understand honoring a handshake. Up to his death, my dad was always good for his handshake. It was to way he did business.
Integrity was a value my parents did not compromise. It is instilled in me today. Yep, that handshake was his whole being was put into it.
I feel so inspired by Shel Silverstein, and this is the best advice I could get from a book:
“Listen to the mustn’ts, child. Listen to the don’ts. Listen to the shouldn’ts, the impossibles, the won’ts. Listen to the never haves, then listen close to me… Anything can happen, child. Anything can be.”
Fear has paralyzed me so a great friend of mine shared this with me: There is only one of you out there. Someone won’t like you but others will!
Don’t be discouraged of your current situation; where you are today is who you were yesterday, who you want to be tomorrow is how you must act now.
thank you for sharing this. it’s prophetic in the truest sense.
“never expect to receive the reward from the same person you are helping now… rewards are often throw in some new rather different place.”
Awesome! It’s true generosity and has the potential of generating more generosity. Because you don’t expect anything in return, you don’t worry about being taken advantage of. It’s like you are “paying forward” and, on the uninterrupted chain of give and take, somewhere along the line, you know you’ve already been paid, so giving is not about keeping scores for you.What freedom!
Perfect….
It does not matter how or why you fall, but how fast you get up, does.
Advice found on The Interwebs:
“May the bridges you burn, light the way.”
(My personal favorite! I have burned a lot of bridges in the past. Over the last few years, I have been looking at my life and trying to learn from my burnt bridges)
“Turn off the tv and turn on your own reality show.” (Random Thoughts #2 by Bill Temple … Found on Wattpad.com)
From my dad: “Girl, don’t let anybody run over you. I didn’t raise you to be a wuss!” and “Don’t fight. It’s not ladylike. But IF you have to hit ‘em, you better hit ‘em hard and put ‘em on the ground.”
(I don’t let people walk all over me. And only once have I ever, in 40 years, put anyone on the ground.)
P.S. thank you for the follow
Wow Sharon, What temperament (your dad’s advice)! For a long time, I thought I was a quitter to realize with aging, and I believe saging, that I was burning bridges : I learnt to listen to my inner voice along the way; i.e. “turn off the tv and turn on [my own] reality show’. My last pyromaniac feat happened 2 weeks ago and I don’t regret it one bit. I’ve never felt so free. It’s seems to get better each time I do it.
Here’s a pearl of wisdom (anonymous?) I got from a coach, that can propel you forward in dire situations, in one instant, from heaviness to lightness:
” It’s a moment, not a monument.”
This also shall pass.
Happy Heuristics!
If you don’t love yourself, why would you think anyone else would??
From My Dad (an old cowboy):
“I better do something, even if it is wrong!”
“Simplify you life”
“It is what is is and it ain’t what it ain’t”
“Do what you think is right”
(self pity) “Well, son… we were moving cows and they were uncooperative, breaking through several fences and scattered across the country. The neighbors and i were kicking the dust, complaining and wondering how to fix the unbelievable mess. One of them spoke up said: ‘as you guys know, Merle is in the hospital right now, dying of cancer…. i’m pretty sure he would trady ya!’ You see, son: someone will always have it better and someone will always have it worse”
I don’t have that much advice, but…
So:
Live life to its fullest. Never give up.
“Don’t help others until YOU are done with your work!” ~My Momma
I was once worried about whether I was doing the ‘best’ thing for my life at the time, and had someone ask me, “Are you happy?”
When I responded with a yes, she then said, “So why not continue to just be happy? Stop stressing and just let yourself be; if it stops making you happy, you can always change things.”
So simple.
Thanks for the follow!
regrets and mistakes there memories made – so anything that made you smile – whether maybe not always inline with your morals or that of others – take it as a memory good or bad
Let your mind wander in the pure and simple. Be one with the infinite. Let all things take their course. – Chuang Tzu
“You can do whatever you want. Really,” (My grandma)
“Always listen to your little voice.” – My mom gave me this advice, and it’s held up so far.
Best advice? From The Code of Honor by L. Ron Hubbard, “Never regret yesterday. Life is in you today and you make your own tomorrow.”
Also, the late Chef Tell Erhardt advised, “Play with your food. Life’s too short to fool around.”
Never waste the talent God chose for you – my parents
When disturbed or in doubt, Keep your mouth shut!
Love this one…just learning this particular lesson myself these past few weeks. I have to keep telling myself…’just shut it for now!’
1)Just do your best and G-d will do the rest
2)A man who owns a small postal service shop was held a gun point 3 times already. He told me “never be afraid. if it’s time to go then it’s that time. No one can ever destroy your soul. Live happy and fearless so you can enjoy life”(summary of a long talk after i confided to him about some anxiety problems i had from a life-threatening experience
3)there will be highs and lows- don’t get attached to labels, roles, titles, and accolades, for they are temporary and remain even-minded by knowing that your Atma(soul) is the silent witness within. When worried, stressed, cease all thought and meditate to find the Bliss within.
4)Vashista Yoga: What appears as real is not real and what is not apparent is real.
5) love transcends everything
6) it’s ok if all you did today was breathe.
7) Sit in the sun 20 minutes a day (inside by a window or outside)- it recharges your life force or Prana energy gives much as nourishment for the soul.
8)If you can do not cut your hair. Your hair is your antennae. It takes 3 years to develop with unsheared hair. Your intuition will skyrocket. (Military hired native american indians to predict arrival of enemy)
9) If you can’t leave a legacy that is okay. Maybe you came to this earth to learn something.
10) what you dislike in others is often a reflection of something we dislike in our own selves.
11) don’t follow social tribalisms. Just be self-referred and authentic.
12) NEVER lie (unless the harm is greater than the lie and it meant saving ppl’s lives.
13) It’s okay not to answer someone’s question. Not answering is an answer.
14) Listen to your gut feeling or that small whisper bc it is most always right!
15) It’s okay to leave anyplace (even the doctor’s office) if you changed your mind after the informed consent. Leave a place if it’s making you uncomfortable.
16) Capitalism does not generate ppl who like to donate money or volunteer. Most generous ppl are those who’ve ‘been there’ (i.e. hit rock bottom or suffered a lot in some way) and typically less wealthy ppl donate more on average than wealthy people.
So, do not be afraid to donate money. It’s really good karma and you’ll feel good.
17)The only way to get true happiness (aside from meditation and reaching Samadhi) is to serve people in need (whatever will truly benefit a society)
18)Focus on one thing and excel on it
19) Be a single-tasker
20) Quality over anything else. Only the best for you and others. Be generous almost to a fault.
These are mine. I worked very hard these past 4 years on 13-15 especially.
I loooove your blog!!!! TY for following one of mine : ) xoxo
nicely said!
My Dad gave me lots of advice growing up, and I remember it all, My favourite is “Don’t let the dragons get you down”. Sticking to your guns when you believe in something will always help you have a clear heart.
Of course, a sense of humour is a great survival skill too – working 27 years in the service industry I have often shared the quote: “Smile, it’s the best revenge”.
Thanks for encouraging us all to share!
Be yourself – My father
“Go with the flow.” This may sound cliche and a little too simple to be life-changing, but for me it was. It says so much in just 4 little words. Go with existence, go with who you are, go with the moment, be in the NOW, just BE.
Think about your life, but cherish it more
Lying in his death bed, my grandfather asked me a simple question: “How big was the biggest apple ever grown?”… Tears welled in my eyes as I was sure his mind had begun to slip due to his cancer.
“I don’t know grandpa. Why do you ask?” I inquired.
He looked at me, smiled, and with a clear voice and mind said “You can never stop enjoying the small things in life. Ever.”
Five years later as a poor and stressed college student, I have never forgotten these words of wisdom.
(Largest apple to date: 4 pounds 1 ounce)
Always void one’s bladder before taking the stage. I learned that one as a worship leader at church. The hard way.
I attended a three day 7 Habits of Highly Effective People workshop at LAX on September 10 -12, 2001. I attended on the 10th and 12th. My facilitator shared his personal mission statement as us attendees were tasked with writing our own. It was simple – “I will live a life that makes my children proud.”
A couple of years later I became a mother and adopted this as my mission statement ever since. Helps to answer any decision I have in life.
I have been blessed with many good ones. In talking with my mother, who was dying, I asked what she would like said at her funeral. She stared at me. “What?” I stumbled on, “Well, you know, some people want to be remembered for their great deeds….” She snorted and said, “The greatest deeds are found in the everyday things.” Never forgot it.
From my father, a P.O.W., “Never give up, kid.” and on getting married, “Look, sex is good for maybe an hour a day (at your age). That leaves 23 hours, be sure you can talk to one another.”
