Inspiration Archives

No one on his deathbed ever said "I wish I'd spent more time at the office." Don't get me wrong. Work is a wonderful thing. It can be very fulfilling and can provide meaningful service to others. But personal relationships are the most important things in our lives. It's through relationships with others that we learn about ourselves, about how to make choices, how to self correct, how to grow and develop, how to contribute to the human community, how to turn dreams into reality. And listening is the most important behavior in those relationships. Really listening. This requires using your eyes and your…

Our time here is short. The average human life lasts only 650,000 hours. It was a lesson I learned in 2005, when my father collapsed from a heart attack. After his sudden death, friends wrote letters saying how he'd supported them, made them better people, and I thought... What will friends say when I'm gone? What am I doing that matters? And then I volunteered in six countries around the world. That journey changed my view of life. I learned that there's power in small gestures. In many Third World countries, parents will send their kids to school - rather…

There's a phrase that says "when one door closes, another door opens." The image conjures up a sense that somehow you are at the mercy of a string of corridors - much like a maze - and the success of your path will be determined by someone (or something) either allowing admittance into certain areas or flatly refusing your petition. However, this may not at all be the case. What if we were to discover that the doors were something we could open and close ourselves - or better yet, they were all simply illusions? Modern day consciousness research is…

One definition of enlightenment is, "no problems." I like this. At first it seems simplistic, but the more you think about it, the more its wisdom is revealed. Everyone desires to be healthy and happy, and as I get older I am beginning to believe that it is easier than we think. There's an enormous amount of confusion, guilt and dysfunction surrounding how to take care of ourselves. This, I believe, is reinforced by industries that profit from our ignorance. There are only two dietary and lifestyle choices - either we choose to live, and act accordingly, or we choose…

Bullying is a problem that affects too many people and it needs to stop. To those being bullied, know that it's ok to talk to someone: a parent, friend, trusted adult, teacher, sibling or anyone else that you feel safe with. Even if you're scared at first, it will pay off in the long run. I believe it's important for everyone to be themselves. Other people need to accept you for you and not someone you're trying to be. The world would be really boring if we were all alike, but think of how wonderful it is with so many…

In today's culture of instant gratification where everything is available at the touch of a button and success is measured in viral terms, we tend to dismiss anything that doesn't result in instantaneous, mega success. So what happens if your dreams appear too big, too difficult or too impossible to attain? I am a dreamer and I believe that everyone who has a dream should pursue it and discover the possibilities that exist in the process. A dream, that "strongly desired goal or purpose," usually applies to something better than what you have. You live in a shack and dream…

Sometimes the uncertainty of life can seem to be a bit of a challenge. Existing in an environment where you may have little to no access to things like excessive amounts of money or material wealth may make you question the meaning of your very existence. But, I want to tell you not to worry. One of the most motivational and memorable messages from a sermon that I can remember came from the following seven words, "You have everything you need to succeed." These quoted words were (and still are) music to my ears, and have since stuck like glue…

Feel your feelings. If you're a person who tends to numb or stuff your feelings, know that doing so just puts you in bondage to your feelings. Those emotions won't just disappear because they are ignored. They won't remain hidden away just because they were stuffed. Feelings come out in other ways. Whether through destructive behaviors, health problems, emotional outbursts at inconvenient times, or something else, they make themselves known. Learn healthy ways to express your emotions. Whether it be through doing something creative, punching something soft, venting to someone, or something else, find ways that are a good fit…

If you have been feeling lost in life and have found yourself wrestling with the age old question that many encounter - what do I really want to do with my life? I would first congratulate you and then ask you to consider yourself lucky for you are at a precipice of change. Having been there personally, I know firsthand how uncomfortable things can be but I also know that if you look hard enough, this can be something that can change your life forever by helping you unlock the secret to creating a happier, rewarding and a purposeful life.…

Knowing about happiness intellectually is different than understanding its practical complexities. It's easy to say don't do things that make you unhappy and only do things that make you happy. But life isn't linear. We don't live only happy or unhappy moments. If we watch our Facebook feed or Twitter stream, we can see something that makes us laugh and something else that makes us cry in the same sixty minutes. If you want to be happy most of the time, you have to figure out how to do it despite the chaos, unhappiness and annoyances. Those things are going…

