As you look back on your life, you will often realize that many of the times you thought you were being rejected from something good, you were in fact being redirected to something better. You can’t control everything. Sometimes you just need to relax and have faith that things will work out. Let go a little and just let life happen. Because sometimes the truths you can’t change, end up changing you and helping you grow.
Here are twelve such truths…
- Everything is as it should be. It’s crazy how you always end up where you’re meant to be – how even the most tragic and stressful situations eventually teach you important lessons that you never dreamed you were going to learn. Remember, oftentimes when things are falling apart, they are actually falling into place.
- Not until you are lost in this world can you begin to find your true self. Realizing you are lost is the first step to living the life you want. The second step is leaving the life you don’t want. Making a big life change is pretty scary. But you know what’s even scarier? Regret. Vision without action is a daydream, and action without vision is a nightmare. Your heart is free, have the courage to follow it. (Read Awaken the Giant Within.)
- It’s usually the deepest pain which empowers you to grow to your full potential. It’s the scary, stressful choices that end up being the most worthwhile. Without pain, there would be no change. But remember, pain, just like everything in life, is meant to be learned from and then released.
- One of the hardest decisions you will ever face in life is choosing whether to walk away or take another step forward. If you catch yourself in a cycle of trying to change someone, or defending yourself against someone who is trying to change you, walk away. But if you are pursuing a dream, take another step. And don’t forget that sometimes this step will involve modifying your dream, or planning a new one – it’s OK to change your mind or have more than one dream.
- You have to take care of yourself first. Before befriending others, you have to be your own friend. Before correcting others, you have to correct yourself. Before making others happy, you have to make yourself happy. It’s not called selfishness, it’s called personal development. Once you balance yourself, only then can you balance the world around you. (Angel and I discuss this in more detail in the “Self-Love” chapter of 1,000 Little Things, Happy, Successful People Do Differently.)
- One of the greatest freedoms is truly not caring what everyone else thinks of you. As long as you are worried about what others think of you, you are owned by them. Only when you require no approval from outside yourself, can you own yourself.
- You may need to be single for awhile before you realize that, although the co-owned belongings from your failed relationships might not have been divided equally, the issues that destroyed the relationships likely were. For how can you stand confidently alone, or see the same issues arising in your newest relationship, and not realize which broken pieces belong to you? Owning your issues, and dealing with them, will make you far happier in the long run, than owning anything else in this world.
- The only thing you can absolutely control is how you react to things out of your control. The more you can adapt to the situations in life, the more powerful your highs will be, and the more quickly you’ll be able to bounce back from the lows in your life. Put most simply: being at peace means being in a state of complete acceptance of all that is, right here, right now.
- Some people will lie to you. Remember, an honest enemy is better than a friend who lies. Pay less attention to what people say, and more attention to what they do. Their actions will show you the truth, which will help you measure the true quality of your relationship in the long-term.
- If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never have enough. If you are thankful for what you do have, you will end up having even more. Happiness resides not in possessions, and not in gold; happiness dwells in the soul. Abundance is not about how much you have, it’s how you feel about what you have. When you take things for granted, your happiness gets taken away. (Read The Happiness Project.)
- Yes, you have failed in the past. But don’t judge yourself by your past, you don’t live there anymore. Just because you’re not where you want to be today doesn’t mean you won’t be there someday. You can turn it all around in the blink of an eye by making a simple choice to stand back up – to try again, to love again, to live again, and to dream again.
- Everything is going to be alright; maybe not today, but eventually. There will be times when it seems like everything that could possibly go wrong is going wrong. And you might feel like you will be stuck in this rut forever, but you won’t. Sure the sun stops shining sometimes, and you may get a huge thunderstorm or two, but eventually the sun will come out to shine. Sometimes it’s just a matter of us staying as positive as possible in order to make it to see the sunshine break through the clouds again.
Photo by: Martin Gommel
net2 says
So true. Wonderful post. Thanks for sharing.
Dorise says
Great post.
Sloan says
This is powerful and true. Thank you.
Laurel says
Thanks for sharing. They are all so true 🙂
Larry says
Great advice I agree that if you concentrate on what you dont have you will never have enough and always be unhappy. Yet as clear as this is we do live in a shallow world where everything points to the opposite.
Dee says
I love all 12 truths!! Definitely needed this, thanks for sharing.
Sandesh says
Thanks for sharing,
I love all the thoughts..!!!
Santos_FC says
point #1 is the real deal.
escher7 says
Fortunately I have lived long enough to know most of these from experience. I am not where I thought I would be, but it is the right place. However, the past and our mistakes are not so easily forgotten. The hardest thing of all is to forgive oneself for stupid and hurtful things done in the past. I have not yet found this answer.
Tod says
In the past 8 months I have had my whole life destroyed. I was physically, emotionally and spiritually decimated. Through the help of a dear friend I have been making my way back. Her help was stupendous. My efforts were helping a bit and then I Stumbled across you article. It now resides on my desk, my wall and in my bathroom (Sorry for the TMI.) But I reread this daily. and have forwarded it to as many friends (I only have a few.) as possible. Thank you from those of us that do not know when to put the shovel down from digging a hole for ourselves. From myself, my dearest friend Cat and our Higher Power, Thank you. Hugs.