From my grandmother: “You know, it’s true money isn’t everything, but I’ve never seen a situation it didn’t help.”
From a Holocaust survivor watching me play golf and refusing to pick up my ball, taking point after point – “You are a rebel. That’s good. But it is okay to accept the benefits of the rules, as well as the penalties.”
Oh! And, always and every day, Desiderata.
Thanks and take care and heart.
“Anna, I love your laugh. It’s the best laugh in the world. Don’t let anyone tell you different.” -my dad
To love the man who is now my husband and now has been for 23 years.
What a great idea this is to ask people to respond!
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t get trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other people’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow know already know what you truly want to become.” – Steve Jobs
And thanks for the follow!
wow
“Be open to shining a light on the dark parts of your being” – not a verbatim quote, just something my awesome Psychologist Rich said the other week. He was complimenting me on a good year, and it really struck a chord as I definitely remember having lots of dark secret places where I stashed away unhealthy thoughts and dark places where I hid unhealthy actions and behaviours. Being comfortable with who I am now and by not being afraid to talk about my journey through insecurity, anxiety and jealousy as a man, is one way I continue to keep light shining into all the possible corners of my being where dark behaviors can lurk. Inspiration hides everywhere, so do lessons, you just have to be open to seeing them, acknowledging them and owning them.
You are blessed to be a blessing.
I love this.
Not sure if this counts as advice, but it was what my 12th grade English teacher told my parents during the parent/teacher conference:
“Charles may never write the next Great American Novel. Then again, he very well could just to prove me wrong.”
You are neither the giant of your dreams, nor the dwarf of your fears.
Question with boldness. Hold to the truth. Speak without fear. –Glenn Beck (with a little help from Thomas Jefferson)
Much of my inspiration and advice I’ve lived by has come from various heroines in books I’ve read. My mother would tell me, ‘You can do anything you set out to do.’ My father said, when it came time for me to leave for training for Pan Am, ‘Remember, when everyone boards a flight you’re working, ask them what their number is. If their number is up, don’t go.’
“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him. Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.”
A letter to the Romans from St. Paul found in Romans 12: 1-2 (The Message version)
That is just excellent! Thank you.
You spend 1/3 of your life, 1/2 of your waking hours at your job. If you don’t like your job, how can you possibly like your life? – Paul Gallagher (10th grade English teacher).
If you cry because the sun is gone, the tears will not let you see the stars.
I can’t remember who it was, but I once read a twitter bio that read “Be yourself. Everyone else is taken”, and have been trying to live by that ever since.
That’s such a great refresher on an old saw!
I believe it was Oscar Wilde. One of my all time favorites
“Happiness is difficult to find within ones self, but it is impossible to find it anywhere else.”
I blog mine under Quotes. Same thing to me. Uplifting. You would have to see my BLOG.
“All you can do is now.” — author unknown
Perfect.
Merlene
‘Life is what happens while you’re busy making other plans…’ (John Lennon)
I guess he means we need to enjoy every moment as it happens and not worry too much about what’s ahead.
Great blog!
There is so much good and positive thought here, I think the best advice is to “Stop thinking so much, listen to your heart.” I have found this to be invaluable in my own life. It sounds simple but when you can block out the thoughts your mind creates there is a path to follow. Then all you need is the courage and the wisdom to follow it.
as an author it would be “write what you know”
for everything else “if you ain’t the lead dog the scenery never changes”
The best advice I have got from my best friend: “Love Your Own Person First To Know How To Love Others”
“Let everything that you do be done out of love.”
I love reading all of those comments. Best blog I have ever seen.
Vianney
Best advice I ever got…. Lean on God and not your own understanding, cause His knowledge far surpasses your own.
Source: The Bible
Amen! I love this.
Life is Beautiful!
My third grade teacher told us “Don’t ever read a book without expecting it to change your life.” And when I asked a friend what sort of exercise I should start to get back in shape after my surgery, she said, “Don’t worry about what KIND of exercise…. just MOVE.” These are probably my top 2 advise statements!! Great blog and think it’s wonderful what you are doing. It’s probably unimaginable how many people you have and are affecting in a positive way every day!
” You only have so many heartbeats… don’t use them all up at once “
“just follow your bliss, anything else is a waste of time”
Continued success on your projects, whatever they may be. Thanks for your visit. Interesting where connections take you…
Advice can be a tricky widget, working one way for some and totally different for another. Someone else could have said this before me – as I’m not able to read all of them at the moment, however;
Be true to yourself. Be kind. Expect nothing in return when you freely give.
Cheers.
My uncle would always tell me, Son, if you think you just standing still, you only going backwards.
When you know better, you do better. — Maya Angelo
I’m looking forward to watching your journey. Cheers!
Gail
Life, Fitness, Pop Culture: http://www.300wordlimit.com
awesome! I like that advice!
Vianney
I love your blog and the project, and I agree that this world needs better men… wish you all the best… regarding the best advice I ever got – “Dreams do comme true, if you really believe in them.” & “First, decide what do you want from your life. Then, try to accomplish that.”
P.S. tnx fro the follow, I really appreciate that
Thanks for the follow! Your blog is rad! An acting teacher once told me in school, “If you assume one thing about a character, you must assume that the opposite is ALSO true.” True of people, both real and fictional.
Thanks for following my blog! I have a feeling that your blog will be helpful to me personally
I just happened on your blog, and am enjoying reading it. The best advice I ever got was from my father-in-law, when I married his son, he said choose your words carefully for you can never take them back, don’t speak out of anger but love. It served me well the 30+ years of my marriage.Dad has past long ago and now I am a widow I would have to add that this advice would also apply to what you post on a social network. Be wise, not angry and never type something you would not speak.
I found out that I had postpartum anxiety and I found a post on a forum about this subject where a mom wrote that she had gotten some advive that helped her and it has since helped me. She said to pretend that you have another child so that when your child starts to cry, you aren’t running to them so quickly every time and worrying and stressing yourself out as badly because if you did have another child, you would also have to take care of them, too. So, not I’m trying to do a better job at not being so stressed out and calming down.
It’s not so much an advice that I got, but rather a positive prophecy by a dear mentor:going like this: “you will do great things”. I don’t know if I fulfilled the prophecy, but each time I felt down and wanted to give up, I could hear my mentor’s uplifting words and take heart. I practice this with no moderation.
Very nice! Both the advice and your practice with no moderation.
This was hard. I have been fortunate enough to have some wise people in my life who have given some good advice. I guess the best advice was:
“If you’re do it, then do it. Don’t half-ass”
Lol that was from my mother.
“There’s always tomorrow”
that was from my father.
https://desibjornsvioletambitions.wordpress.com/
Everything you do, do with your might.
(For those peace lovers out there, this is not at all related to might makes right. It is a greater expression of doing your best.)
To me this includes not only determination but integrity to do what you have the ability/talent to do, when you say you will do it, to the best you can do it.
The best advice I ever received was be you, be only you, but be all you can be to become a better you. I used this as the title of my first book.
Be You, Be All You Can Be.
The very best advice I ever received: Just because someone else tried something and failed, does not mean you will.
The best advice I ever heard is “always go to the funeral,” which was the creed a father gave his daughter and she passed along through “This I Believe”: something may be an inconvenience to you, or a thing you do routinely without thinking about, or something you simply don’t feel like doing and want to skip, but for better or worse that thing that doesn’t figure so largely in your life can “mean the world to the other guy.”
“Respect your elders”
“Live every day like it’s your last”
Don’t take sleep for granted.
I had to come back, it was yours that kept echoing in my mind!
Hope you didn’t lose any sleep over it!
“Behave yourself wisely” and “Take everything in moderation”
The way people will know you for the rest of your life is by what you do when you say you’ll do something.
I was a high school sophomore and talking to my grandfather about my geometry class. He looked grim. “Do not get involved with triangles,” he said. I always wondered what in his past elicited that remark. Regardless, he was sooo right.
The best advice I ever received is slightly generic, and I don’t remember where it came from or who told me it first. But it gets me through tough times when I can’t seem to find reason in where I am or what has occurred.
Everything happens for a reason.
So true
Agreed – but saying that can be very polarising. Some people really don’t like it.
This is pretty old school and I know i’m showing my age but the best advice I ever got was from my Mom and Nana they told me……
“when going out on a date with someone you’re not fully acquainted; pin a twenty dollar bill for cab fare to your underclothes in case you have to make a hasty exit or get-away”
I spent my high school years (2000-04) at a small Quaker-based boarding school right outside of my hometown. By “Quaker-based” I mean that the school was initially founded and run by the Ohio Friendly Meeting, though numerous religions, nationalities, and cultures were present within the small school (there were around 100 students and faculty, from 14 different countries, my senior year. We spent every morning in 15 minutes of silent “reflection,” during which we were encouraged to “speak our minds” if we felt moved to do so.
