by Luminita D. Saviuc
Remember when you were a little child and you thought that grown-ups had the answers to all of your questions and that those answers would, in fact, reflect the ultimate truth and how life should be lived?
Well, what you did not know then (and what a lot of us probably still don’t know) is that each and every one of us has a different set of beliefs and based on those beliefs, we build our lives and our reality. Below is a list of 18 simple truths that no one shared with you while growing up. It is based on my own beliefs and experiences. And you don’t have to believe anything, ”no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said
”No matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.” ~Buddha
18 SIMPLE TRUTHS NOBODY TOLD US WHILE GROWING UP:
1. With self-love and acceptance comes real happiness
There is no greater gift you can give to yourself than the gift of self-love.
“If you aren’t good at loving yourself, you will have a difficult time loving anyone, since you’ll resent the time and energy you give another person that you aren’t even giving to yourself.” ~Barbara De Angelis
2. Judgments prevent us from seeing the good in people
The moment we judge another human being, we block ourselves from seeing beyond the labels we put on to that person, restricting ourselves from knowing and seeing them for who they really are – not for who we think they are.
3. The more grateful you are, the happier your life gets
Gratitude is one of the 12 activities that Sonja Lyubomirsky talks about in her book, “The How of Happiness.” It is the activity that is scientifically proven to help us achieve and attract more happiness into our lives.
“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend.” ~Melody Beattie
4. What other people think of you is none of your business
Your reputation is not something over which you have control. The more people with whom you interact, the more reputations you get. I know, it’s actually quite funny. We can’t really control what other people think of us. And trust me, your reputation has nothing to do with being a “good” or a “bad” person.
5.There are no limits to what we can achieve, only the ones we impose on ourselves
“Don’t believe what your eyes are telling you. All they show is limitation. Look with your understanding, find out what you already know, and you’ll see the way to fly.” ~Richard Bach
6. When we do good, we feel good
“If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” ~The Dalai Lama
7. Time waits for no one
It does not. Time passes by so fast! And that is exactly why we must learn to treasure every single moment we spend on this beautiful Earth, to be present and engaged in everything we do – for time, once passed, is gone forever.
8. Wisdom never decreases by being shared
Share your knowledge with the world, share your unique gifts and talents – for it is in giving that we receive.
9. Love people, not things; use things, not people
Things come and go – but people, once they’re gone, are gone forever. That is exactly why we really have to pay close attention to how we treat everyone around us and choose always to be kind, loving and respectful toward them.
10. Money can’t buy you real happiness
If you love what you do, you will always find a way to earn money. But don’t make money your end goal, for you will never be happy if you do so. And I find the words of Wayne Dyer to describe this so beautifully:
“When I chased after money, I never had enough. When I got my life on purpose and focused on giving of myself and everything that arrived into my life, then I was prosperous.” ~ Wayne Dyer
11. Hard work doesn’t always equal success
We were raised to believe that if we work hard – very hard – we will become successful and we will be able to afford many things that not-so-hard working people won’t be able to afford. But, that’s not always the case. I know that it may sound a bit harsh, but the following words of Bill Bowerman will make you think:
“The idea that the harder you work, the better you’re going to be is just garbage. The greatest improvement is made by the man or woman who works most intelligently.” ~ Bill Bowerman
12. We know more than we think we do
“Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms and like books that are written in a very foreign tongue. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps you will find them gradually, without noticing it, and live along some distant day into the answer.” ~Rainer Maria Rilke
13. You attract what you focus on
What we focus on expands and what we resist persists! Is there something you don’t like? Don’t fight it, don’t resist it, don’t complain about it.
“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” ~Richard Buckminster Fuller
14. Don’t believe everything you think
Every time we choose to stress about the things we can’t change, the things we can change, the things we don’t want to change, we are in fact causing, even more, stress in our lives, and keeping ourselves from thinking clearly and making smart decisions.
“If you realized how powerful your thoughts are, you would never think a negative thought.” ~Peace Pilgrim
15. Beliefs become self-fulfilling prophecies
“If you treat an individual as he is, he will remain how he is. But if you treat him as if he were what he ought to be and could be, he will become what he ought to be and could be.” ~Goethe
16. Don’t compare and don’t compete
To compare yourself with others is toxic, unhealthy and damaging to your self-esteem and self-image. Constantly competing with others will drain so much energy out of you! The best thing you can do for yourself is to realize that:
“True nobility it is not about being better than anyone else. It is about being better than you used to be.” ~Wayne Dyer
17. Love everything, be attached to nothing
“Attachment is the great fabricator of illusions; reality can be attained only by someone who is detached.” ~Simone Weil
18. It helps to talk openly about death
You may ask why should we do such a thing. It is because: “A dying man needs to die, as a sleepy man needs to sleep, and there comes a time when it is wrong, as well as useless, to resist.” ~Stewart Alsop Talking about death – and not pretending like it will never happen to us – will help us live fuller lives, will help us enjoy the moments we spend with the people we
Talking about death – and not pretending like it will never happen to us – will help us live fuller lives, will help us enjoy the moments we spend with the people we love, even more, expressing our appreciation and gratitude for them more often. Then, when the time comes for us or them to leave this planet, we can do it with grace and serenity.
About the Author: Luminita, the Founder of PurposeFairy, is an enthusiastic student of the arts, psychology, and spirituality. Her acclaimed blog post, 15 Things You Should Give Up To Be Happy , was shared by over 1.3 million people on Facebook. Later on, it became the heart of her book, 15 Things You Should Give Up To Be Happy., book that was published by Penguin Random House. For more details check out the 15 Things You Should Give Up To Be Happy Book Page.
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