Oliver Tausend says
Hi,
what an inspiring post. Every single piece of advice is a gem in itself. These truths should be taught in school. I especially agree with the pain thing: We learn and grow from it, but eventually it needs to be released.
Thanks for sharing your insights.
Take care
Oliver
Greg Marcus says
I tend to by cynical when I see post titles like this one, but you guys really nailed it here. I particularly like 5 and 8. They are related, and when we find someone who is lying to us, it is important to remember to take care of ourselves by removing their influence from our lives.
Melbin says
Wonderful points. I love the number 5 especially.
Steve says
Love truth #1 – Everything is as it should be…understanding that truth has gotten me farther in my personal growth than anything else I can think of. It helps you stop the why’s and what if’s and focus on moving forward with what life has given you. Kudos on the great words!
Thank you says
Thank you for this motivation.
pradeep says
point 3 is the real deal.
Nickyzter says
One of my best discoveries online is this site – Thank u !!
Santia says
Number 12 just gives me strength to continue on with my life…Everything is going to be OK, if not today but eventually…Just keep fighting…Love it. Thank you for such wonderful thoughts <3
zintle says
Wow guys I’m out of words to say… this is all I needed. I was going through a rough time in finding someone who will love and accept me as I am but now I know just what to do… thanks a lot.
Boki says
I really enjoyed reading through this article and soaking up all of the great information. Thank you for the wise words and god bless.
parthasarathy says
Wonderful! Excellent motivation. Thank you.
Petar says
If everyone knew, felt, and appreciated these truths the world would be a much better place. Anyhow great post, and I’m glad there is this kind of positive guidance in the world.
Take Care
Maosika says
Thank you for your post, and for reminding me that everything is going to be alright; maybe not today, but eventually.
markos says
I don’t want to risk my life anymore. I have made this mistake many times before, so I am trying so hard to change my lifestyle. Now I am trying to avoid bad habits like smoking, drinking, bad relationships. The truth that is not easy, you know, leaving the life that you don want from one day to other. But I know it’s worth the struggle.
lostbutfound says
Sometimes the world seems full of people wanting to push you in the wrong direction, so its nice to read something that tells life the way it should be told. Best thing I’ve read on the net for ages. Thanks guys.
Malcolm says
Thanks for the post, chaps.
Just what I needed to read as I am in the final stages of changing a relationship dramatically by leaving a marriage.
charisse says
Aww, this one is great. I can relate to a lot of these points. Thanks for posting it. I feel lot better now.
Zandria says
Wow… just, WOW! I so needed to read this today. Thank you.
Ashley Kieres says
This post makes so many things make sense now. It really helped me.
Dana says
I’m a 17 year old senior going crazy from school work. Randomly bumping into this really made my day :).
Saeed says
This was insightful. Thanks for sharing.
Robyn says
So glad I discovered your website. Just when I need it most your blogs help to redirect my perspective to the wonderful life I have. Thank you.
Jato David says
Thank you and thank you a thousand times. Am lifted right now. I feel reborn.
Ryan says
Truly inspirational. The irony is I stumbled onto this website by accident the other day. Now I’m glad I did.
Donna Gilbert says
Ryan,
Perhaps there are no accidents. The Universe has given you a gift at the right time for you to hear it.
Donna
Nick Brucker says
What an amazing piece of work!! Very inspiring and very captivating! Keep up this amazing work 🙂
Lne says
<3
peter jones says
I’m really glad I stumbled upon this article today. After a day filled with nothing but frustration, this is something I need to read to uplift my self. Thank you!
aditya says
A very nice post that put me in a positive mood.
Jeremy says
I like point 4, when to quit one thing and move on to something else. It’s true, we can do anything we want, but not everything at the same time.
Several really great tips and wisdom anyone can live by….glad I stumbled across this site. Going to look around at your other posts.
Edwin says
Certainly there are things outside of our control. If we stay positive, there are more chances to find the answer to our problems.
cova says
Inspiring article! I absolutely gonna add this site on my favorites list!
Uche Unogu says
Number 7 resonates. Its true you may need to be single a while especially after a divorce. One year is a rule of thumb. It’s incredible how much you will learn and re-learn about yourself after one year of being alone. Do this and the less baggage you carry into a new relationship.
Benny says
This was the most informative and inspiring article I’ve read in a long time. So many truths, especially #4. I am a student, and I was trapped between going back to a boring job or taking time off to pursue my dreams and ambitions for several months. So I took a step forward. In the past week, I’ve started a blog, signed up to learn to row, registered for my personal training certificate and booked a flight to Vietnam.
I really love this post and I love what you two are doing.
I look forward to reading more! Definitely adding this to my Follow list.
Joel says
All 12 are true, beautiful. 🙂
GL Williams says
Facing all twelve is what it’s all about.
Catherine says
Do you really believe this? I’m only asking because, as a recent college graduate (underemployed for the past two years) I am trying to understand how it is possible that everything is as it should be and everything is going to be alright, maybe not today, but eventually. I mean, generally, my life has showed that that is the case, but right now things just seem hopeless, no matter how many interviews I have held and it seems that nobody is giving me the chance of the time of day. Any thoughts? Or advice. I mean people keep telling me that I will get a job. It might not be what I want, but it will be a job. And people keep saying my time will come; but I have student debt–so I’m not sure what to make of this.
Gen F20 says
Number 1 is my life motto! Thank you both 🙂
Lynn says
L O V E !