To cut to the chase, I remember a placard that appeared in the Main Hall (essentially the school itself, with dorms and other buildings scattered across the campus), and I have tried my best to live by this “Quakerism” ever since:
“Live simply, so others may simply live.”
(P.S. Thanks for following! From what I’ve seen of the Better Man Project, I’m hooked! I’ll keep posted!)
I can’t always follow them, but they are the best advice I’ve received:
The Five Reiki Principles by Dr. Mikao Usui
Just for today, I will not be angry.
Just for today, I will not worry.
Just for today, I will be grateful.
Just for today, I will do my work honestly.
Just for today, I will be kind to every living thing.
First, thanks for starting to follow my blog. I hope you will find some interesting grist for the mill on it.
I share much of the same advice as other commentators, but a couple of pieces of advice I’ve received have been very helpful in my ‘project’ to be a better woman:
Remember that the faults you want to change are often the mirror images of the things you like about yourself. In my life this has translated into realizing that I might not want to actually get rid of my “dark” side, rather learn to mitigate its influence on my behavior.
Don’t allow yourself to get stuck in making the ‘right’ decision. Consider first what really would be the “worst” thing that could happen and based on that use the appropriate psychic energy/time/worry. I.E. I find that many times the really worst that could happen would be that I would be embarrassed by having to admit that I was wrong or by not feeling ‘perfect’. I figure that happens whether I fret for hours/days/months or whether I gather information, consider my options and then make my decision. While keeping this in mind hasn’t eliminated all fretting, worrying and indecision in my life, it has kept it focused on those things that deserve all my efforts while giving me more resources to devote to them.
“If you can’t beat them, form your own group.” I came up with this in my early teens and nearly two decades on, it still motivates me to listen to my inner voice and do my own thing when others are flocking towards the current trend. The best advice I’ve received though is “Don’t give up!” Simple but vital to remember in times of self-doubt.
I’m exhausted, and I didn’t get to read these all. Hey! Coffee table book?
My two pieces of advice that I’ve had to really break down to understand at an experiential level are:
Be yourself
Treat others as you wish to be treated.
They are so simple, but when you start trying to work that out in real life, and real situations, it becomes complicated as we try not to offend each other, or condone certain unwanted behaviors, or as some parents realize they have ‘monkey see, monkey do’ kids. Guilty.
But I think any person that is seriously soul searching, could learn, on their own, how these two work separately and together, to make a person happy on an individual level, but also make a family or community happy in a group sense.
I hope more people will contemplate these things and break away from social rules that no longer work, if they ever even did work.
Like you said on your other page, none of us should ever expect anything of another that we cannot do ourselves. However, even that can be a little much for some people that are in so much more need of the care of those of us that are stronger and have been down certain roads they haven’t yet seen. Underneath, we’ve all felt pain, joy, misery, happiness, contentment, but we all just paint it in different colors of words.
So with my daughter, I don’t expect her to live up to my example, and I try not to forget to point out to her when I am effin it up. I ask that she at least try, and show me that with her attitude and behavior. Not perfection, just effort and not giving up.
Okay, I could write a book here. And I should! But I have focus issues. So I’m off to be distracted with something that is totally going to uselessly consume my time and make me feel guilty later. Like Facebook. Or making raw oatmeal bars. Or watching my new Siamese Fighting fish swim around in his bowl. I am thinking of naming him Bruce Lee…… hehe
My mom told all her children: You can do anything you put your mind to.
You know what? Mom was right!
Thanks for following my miracles blog. Appreciate it!
I cannot choose one, I must share two! ‘with all its shams, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world’ Desiderata. And also ‘Those who mind dont matter, and those who matter dont mind’ x Thanks for stopping by my blog page, lovely space you have here
“The difficult we do immediately…the impossible just takes a little longer.”
Now this is a wonderful page! What a great idea. There’s so much good advice, it’s hard to pick one. But lately the thing I’ve been telling myself the most is “Just keep going forward.” And for some reason it’s really working!
I have a hard time having the confidence to start my own engine sometimes, and to take risks. It helps when I remember a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt, which goes something like this: “You must do what you think you cannot do.”
Oh! I am keeping this one!
Two from my mom…..
Never put off for tomorrow what you can do today.
If you don’t have time to do it right the first time, when will you have time to do it over?
‘To be praised by fools – that is the greatest shame.’
Nichiren Daishonin
‘Listen to your heart – then tell it to shut the fuck up and get on with pumping the blood!’
John Carnell
I`m trying hard to listen to my heart but i don`t have a clue what “tumtum tumtum” means…
“Ne raillons pas les fous; leur folie dure plus longtemps que la nôtre… Voila toute la differénce
Do not mock the insane; their madness last longer than ours… that is the only difference” – Robert W. Chambers, The Repairer of Reputations
Thanks for stopping by Unspeakable Gibberer and deciding to follow us for a while.
Thank you for following my blog and hope that you will continue to enjoy it’s contents.
Don’t forget to lift your head and breathe the air of a new day; enjoy and learn from it.
This is the best advice I had so far….
“Be the now of the person who you want to be later.”
Thank you..
When I was younger, my dad would drop me off at school and he would tell me everyday “keep your promises and try your best”. It is something I live by everyday
Thank you for following me.
Funny thing is I can’t remember any really good advice anyone has given me, however the best advice I give myself is:
“Live everyday with your eyes and your heart wide open and always give the benefit of the doubt”
“Always dance your happy dance” from my mom. She would always laugh at the silly dance I would do when I got excited. So in our guest book at our wedding this is what she wrote.
Even better than advice, Evan: to be trained by God with the goal of being a spiritually mature man reflecting “the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ”. That’s where my lasting hope lies for being a better man — not in my own faltering nature and its shifting good intentions. I don’t know of any other foundation so sure and unchanging.
‘Choose an honest man’. Sound advice from my grandmother who was married to my grandfather for 60 years.
Be the person you would want to fall in love with.
Thanks for following my blog, Evan. After checking yours out some, I think I’m writing the same blog but about being a good woman.
My fav piece of advice is from my grandmother who said: “Don’t worry what they think of you. They aren’t thinking of you at all. They’re worrying what you’re thinking of them. So get on with whatever you want to do, girl!”
My parents told me, “If you’re dating someone and you have any problems at all before you get married, move in together, and have shared responsibilities, don’t marry that person.”
The idea was that your dating life should be bliss because the relationship that you have as a couple, with problems to face together, will be difficult to sustain if you didn’t even like one another in the good times.
I wish I had listened to them. I have one failed marriage in my past that proves that their advice was sound. Fortunately, I married the right person on my second try.
Survive & Thrive someone told me and I put one foot in front of the other no matter what came before or what might happen next.
Thanks for following me. Please leave a comment sometime.
If you cannot say something good, keep quiet!
I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.
Only I will remain.
Frank Herbert – Dune
The best advice I ever got was utterly simple – ‘go with your gut’
This is such a wonderful blog and I commend your motivation to document your journey and sharing it with all of us. I also appreciate that you checked out my blog. Thank you.
A quote by Winston Churchill. I keep it posted by my computer, and read it daily.
Attitude is a little thing that makes a bid difference.
My grandmother once told me if you make a mistake but learn from its no longer a mistake but a learning experience. Favorite line in a movie: Alright Ryan we just unzipped our fly…..what movie was that from and who said it?
“Never regret yesterday. Life is in you today and you make your own tomorrow.” That line is one of several in “The Code of Honor” by author, L. Ron Hubbard. The statement is my favorite piece of advice, because applying it you keep moving forward. Like the rest of the Code of Honor, this is a point to look up to and strive to fulfill daily.
From my wise older husband, almost thirty years ago: 1. Don’t lie. I was 30 when we met and sometimes “shaded the truth” to make things prettier for myself. I never thought of it as lying. Until I stopped doing it and my life became 100% authentic. 2. You can’t move forward until you face your fears, deconstruct them into small bites and eat them. Fear is paralysis at the brain-stem level.
Here are a few quotes I’ve been given as advice….thank you for following my blog, love the idea/purpose of your blog.
“Obstacles are things a person sees when he takes his eyes off his goal.”
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”
“All the flowers of tomorrow are in the seeds of yesterday”
“Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.”
“Jump into the pool, learn to swim later.” On another note, Colin Powell was once asked how much information he needed to move forward and go to war? “60% of the total information is all I need to move forward with confidence.” Good advice.