Each day is a new opportunity to have impact and influence in the universe. I ask the creator, how can I serve you today? If I can help somebody, then my living is not in vain. Prayer, meditation, and deep breathing is my way of beginning and ending my day. I pray for the will of God, not my will, to be done. I begin and end my day with gratitude. I am grateful for each moment in this journey called life. I am grateful for the mountain-top experiences as well as the low valleys. I have learned to ask,…

No matter what you've endured in life, you can "recycle" your experiences into tools and stepping stones that propel you forward faster and simultaneously bounce your baggage to the curb. If you've ever felt consumed by your choices or challenges, I know how you feel. In my late teens I suffered two incidences of rape that left me emotionally scraping and crawling through a sea of shame and assumptions about what my life could then be. I left the college education I worked so hard to achieve and hid my secrets within a marriage while packing on an extra 50…

My ultimate goal is to live life as a work of art. Here's how it works: 1. Take responsibility to create a life for yourself. Be an artist creating a masterpiece. Actively shape your own life. Write down your goals, make an inspiration board - whatever works for you. However, leave room for surprises and diversions, as artists sometimes end up with completely unplanned masterpieces. 2. Consider balance in your life. As an artist assesses balance in her work (e.g. light vs. dark, objects vs. space), consider productivity vs. rest, work vs. play, helping others vs. acting for yourself, and…

When you do what you love, work always feels like play. Follow whatever you are passionate about, and you will find yourself always going above and beyond the call of duty, and the money will always follow. You will naturally and easily rise to the top of your field. Money can be made, money can be lost, money can be made again. What you can't make more of is time. The only thing your life is made of is time. Don't waste it. Make your loved ones your priority - always. Work is always secondary, but unfortunately, so many people…

It takes poetry sometimes. Sometimes I have trouble, explaining directly about happiness. We have not been taught, after all, that happiness is not a soft thing whatsoever. It is not the blurred focus of the greeting cards. So we buy and send them off, a wish to be fulfilled by someone else. So easy, our favorite thing. So I tell people to imagine happiness as already there, with them, as waiting, as always-has-been-waiting, and not, as they imagined, a thing they wait and wait for to show up after all. That becomes too much for them. They order a drink,…

You have the power to change your habits, your life, and your destiny. It starts with the positive choice to get off your attitude. Where do you start? Begin by taking responsibility for your own life. Get serious. It's up to you. If you want to change your life, change your attitude. It's as simple as this: You have two options. You can sit around complaining or you can get off your attitude and make it happen! Let me share the following habits you need to develop in order to adopt that winning attitude: 1. Think, talk, and act positive.…

Growing up in traditionalism as I did, I found my freedom and voice later in life. I discovered that I could be so much more than a wife or mother. I could be anything I wanted to be. An old refrain certainly, but it's old because it's TRUE. Don't do it someday, DO IT TODAY! I began my adult life standing in the secondhand light of a man. (Traditional, remember?) Years later, I figured out that I couldn't change, fix, repair or control another human being, as hard as I might try. I learned that the only person I could…

If I could name the biggest obstacle to finding success in life and the joy of achieving our dreams, it would be each one of us. How many of us wake up with discouragement, self-pity, anger at our circumstances, or fear of the unknown? Perhaps our jobs are monotonous, or our marriages are bathed in tears, or our health is declining, or we have money problems. Life isn't turning out the way we wanted. We've shoved away our dreams in a dresser drawer and slammed it shut. In place of our dreams, we hide in numbing mindlessness - the fog…

You are only what you give You reap only where you've sown You attract only what you respect You create only what you say You become only what you honor You overcome only what you face You trust only what you believe You have only what you let go You lose only what you hold on to And your goodness is only reflected in your legacy. One restaurant is known for its chicken that is done right, another is known for its French fries, and another is known for its hamburger. Like the preparation of food, your life will be…