Part 11 Quotes Here
1. “Respect Buddha and the gods without counting on their help” – Miyamoto Musashi
On Personal Responsibility:
I want to preface by saying this isn’t about not having your faith if that’s important to you. It’s about taking personal responsibility, and not solely relying on outside sources to move your life in the direction that you’re looking for. Have your faith at your back, but be the catalyst in your own life for producing outcomes.
YOU are responsible for the direction you’d like your life to go. Success can’t be expected in anything without some effort on your part. You have to put in the time and the effort to stack the odds of success in your favor.
In short, don’t just expect things to be awarded to you; go out and earn it. Be self sufficient. If your faith is important to you, then continue your spiritual practices, but it’s good to remove your ego and sense of entitlement if you believe your goals should just be handed to you.
Purpose and accomplishment come from the journey you endure to reach your goals, so appreciate the process, even if it’s not easy sometimes.
2. “If I am worth anything later, I am worth something now. For wheat is wheat, even if people think it is grass in the beginning” – Vincent van Gogh
On Self Worth:
In general, I hope that you have some established goals that you’re aspiring towards in your life. The problem with this is that we tend to have some disconnect in our brain between the future version of ourselves that will attain those things, versus who we are today. You have to learn to realize that if you truly believe that you can reach your goals, then you’re ALREADY that person, just separated by a little bit of time.
Stop pushing off establishing self confidence, and start carrying yourself like a person that can attain anything. Some goals take time to get, but you’re already the person that can do it. This should give you a big source of confidence.
If you’re aspiring to be rich, carry yourself like you already are. Start taking actions in your life that people in your desired position already do, then you’ll already be on the path to achieving it. The results might not be significant at first, but you’re still making progress.
An important point is to just make sure that your actions are in line with the goals you’re pursuing. Even if you’re walking, if you continue to put one foot in front of the other, eventually you’ll finish a marathon, even if it seems far-fetched in the beginning. It may take some sacrifice, but you can be the person that accomplishes all they set out for.
Your sense of self worth should not solely be tied to the circumstances you find yourself in today. Look forward to the future, and realize that if you’re willing to pay the price for your dreams, then they are yours for the taking. Start acting like that ideal version of yourself with untapped potential, and the physical results will follow soon after.
3. “It’s silly to try to escape other people’s faults. They are inescapable. Just try to escape your own” – Marcus Aurelius
On Self Control/Reflection:
We get so frustrated at other people’s shortcomings, but we rarely take a candid look at our own. If we can’t control how others present themselves in the world, why do we get so upset by their behaviors? We can only control our own actions and how we react to the situations we’re faced with.
Stop pouring so much energy into being frustrated with others, it does nothing. We have faults of our own, so why aren’t we more focused on that? In other words, it’s hard to cast judgment when we have our own unique failings.
I understand people do things that are aggravating or hurtful, but we have to be able to process those emotions and move on, not dwell on it. What other choice do we have?
People are going to do/say what they want, but it’s up to us to choose how much it’s going to affect us. Understand that others have a lot they’re dealing with too; it’s not your responsibility to take on their issues as well.
Pull your attention back to yourself, and focus on bettering YOURSELF; it’s the ONLY thing you have control of.