Thanks for following Odds&Ends from Ermigal! I try to make my readers laugh, so my advice is an oldie but a goodie: “laugh, and the world laughs with you; cry, and you cry alone.” Good luck with your fabulous project!
A wonderful poem by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/solitude/
There will always be smarter and dumber people than you. Don’t be intimidated by the smarter ones or act superior to the dumber ones.
Thanks for the follow!
“The bigger you dream, the bigger you live.” Since I heard this a few years ago, I aim to make my dreams are bigger than my realities.
“Gotta keep moving. Gotta keep making decisions, even if they’re the wrong ones.”
-Joe Simpson, mountain climber, on his decision to climb down to the bottom of the crevasse he’d fallen into to look for a way out there when a broken leg prevented him climbing up to escape.
Life is tough. Deal with it.
I have two pieces of advice that I have treasured.
1. Procrastination is often perfectionism disguised as laziness
This has helped my self image immensely as I am not always prompt in my actions.
2. You can either do what you love or love what you do and you cannot always do what you love.
Even in your dream job there will be elements that you do not like. It’s your decision to enjoy everything to it’s fullest or not.
There are a lot like this already, but this is my favorite. It’s a quote from the show The Golden Girls
“If you take a chance, sometimes good things happen and sometimes bad things happen. But if you don’t take a chance, nothing happens.”
“KBO.” Winston Churchill. Or for those extra hard times, “When you’re going through hell, keep going.”
Thanks for the follow!
Belief in yourself.
…when there is a decision to be made ask yourself “What would someone else who loved themselves do right now if they were standing in my shoes?” (Teal Scott)
“Don’t be embarrassed. The moment has passed, so smile & keep going.” That simple.
Never give up
“Courage does not always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, ‘I will try again tomorrow.”
― Mary Anne Radmacher
I think for me the best advice is to treat failure as a positive learning experience instead of getting down about it. That way even if things don’t turn out it’s never a waste to try. I also like the quote, ‘the price of discipline is always less than the pain of regret.’
I’m Glad you asked! I posted this today: http://thegeekanthropologist.com/2012/11/16/advice-for-students-5-stuck/
“Just do it”. “Do or do not, there is no try”. Many of the people who inspire me aren’t more necessarly super geniuses and overly talented: they’re people who decided they we’re simply gonna do what they wanted and eventually succeeded: Jane Goodall always wanted to work with apes and ended up doing so after studying to be a secretary, of all things. Emily Carr was mocked all her life for her paintings but was eventually recognized for her great vision and talent. Etc. Etc.
Great idea for a post and comment thread!
Thanks for following brother, a piece of advice that reversed doubt in me went like this…
“A bad idea executed is better then a good idea undone”
“I had often wondered, though, over the years, just how much different, for the good or the bad, my family’s life might have been if we hadn’t been invited to that particular party (another crossroad). I decided a little later that it was best not to interfere in what people wanted to do, even if they asked for advice. If they wanted to go to Timbuktu, then that should be up to them; others shouldn’t try to talk them out of it. It’s their life; let them lead it in whatever manner they wish. Then they won’t be able to blame anyone for their fate, or look back and point a finger, saying that they were given bad advice—as I have sometimes done in the recent past!” – Ian Moore-Morrans in “From Poverty to Poverty: A Scotsman Encounters Canada.”
The above quote is from my autobiography in which I suggest that people not be influenced by the advice that they get from other people as far as choices they need to make in life. At a party in Scotland, my wife and I were influenced by the advice of visiting relatives from Canada who told us that we should be immigrating to Canada rather than Australia. Because of later advice I got from Canadian immigration officials I was misled on a lot of things about Canada and for a long time, rued my decision to emigrate there. Though I’m happy being Canadian now, I still try to follow the principle of never letting another person’s prejudices influence my major choices in life. I need to do the research independently and try to make an informed decision.
(Thanks also for checking out my blog. I’ll be following yours as well.)
When my father died (much too young and under tragic circumstances) the best comfort a family friend gave was :” Der Weg is das Ziel” – the journey is the destination. It made me stop in my tracks to mourn the loss of his future, I just mourned my loss and was still very sad. But in the journey is our destination, here and now, for all of us – make the most of it.
The best life lesson for me has been to stop conforming to the expectations of others. Paired with the advice to proceed from a ‘Ready, Fire, Aim’ approach so that I didn’t get stuck waiting for all to be perfect to move forward.
Thanks for the follow and best of luck with your project!
Great idea (for men *and* women;). Here’s quote I particularly like:
You are never given a wish without also being given the power to make it true. You may have to work for it, however. — Richard Bach
Thanks for the follow!
Like this idea. Just a couple to add – ‘Never, never, NEVER give up’ and ‘All it takes for evil to triumph is for a good man to do nothing.’ Thanks for the follow.
“This too shall pass” – advice given to me by my cousin who suffered more than anyone I know…
“If you think you are beaten, you are,
If you think you dare not, you don’t
If you like to win, but you think you can’t,
It is almost certain you won’t.
“If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost
For out of the world we find,
Success begins with a fellow’s will-
It’s all in the state of mind.
“If you think you are outclassed, you are,
You’ve got to think high to rise,
You’ve got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize.
“Life’s battles don’t always go
To the stronger or faster man,
But soon or late the man who wins
Is the man WHO THINKS HE CAN!”
Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle ~ Plato
one of my favorite quotes, thanks for reminding me
I couldn’t agree more. Everyone is fighting a hard battle indeed. Thanks for reminding me as well.
Vianney
Know Thyself. An oldie but a goodie.
Hmm best advice I’ve ever got would have to be:
“Be Strong”
Life happens
A lot of the time it’s less important to make the right decision, than it is to simply make a decision.
If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.
There is a time for everthing, and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to be born and a time to die,
a time to plant and a time to uproot,
a time to kill and a time to heal,
a time to tear down and a time to build,
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them,
a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing,
a time to search and a tme to give up,
a time to keep and a time to throw away,
a time to tear and a time to mend,
a time to be silent and a time to speak,
a time to love and a time to hate,
a time for war and a time for peace.
I’ve had a lot of good advice recently, but these ones stick out.
‘The only way to do the work is to do the work’ – MIchael Atatvar
‘You just keep going, art is life and there is no wealth but life’
‘If you keep going sometimes you get there…’
“The only person you will ever wake up with, really, is yourself.”
Thank you Aunt Barbara.
Thank you so much for stopping by my blog; much appreciated. Something I have learned over the years ” Trust, but verify.”
That one would save so many so much heartache.
My grandmother used to tell me “don’t live in the past, there’s no future in it!” I’ve never forgotten those words.
That quote is so very true. Thank you for sharing
Excellent!
From Oprah: “I no longer have anything to prove. This is who I am.”
Unknown: Don’t try to wear a shoe that pinches.
Best: Don’t ask yourself what the world needs. Ask yourself what makes you come alive, and go do that, because what the world needs is people who have come alive. ~ Howard Thurman
“I am thankful to all those who said NO to me. It’s because of them I did it myself.” -A. Einstein
What fun this is!
Best advice? “Be a generator, not a battery.”
I hope you call in and enjoy my poems x
“Do the thing, and you shall have the power.” ~Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Question your answer.” (Grandpa)
And to always check before posting a comment twice : ) !
“The greatest thing you will ever learn is just to love and be loved in return” – Nature Boy Nat King Cole
Thanks for following my blog! The best advice I ever got was from my older brother. My father wasn’t the nicest guy, nothing was ever good enough for him and it really upset me a lot. I was just a little kid, five or six, I was crying about something that my father said and my brother told me: “Every second of every day, do the best you can. Sometimes there are people who just can’t be made happy, but if you are really doing the best you possibly can, then I’ll be proud of you and, even better, you can be proud of yourself and no one can take that away.” For some reason, it’s always stuck in my brain; it really is good advice and I try to live by it.
Hello everybody, well I’m gonna share with you one of them, the one at least that I can remember right now and also I would say, one of the most important I ever got, like about 10 years ago I was really frustrated because it was almost impossible for me to find somebody to love and love me back, I also remember that I used to hate my father for something he did to me, and I used to say that I didn’t have a father, I lived like that half of my life, always alone, scared, unlucky with man, and all that stuff that sometimes happen to girls, one day this lady came to me and said:” for as long as you don’t forgive your father and facing whatever happen to you in the past you won’t be free for somebody good to enter your life, so go to him, talk with him, fix whatever it is that has to be fix and above everything forgive him, and you’ll see how many doors will open to you” I thought ok whatever, I’m gonna try, I visited my father and without even saying anything when we look at each other we cried and after that, the weird feelings towards him disappeared and my life changed 360, somehow.
