5 quotes that could change your attitude – and your life

Several years ago when I lost my job a good friend took to sending me inspirational quotes via email each day. Every morning when I turned on my computer, up popped an email from her that included quotations that gave me the boost I needed to move forward on that day. It was her way of sharing a daily dose of encouragement. The quotes were from the famous, the funny and the philosophical, and each one seemed to provide just the words I needed to keep my attitude in check.

I love quotations and the more I delve into them, the more I find quotes that directly relate to just about everything in my life. Some of the easiest places to find quotes include Think Exist, Brainy Quote and Quote Garden. I know there are a ton of other sites too.

While I can’t list every quotation that has ever impacted me, there are a few that have really made a difference and I keep them in the back of my mind always. I’d like to share them here.

“Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls.”  ~Joseph Campbell

I wholeheartedly believe in this. When I lost my job, the first thing I foolishly I did was immediately start looking for another job that was exactly the same.
Although I knew in my heart that I didn’t want to continue on that path, I thought it was the only thing I knew how to do. I soon realized that doing the same thing over and over again was not good for my future. So I took a leap of faith and followed my bliss. I started my own company and became a writer, which had been my lifelong dream. Sure it was a challenge and I had to take a pay cut. But, gradually, I started getting writing assignments from newspapers and magazines, as well as corporations, and today I make a living doing what I love. No more cubicles. No more arrogant bosses. No more doing work I dislike just to make a paycheck. I am a firm believer that we all have a destiny that we should try to discover.

“It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for something you are not.”  ~Andre Gide

It took me until I was 40 years old to really understand that, as nice as I think I am, there will always be someone who simply doesn’t like me. Wow, it was quite a revelation but it has taken so much pressure off of me.  I remember when this concept hit me — I was having a hard time with a co-worker and no matter how nice and helpful I tried to be, she simply didn’t like me. I tried everything. I would agree with her, I would go out of my way to help her, I would be nice and friendly and laugh at her jokes. Nothing seemed to thaw her out. What could the problem be, I wondered? I am nice. I am pleasant. I am bending over backwards to do everything to make her like me……AHA! Bingo, that’s it. You can’t make people like you simply by changing who you are today. Because then tomorrow, you’ll have to change yourself again to try and win someone else’s favor, and on and on.

There is no shame in not being liked by someone. It’s really all about them and what they prefer.  My friend Joanne says her mother used to tell her, “You could be the most beautiful peach in the world, but some people don’t like peaches. They like bananas.”

“Count no day lost in which you waited your turn, took only your share and sought advantage over no one.” ~Robert Brault 

So many of us scurry around feeling unproductive if we don’t accomplish an entire list of To Do’s every day. But as Mr. Brault reminds us, every day in which we simply are kind is a worthwhile day. Think about the quote above. So simple that it’s brilliant.

“We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us.” ~Joseph Campbell

Ah, Joseph, I love your thinking. I imagine Mr. Campbell came up with this thought right before he uttered, “Follow your bliss.” This quote has rung true for me and for several people I know. How often do we stick to plans, goals, dreams and directions that perhaps we have outgrown simply because, well, it’s what we are supposed to do. I don’t think this quote is telling us to give up on everything we’ve planned or worked for. But, I do think it is saying that we must be willing to stay open to changes and diversions that may take us off the scheduled path that we’ve so neatly laid out. It’s sort of like using a compass instead of a road map. You can still head in the direction you need to be going but instead of sticking strictly on the mapped out roads, you allow yourself to roam down the little side paths that lead to a more interesting destination.

“It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are.” ~e.e. cummings

You want to be an artist but your parents want you to be an accountant. You are gay but you are afraid to acknowledge it for fear of what people will think. You want to quit your miserable job and open a small business but your spouse wants you to continue doing what you hate for the paycheck. You’d rather wear sweats and jeans than frilly dresses, but you don’t want to look different.

Sometimes it is hard being yourself, taking risks, going against the flow, following the beat of a different drummer…but the alternative is living a life that is not yours but somebody else’s.  As another brilliant person once said, “Life is not a dress rehearsal.” We really don’t get another chance. There are no do overs, no deletes, no backspace buttons. And when the final curtain comes down, who really wants to look back and say, “I just wish I had done…..”