Ok blessings to you all
“There’s nothing serious going on here.” — Master Charles Cannon
Thanks for your visit to Radical Bliss!
“BE STILL…”
And there’s more to it, but it comes with a story….an experience really.
My mother’s mantra,
“Don’t worry. Be Happy”.
Thanks for dropping by my page
Love your project!
My mom always said ‘Hope for the best, prepare for the worst’. And my dad was more specific and practical
‘Don’t eat when you’re lying down’ (I might choke) and ‘don’t walk with a knife in your hand (I might fall and stab myself) 
“Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone”
-Pablo Picasso
This is by far one of my favorite quotes and I try to live by this every day.
“Failing to plan is planning to fail”. So far, that seems like the best advice I’ve heard yet! And thank you for following my blog!
Hard to say what advice… There are a lot of good things there… And all of them are the best
But, even then, here’s one…
”
“Hard work has no alternative.”
“There is only one SHORTCUT to success – More Hard work
Thank you for inspiring all of us!
“Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.” – William James
“Don’t waste time, just go!” – best and last advice my grandfather gave me.
Write every day. Make it your obsession
chris guillebeau! ^
What a great idea to elicit wisdom from your readers!
I love all of these great pieces of advice. What I try to follow is ‘never let fear hold you back’.
thank you for starting this great collection of words to live by.
Saw you came by my blog, Just Can’t Help Writing, a while back. Thanks!
My best piece of advice: I was attending counseling sessions to deal with my mother. I’d spent about ten minutes complaining about all the things that had happened in the past. My counselor pulled me up short: “That’s all well and good. But what are you going to do NOW?”
I’ve never forgotten that advice. I run into a lot of folks who like to complain to each other in the hallways rather than act for change. “Tomorrow is another day” (I got it from GONE WITH THE WIND, Scarlett’s escape motto) may seem like a cliche, but it really is true. You don’t have to be trapped by the past.
Thanks for the question. I’ve enjoyed reading others’ responses.
Virginia
People are always given a choice. And you make the decision.
You either spend one day with smiles and laughter, or spend one day soaked in tears.
Your life, how you want to lead it, your choice.
Your one and only GREATEST adversary is YOURSELF…And your only GREATEST challenge is each day that passes you by…Improve yourself, Challenge yourself to be better! In the long run, you’ll see how far YOU have gone! Fight with yourself, not with others!
Wish more people in this world actively tried to become a better man or woman. Thank you!
My quote to share is a little bit complicated but simple at the same time. Basically, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. It may sound a bit ridiculous, especially for children or those of us who HAVE to go to school or work or feed the kids or whatever, but the background behind someone inspirational saying it to me was obviously talking about things I “felt” I had to do as my duty whether they were good for me or helpful or positive or not. If a friend is draining me and making me question whether they are my friend or not, I can be honest and release them from my life and be free to look for new positive influences in new friends. I don’t HAVE to be this so-called friend simply because I have been before or feel I should, etc.
Hope that makes sense to someone
The best advice I ever got: “Accept All Changes”
A saying I live by (and it’s been tossed around in my family for awhile)….
Plan for the worst and hope for the best.
It’s about staying positive while not fooling myself and being prepared without negativity. Bad things can happen even to good people. I can still remain optimistic while examining all possibilities. It keeps me stable when things get rough because I went in knowing that what I am going through was a possible outcome for the decision I made. It doesn’t keep me from trying things or moving forward but it does lessen the potential inner turmoil of unexpected results.
Thanks for following my blog. I wish you all the best on your journey!
I use this question when I’m struggling with something- anything.
« Do you have any power on it? » If I say yes, I do what I have to do. If I say no, I work on accepting it. Both ways bring me calmer because my mind is setted.
The best advice I’ve heard lately is what a man told his young son when he was coaching him in hockey. He said, “Son, don’t skate to where the puck’s been. Skate to where the puck’s going to be.”
The man? Walter Gretzky, Wayne Gretzky’s father.
Surprisingly, this advice has been very helpful in my everyday life!
Thanks for following my blog! I’m very impressed with what I’ve found here!
There are three pieces of advice I can think of off the top of my head:
1) If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing to the best of your ability.
2) Nothing worth having is easy in the “getting”.
and my favorite is a variation of the first…
3) Do everything you do (no matter how menial) as if doing it for the Lord.
Hello Evan, thank you for following my blog! I am looking forward to following yours!
I have received a lot of advice over the years and it’s all been helpful. But a few pieces of wisdom spring to mind….
Never go to bed angry.
A tiger doesn’t lose sleep over the opinions of sheep.
What is meant for you will not go past you.
A year from now you’ll wish you’d started today.
Fortune favours the bold.
Regrets are far, far worse than mistakes.
If you really want to do something in your heart of hearts, you’ll find a way.
Always listen to your gut instinct. It’s never wrong.
And Shakespeare I think said it best of all….”above all, to thine own self be true.”
Thank you so much for the follow, I’ve just been looking through your blog and I think it really is amazing!
So inspirational… The best advice I’ve got is to trust your first instincts 
“Everyone deserves every bit of happiness in the world. No matter what came before. No matter what comes after.”
I was 17 when my camp counselor at a writing workshop told me this. I was going through a difficult time and he just sat down with me, became very serious (he was quite the comical teddy bear kind of guy) and said these words. I’ve carried it with me ever since and it has gotten me out of many tough times. Just say to yourself, what is making me unhappy and change it. It’s not usually as complicated as we try to make it.
This advice is very soothing and reassuring, thank you for sharing it! It glows my day.
He came, he saw ……….. and sure did something about it to make it better.
One that I’ve taken with me is that it doesn’t matter what you MEANT to say, it matters what the other person HEARD you say!
Confidence is key.
It is not personal, it is just business…
Advice from a quote:
Heracletes – “No man steps in the same river twice.”
hah! Thanks, was wondering where that quote came from.
At the moment I particularly like ‘Never compete, create’ and I add my own word, ‘collaborate’!
The best advice I ever got was from a Family Court Judge, early on in my divorce. He said: The best thing a parent can ever do for their child, is love their other parent. You may want to kill each other right now, but what you need to do is kill each other with kindness. That’s what loving parents do for their children.
Thanks for following my blog – you are quite the inspiration – I can feel your energy pouring out of my screen! The best advice I ever got was this: You are no good to anyone else unless you are in good shape yourself. So, when things around you look like they are falling apart – remember what they tell you when you fly – put your oxygen mask on first – then take care of those around you. Thanks again and keep up the great enthusiasm!!
Be careful who you have your children with…
seriously, it’s good advise!
Thank you for following my blog. I am enjoying reading yours now too. The best advice I ever got was from my son, who said, “Mom, when you think you can’t, you can.”
The greatest thing about “what” is “why”.
Where purpose is unknown abuse is inevitable.
The purpose of something can always be found in the mind of its creator.
Humbly seek God for purpose in life.
These are the words of Dr. Myles Munroe and they profoundly impacted me.
Don’t stuck in certain type of music, style or anything, you should be able to fit in anything because that makes you adaptable, and once you get along with everything you’ll start to build your own style
1. if your not living life on the edge, you are taking up too much room.
2. an eye for an eye would leave the whole world blind.
3. do everything with all of your heart,
4. it never rains unless it pours (its a good job skin is waterproof.)
5. i cant remember the exact words of this but something like – use a skat to catch a macrell. basically use a small fish to gain a larger one or give and you will receive.
6. practice what you preach.
Brilliant advice!
When I was going through a hard time in my early twenties my father would meet up with me for coffee every week to talk. I remember one day he told me that life isn’t about being perfect, there’s no such thing. That has stuck with me ever since and helped me focus on being true to myself and embracing the unique gifts i have to share
Any information is always and only an interpretation of the recipient – it has nothing to do with the sender, eventually.
So, if somebody tries to hurt you with words, it’s up to You if you take these words seriously or not. It’s only your own perception which creates feelings.
Couldn’t agree more!
Thanks for Yours.
I must admit that I sometimes got my problems with my perception in this context. But I’ve improved a lot for the last years.
How about You?
“Fake it till you make it”
Because even when you have no idea what you’re doing you pretend you do, and most of the time I surprise myself. I think this and it gives me the confidence to try.
My mom always told me, “bridle your tongue”. This way I actually think before I speak, which saves me a lot of trouble in the long run;)
Thanks for following my blog Evan.
I too, like you are into personal development (as you might have guessed). Self-mastery is my aim and to help lead others to self mastery. Now…the best piece of advice I ever got…”Never give advice. Those who genuinely seek knowledge will ask you.” Ciao…Kerry 
The most valuable limited resource available to man is time. Consume it wisely, once gone it can never be regained.
Thanks for following my Blog. I have enjoyed visiting yours. You are a positive guy and your enthusiasm jumps off the pages. I wish you success in attaining your goals
The best advice I ever got was from God and passages He led me to in the Bible, particularly Proverbs 4.
“I would like to give you the gift of perspective. Imagine, 20 or more years from now, you are approached by a genie. The genie says to you: I will grant you your wish of going back and reliving your life the way you want to. OK, now imagine that is what you are doing; reliving your life the way you would have wanted to the first time. Go.”
I love this.
Thanks for the follow! I’m glad you looked, as it led me back to you, and I’ve enjoyed what I’ve seen.
Best advice, from my dad shortly after my child was born: If you don’t take care of yourself, nobody else will.
I love it. It is a great reminder!
I got this from myself
lol It came to me as we were heading off onto our adventure. I was having a hard time “letting go”, so to speak:
Home is where the heart is, and since your heart is always with you, you are always home; No matter where you may be
Thank you for your inspiration! Especially in a period of my life when I need it the most
best advice i was ever given: “be where you are.”
i think it applies to so many situations, but when my friend shared it with me it was a time i was struggling, and then struggling even more so because i was fighting my emotions. “be where you are” tells me to allow myself to feel what i’m feeling, without judgment or resentment, until i simply don’t feel that way any longer. it’s much healthier to move on without denial.
Every single time I’ve been afraid, my partners have given me the same piece of advice – “What can they do but say no?”
This is such a wonderful project!
Best advice ever given, by my dad: “Where are you? HERE. When is it? NOW.”
very very interesting! There is a movie, “The peaceful warrior” that is very similar to that.
Please Join My Dream https://www.facebook.com/BetterManProject
“If you never ask no questions, then you’ll never get no answers.” -Operation Ivy.
love it
Please Join My Dream https://www.facebook.com/BetterManProject
Wow – tough one. I can’t hand on heart say this is the best advice I ever got, but it is pretty darn good advice and I use it all the time: Nothing in this world is worth losing your piece of mind over…
Thanks for the follow! Also, best advice I ever received:
“You can’t fail if you don’t bother trying. If you don’t bother trying, you’ll never succeed. If you don’t succeed, just try again.”
Best Advice I was ever given..
“be happy with yourself, because when you are happy, others will see it and be happy too”
And a work related one-
“don’t be nervous, you’ve already pulled”
Thank you for the follow. I will follow you as well. Best advice I have ever received, courtesy of my Dad:
Just focus on yourself.
“You never find the path to your true self, but rather you find your true self along the path.”
Do what good you can, but almost always do you.
Measure twice cut once
thank you thank you!
Please Join My Dream
https://www.facebook.com/BetterManProject
After falling down seven times; I got up eight………….
thank you !
Please Join My Dream
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“the definition of success is someone who is healthy and happy. this means different things for different people, but it also means that we are responsible to a great extent for our own happiness. take control.”
Love that quote~!~!~~
Please Join My Dream
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Pop told me, “Son, always remember that everything always works out for the best. Maybe not in your lifetime, but eventually.” You’re absolutely right Pop.
My first martial arts instructor S. Dong used to say, “A journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step” and “Cry in the dojo, laugh on the battlefield.” Train hard, get started, and never look back.
Another great martial artist, Dave Durch, told me, “Pain changes the game.” Thanks for stating so succinctly that all plans have to factor in adversity, period.
During life’s perfect, quiet moments my Aunt Juanita used to say, “Ain’t this nice?” I can still hear her voice…thanks Juanita for reminding me to live in the present.
Thanks for the fantastic advice!
Please Join My Dream
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A good man is like bamboo, he bends, but does not break.
fantastic!
Please Join My Dream
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My wonderful lawyer said to me
“Sharon” he said “keep your own bat straight and never mind what anyone else is doing” Wonderful wise man.
Take each day as it comes. Live day to day.
Please Join My Dream
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Just keep Swimming, just keep swimming.. swimming swimming.
Love that movie!
hi..thanks for follow my blog, I’m newbie here…
the best advice i ever got is : “Never Dream for Success, But Worked for It”
yes!
Please Join My Dream
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like it..:)
“Don’t take yourself so seriously”.
” When you give, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing”.
…” For if you do not forgive your fellow man his sins, neither will your Father in Heaven forgive you”…
Love The Lord God with all your heart, mind, and soul, and love one another as yourself. ” ( I.e. The Golden Rule)
“Forget yourself”
fantastic fantastic advice!
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I don’t know about the best, but this one sure works in more ways than one:
Go to where you want to park and there will be a place for you.
One more, please…
People will forget what you said, …forget what you did, but they will never forget how you made them feel (Maya Angelou).
keep the great advice coming!
Please Join My Dream
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Depak Chopra says, “When we harness the forces of harmony, joy, and love, we create success and good fortune with effortless ease.”
Thanks for following my blog. I love your purpose.
Thanks for following me
The best advice i’ve ever received was:
Take the chance to fall… but hope for the chance to fly….
I now have it tattooed on me and i believe it every day
Keep moving forward.
The thing about Truth is that it doesn’t ask for man’s opinion.
How do you eat an elephant?…One bite at a time.
YOU ONLY GET WHAT YOU GIVE! ♥
When we compare, we despair.
Floss every day.
The best advice I ever got was
“Successful people fail far more times in their life than unsuccessful people”
If you stop once you fail, you only fail once but you don’t succeed either. If you succeed after the 20th attempt you may have failed 19 times but you’re still successful. I try to remind myself of this every time I get scared of failing.
Best advice:
1. Everything happens for a reason. What seems to be the worst day of your life today could actually be the beginning of a good opportunity. Plus, God will not let you go through anything you can’t handle.
2. Never give up. Even if you fail, you’ll learn a lot of things along the way.
Thanks for the follow, Evan!
My basketball coach from back in the day told me once that “you’ll only be as good as the people you surround yourself with”
Its oh so true!
That is so true!
Thanks. Really enjoying your blog. Keep em coming!
Do you mean “The Better Man Project”? That’s not my blog… but it is great
Hamish, I was meaning The Better Man Project, but I’ve now stumbled upon your blog and also think the same, I read a few posts. So, thanks for the comment…it applies to both now!
Aww
That’s very sweet of you.
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thanks for the appreciation!
Please Join My Dream
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Their opinion is none of my business !
Wonderful blog
Hey Betterman. Great blog, great page.
Best advice…
Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional. Pain comes from living, suffering from our refusal to accept things as they are.
Bear with it.
True freedom comes when there are no choices left.
Do not run from it – turn to it, embrace it, offer it love. You will run forever, but need only turn once.
ROS
I’ll leave this on your quote page, too. These are words that I live by, and they absolutely work for me.
“The happiest life has the greatest number of points of contact with the world, and it has the deepest feeling and sympathy with everything that is.”
Liberty Hyde Bailey
Thanks for following my blog. Yours is fantastic, esp. “About Me.” Great!
When I first saw this, I remembered a quote I had seen before: “Two rules of success in life: 1) Don’t tell people everything you know.” (Anonymous)
But seriously, I believe the best advice I ever heard was one word that, if you had it and shared it with others, all other issues would be resolved. With this one word, you could potentially eliminate most of the negativity and stress in the world and with this one word, many of our problems could be eliminated. You learned this word from your parents or care-takers and then you shared it with your family and friends. The word? LOVE!
Keep your head high
Hold on to belief in you
You’re the only one
who’ll ALWAYS get you through
You only have to be courageous for twenty seconds at a time.
Thanks for the follow.
God gave us a great tool to measure right from wrong, our conscience!
Advice from my grandfather (died 103 yrs).
1. walk everyday
2. moderation in everything
Having been around the proverbial block a few times, I have heard lots of great advice over the years. But one I heard recently and really love is, “Pursue purpose, not position.”
From my mom: Live so your yesterdays leave you content.
I’ve enjoyed your site.
My life is guided by Proverbs 37:4 “Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
I have had more desires of my heart fulfilled than I ever dreamed possible.
Thank you for the follow.
correction…Psalm 37
“Take 3 deep breaths”
Three pieces that have made an impression on me. 1. From a mentor at work: “Complain up, never down.” 2. From a monk: “Stand with your feet facing forward.” 3. From a book called “The Game of Life” by Florence Scovel Shinn: “Why worry? It will probably never happen.”
I love this idea.
TRUST. YOUR. INSTINCTS. They are ONLY there to protect you.
I walked into my boss’s office one time with a gripe. He pointed to the door, and said, ‘I hear you. Now come back when you have a solution the the problem.’ I’ve never been the same since. Every time I whinge about something, I ask myself if I can do something about it rather than wait for someone else to change my world. I like this post. Thanks.
Think about whether the decision or problem will matter in 5 minutes, 5 days, 5 months, 5 years, 50 years, and 500 years.
It’s better to be crazy than dead ( A Nepali proverb I heard few days ago
) and the quotes from Albus Dumbledore (Character in Harry Potter) are amazing 
Sweet.
While in grad school, we had the assignment to talk to an engineer about the actual work of an engineer, this is what I got talking to a family friend:
“everyday life, work, fun, issues, problems, love… it’s all about people, it’s ALWAYS about people”
My best advice hmm..
1.) never take life seriously, we all die anywase. Do not worry about little things
2.)everyday do something you were afraid to do yesterday
3.) Give ‘em hell.
Great blog and all the best with it!
Advice I’ve received along life’s way…
“Stay as young and good as you are.” – (from a wonderful boss, S. Kelly)
“Never give up, never, never, never…” Sir Winston Churchill (and the favorite motto of a publisher I worked for)
“Travel light…” (God
)
Live the life you love
also–thanks for being the first to follow my blog! Following Peace
Great idea! Have loved reading the comments on this post.
“The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. Because the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. They’re there to stop the other people.” ― Randy Pausch, The Last Lecture
Planning to do a post all about this but since you ask, the best advice I’ve received are:
Read the directions.
Finish Strong.
Move forward.
Try your best.
Hi Evan – thanks for following my blog. And I really like this best-advice page. Here goes:
1) Never say “oops,” just say “ahhhh” (this was from a mentor of mine – it was for professional settings where you’re working with others who depend on you)
2) Never do something you’re great at for free
3) Find what you love, and do it a LOT
4) Logic is only one way of looking at things
5) Sometimes you have to set the bar really low, step over it and go “yay me!” (this was my new year’s resolution this year)
Love #5! Yay Me!
Probably what helped me get out of one of the biggests ruts in my life, a friend said to me, “you have to love yourself before you can love someone”
One advice my mum has always told me though it is quite obvious and simple in “Hard work pays off”, It has never failed me.
we are who we choose to be.
My Dad always said, “nothing is ever easy.” The advice hidden in that seemingly pessimistic phrase is that good leaders plan for contingency, resource for roadblocks, keep their expectations of ease low and are surprised when the outcome is positive and easy. Don’t ever get caught underestimating the difficulty of an event, project or adversary.
Best advice I’ve ever heard. “The key is not the will to win… everybody has that. It is the will to prepare to win that is important.” -Bobby Knight
Your talent sets the floor, but your character sets the ceiling.
This is the best one I ever got:
“Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right.” – Henry Ford
My dad always told me ” Make sure life is sweet, the bed you make is where you will sleep.”
He also said” Speak from your heart or you will never be heard”
The best advice was “you have to let go of the old to make room for the new.”
This is a quote I originated “The fires that burn us are the ones we learn from. The ashes are what we rise from.”
From my mom “Slow down, you are trying to do to much at the same time”
Best advice I ever got, from my dad who said his father told him. “You can do anything you want, as long as you know when to stop.”
I forget the exact words he used, but its something along those lines. You can do or try anything you want, but you will get in trouble one way or another if you dont know when its too much
Its really hard to pin point the best advice that I’ve ever been given, but I find myself constantly saying….
“Know your worth”
I think a lot times people devalue themselves, which then causes us to hold back in life. I’m a firm believer that if you know your worth in any given situation you will always be able to prevail.
From my mum. ‘To thine own self be true.’
Mines one from Rocky. “When things got hard, you started looking for something to blame. Like a Big Shadow. Let me tell you something you already know. The worlds aren’t all sunshine and rainbows. It’s a very mean and nasty place and I don’t care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it…
You’ve gotta hit as hard as life. It isn’t about how hard you hit, it’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much can you take and keep moving forward? That’s how winning is done.
If you know what you’re worth, Go out and Get What Your Worth. But you gotta be willing to take the hits. And not pointing fingers saying you aren’t where you wanna be because of him or her or anybody. Cowards do that and that ain’t you. You’re better than that.”
I’ve gotten so much great advice over the years….but rarely follow any of it. Haha. My 2 life mantras are as follows:
“You can’t start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading your last one.”
and
“Sometimes we need to forget people from our past because of one simple reason, they just don’t belong in our future.”
So true. So true.
“Sherry, just let it go.”
This was from a roommate referring to my worn out work shoes that had two holes in the soles of each shoe, smelled horrible from being water logged from cleaning the restaurant floor and was wrapped in a plastic bag. I was hoping to get a little more life out of them before I would have to break down and buy some more. I sighed … hesitated.. and then threw them in the trash.
I realized that the shoes weren’t the only thing I needed to let go. When there is very little life left in any situation, “Just let it go” so something new can begin to surface. Acceptance has been a great lesson lately.
Ok..so whose gonna buy me a new pair of work shoes??!!
Thanks for following my blog! Here are the 2 best pieces of advice I received. One is a quote I came across, the other is something I have been realizing more and more for the past 10 years.
Thomas Jefferson said:
“Determine never to be idle. No person will have occasion to complain of the want of time who never loses any. It is wonderful how much may be done if we are always doing.”
I try to live by this advice every day!
The other piece of advice is to live for and stand by your own choices. Don’t focus on what other people do or think because in the end you are accountable for these choices.
Good luck and stay inspired!
The best advice I’ve got is the last words from Gautama Siddhartha – “Decay is inherent in all compounded things. Strive on with diligence.”
I am not sure anyone every told me this but I do believe it and have passed it on to my children and other students. Don’t let anyone ever tell you that you can’t do something you want to do. Follow your heart and keep moving ahead. Don’t look back. Dreams really do come true.
I have said this many times years before the advent of social media. You go through your life filling your bucket and learning things. At some point, it is time to start taking things out of your bucket and giving back. Mentor an be grateful.
Stop living in the past. I may not be all that I want to be but I’m not as bad as I used to be. The best me is yet to become.
Every cloud has a silver lining.
I love this one:
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” – Steve Jobs
Looking back at my life thus far, this is or would have been some of the best advice I could have gotten years ago. I passed this on to my kids and others.
If you don’t stand up for yourself, nobody else will ~ this in response to my situations of bullying that I have endured at work for um, countless years now. Okay, three in total, and am looking for positive change as I KNOW a good place exists…
The best I ever got was, “Do Your Homework!” Sometimes I forget this and end up dusting the erasers for a month, but it’s still the best I advice I ever got. (Does anyone even know what dusting the erasers means anymore?)
Its not where you are at, its not what you are doing, its who you are with
The best advice came from my grandmother as I stood on the brink of quitting my job, moving out of the city, and pursuing my writing [and life, for that matter]. She said, “It’s when people start to agree with you that you should be the most worried.”
I took it to heart. And now when I’m making what feels like a life-changing decision, I never go with the majority.
Are you writing now? I have just made the same decision and somewhat freaking out about it….I feel like I must be crazy!! No job, no idea where I am, but with a nagging insistence that I must write! write! Write until I cannot write anymore! I’d love to learn more about your journey.
Some of my favorites:
1. It’s best to be silent and thought a fool than to speak and remove all doubt.
2. Your misery is your ministry.
3. If it is not beneficial, it’s artificial.
4. Your word is your bond.
Listen to your gut….Always!…. because it’s usually right.
A college teacher of mine once lectured us on the need to change our career path every five years.
The more comfortable you are, the more you need to change it noting you can’t grow without real change.
Don’t look directly at the sun.
because it will make you sneeze. well … that works for some people anyway. lol
I am going to try to make this semi-short so people reading this will not go into a coma! These two items really made me think:
Once we had an employee who always was complaining about her co-workers and she was moved several times from department to department because she said her co-workers were lazy, giving her problems, etc. So one day my Manager and I had a meeting with her. My manager sat her down and pulled out a sheet of paper and divided it into 2 sections. He wrote her issues and on one side he wrote the employees name that she had an issue with and in the other section he wrote her name. He did this for grievance after grievance. Finally he took the paper and said, “No one else is having issues in our department but you seem to be having more problems. Maybe we can look at this sheet and see what the common denominator is?” Then he circled all of the times that her name appeared and said that this is the common theme. If you are always having problems with people…maybe the problem is with your actions.
The other thing that I took to heart is this… After me and my ex broke up, I was driving listening to the radio and that song, “The Cat’s in the Cradle” came on and the lyrics really hit home. You can blow off your family and friends for work, other people, or fun,but that will shape your relationships in the future. No one wants to help someone who is in essence a stranger to them. So I do my best to stay connected with my son and my family and close friends. You have no excuses really…not even the actions of others. Some people use the excuse that their ex makes their life hell so they can not see their children. I am sure thier children do not see that as a viable excuse.
Hey!
Thanks for a wonderful blog! This is life-lasting project, where journey is the rewards. I wish you a nice journey!
There are two best advices I ever got in my life.
Here they are for your collection:
1) 2001 “Lord of the Rings” movie by Peter Jackson.
“All we have to decide is what to do with a time that is given to us”.
2) 2005 Steve Jobs speech at Stanford.
Here the whole speech is the best advice ever.
http://news.stanford.edu/news/2005/june15/jobs-061505.html
But the most impressive for me is:
I like this idea! Birds of a feather flock together – from my Mom. She knew how to steer us away from those people and thngs that were not good for us!
“The grass is always greenest where you water it”
The best advice I ever received was from my father on the topic of knowledge. He told me as a little girl, ” You know what happens when you do not go to college? You end up pregnant with three kids flipping pancakes at waffle house… Yeh you may be pretty now like your mother trust me that will fade with three kids and a dead beat husband. Go to school major in something people need… What do people need, they need doctors,teachers,lawyers, and various other medical fields.” I took his advice and have been a perpetual student! He made something vary clear at a very young age looks fade, men change but your knowledge and degree last and sustain!
The best advice I ever received came from the one woman that means the most to me in this world: my mother. She said (and still says it to this day) to learn something new everyday. Whatever you are doing stop and learn something that benefits you in some way. It really builds your worth.
A friend and counsellor once said to me:
not sure that this can apply to everyone but it has helped me immensely in my life, and hopefully could help someone else that is struggling as well…i am a rower at a d1 school and i know what its like to run yourself into the ground with training …i also deal with depression and self harm…when i was literally at my lowest point someone said to me, “You know much better then I do, that athletes put themselves through incredible pain everyday and they find a way to get through it. You don’t just give up when the pain gets too great, right? You work through it.”
I will forever hold that in my heart and i apply it to my life daily. I am not rowing anymore due to an injury, and my depression has been pretty bad on days when I think about that, but I always remind myself of this saying and it has helped me through a lot of hard times. I don’t self destruct when training gets too hard, so why should I self destruct when life gets too hard?
Agreed. When life gets tough always fall back on your strong core self to pull through. It’s not over and won’t be. We just have to dust ourselves learn and keep going
Here is a piece of advice that my father always gave us. “People that live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.”
Work hard, dream big, fly high and enjoy.
“To Belittle Is To Be Little.”
I saw this on a church bulletin. I guess it means that you won’t amount to anything if your just mean to people.
“Cool is Overrated, be a Geek for What You Love”
This quote just stuck in my mind. I think it reminds me that it’s okay to be a geek and obsess over whatever it is that you like. Who gives a crap what you enjoy or what you like doing in the end?
You just followed my blog and now I’m digging yours! Great content here and I’m fortunate to married to one of those few and far between better men. However, the best advice came from my dad during my junior year of college at Ohio State:
1. learn to play golf – thought that was odd coming from a guy who didn’t play a lick of golf. his message was this – whether in life, school or business, stretch yourself to do more and get to know people outside of the routines. some of the best relationships and opportunities happen where and when you least expect them. so I took lessons, and absolutely hated it. but I can drive a mean beer cart
2. have a serious, firm hand shake – in business, this is the key to making a first impression since our culture of professionalism welcomes an extended hand. I work in a very male-dominated industry (high technology product distribution) and this little known fact has served me extremely well. I get positive comments on my handshake often and it’s a total confidence boost.
I saw your bucket list includes a full-time position in sales/marketing/management. On Feb 22 I start a brand new role as VP Marketing at a Fortune 500 company. If you happen to skydive anywhere around Greenville, SC, give me a shout on LinkedIn or something. It would be great to connect live. Cheers!
The best advice I ever got came in two parts:
1. God helps those who helps themselves.
2. There is no God.
In other words, stop waiting for some sort of divine intervention to solve your problems and make everything okay. It won’t happen. Strength comes from yourself, from your community, and from your family, and the will to make things happen will only ever come from yourself.
Yep, best advice I ever got
After much thought; “Keep applying Bible principles in everything.”
But I have been given so much rich advise by many over the years.
Thanks for asking and thanks for subscribing to my blog.
I am intrigued by yours and will do likewise.
“Things will be better tomorrow…”
Sounds like Scarlet from Gone With the Wind, but it was my mom on a dark night after a dark day.
And guess what – things WERE better!
“Give what you lack.”
Life is a journey, and the journey IS the destination… live in the moment.
When I was about 16 my scooter broke down. Not surprising as it was a rather old second hand, but it got me around. My response? Ask dad. My dad told me: I will fix it for you, if you help me so you can do it next time. I said you have got to be kidding me! But my dad was adamant. He told me: you should strive to be able to fix anything you need. Do not think that because you are a girl you need somebody else to fix it for you. And so we fixed it.
I have applied this lesson more widely in my life. If someone offers to help me out with something I consider it a bonus, not a necessity. If push comes to shove, I can survive by myself. It has made me confident to try a range of things I would otherwise probably have dismissed as unsuitable, from installing a washing machine to moving to a different country.
That is an unbelievable message. I will keep that close to heart and write about that soon.
We must be sisters Kato because we have the same dad! “Don’t let being a girl become an excuse; you can do anything you think you can.”
Love your blog! Two pieces of advice to share:
Wherever you are, be all there. (an increasingly difficult thing to do in this world of iPhones)
Choose cases that will build your confidence, then choose cases that will test your confidence. (advice given to me for my first year out after training as a surgeon)
Best of luck in your journey!
Kelly thanks a ton for that!
I appreciate you writing down the best pieces of advice you have received. I am going to do something really cool with the compilation soon.
Having received so much good advice, it’s a challenge to define “Best” but certainly near the top of the list is to “Be The Change I Wish To See Within The World.”
Thank you. And thank you ghandi
Hi, just by taking this initiative and inspiring people to grow – i think you are already a better man ! It is wordplay, though i feel – ‘Being the best man is easy, being a better man tough! ‘ Thanks for following http://www.abhinandanchatterjee.com
Now to answer your question – Best advice I ever got that has changed the way i look at the world completely was ‘ Don’t live to be liked, live to be respected.’
It talks about being right Vs. being liked. Inspires me all the time.
“if you ever wish to be someone else remind yourself that the person you want to be is already taken”
this helped me a lot when i didn’t know what to do and which way to go
‘You were born to win. But you must plan to win, prepare to win, and expect to win.’
- Zig Ziglar
Be available, authentic, and vulnerable. Seriously, that will change not only your life, but the lives of those around you as well.
Never let anyone steal your joy.
My old boss used to make us say this every day and write it on the board, mirror, etc. After the third or fourth day, we were ready to kick him, but it stuck with me, and it truly is a great saying to live by.
I love your site. Thanks for sharing with us.
Best advice:Do not focus on yourself or worry. Trust in God and he will free your heart up to love Him and love people. Self focus and pride seem to be at the root of mankind’s problems.
Appreciate you following my blog and yours looks great!
Brenda J Wood
http://heartfeltdevotoinals.wordpress.com
I met an old guy in the Amtrak club car on my cross-country trip in 1989, who, I think, might have been a ghost or an angel or both.
He saw me reading my Jack Kerouac and approached me, sitting down without asking. He looked like a hobo, long hair and beard, raggedy clothes and a small rucksack, though it seemed unlikely as this was a passenger train.
He asked me about why I was on the train, where I was heading, what my plans were, etc., not offering up anything about himself, and before I could ask him we arrived in Denver, and he asked me if I knew where the nearest liquor store was. When I told that I’d never been to Denver, he asked if I wanted to go find it with him. When I answered that I didn’t want to risk missing the train, as I was heading on to California, he said he wanted to leave me with some advice.
He said, “Cease becoming and begin to be.”
I haven’t always been able to live by that, but I reach for it and it’s been on my mind every since.
(Say, thanks for stopping by my blog and for the Follow. Love the depth of your commitment to your blog and the wonderful introspection you’ve practiced through it!)
Be Yourself. Everyone else is taken.
Love and obey God and Love thy Neighbor. The rest will fall in line if you do those 2 things.
(great project and vision you have here, btw)
I am not sure where I got this from but the best advise I ever got was to be true to yourself and you will never go wrong!
thanks for the reblog
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