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Kindle Notes & Highlights
by
Hal Elrod
Read between
March 15 - April 11, 2018
Instead of complaining about how things should be, I embraced how things were. I stopped putting energy into wishing my life were any different – into wishing bad things didn’t happen to me – and instead focused 100% on making the best of what I had. Since I couldn’t change the past, I focused on moving forward.
If there’s one thing that I’ve learned from my car accident, it’s that there is no point in dwelling on or feeling bad about the aspects of our lives that we can’t change.
If I could go from being found dead, told I would never walk again, going broke and feeling so depressed that I didn’t want to get out of bed in the morning to creating the life I’ve always wanted, then there are no legitimate excuses for you not to overcome any limitations that have held you back from achieving everything you want for your life. None. Zip. Nada.
It is important to understand that responsibility is not the same as blame. While blame determines who is at fault for something, responsibility determines who is committed to improving things.
It really doesn’t matter who is at fault – all that matters is that you and I are committed to leaving the past in the past and making our lives exactly the way we want them to be, starting today.
Know that wherever you are in your life right now is both temporary, and exactly where you are supposed to be. You have arrived at this moment to learn what you must learn, so you can become the person you need to be to create the life you truly want.
Even when life is difficult or challenging – especially when life is difficult or challenging – the present is always an opportunity for us to learn, grow, and become better than we’ve ever been before.
‘Life’s too short’ is repeated often enough to be a cliché, but this time it’s true. You don’t have enough time to be both unhappy and mediocre. It’s not just pointless; it’s painful.
You’ve got to wake up every morning with determination if you’re going to go to bed with satisfaction.
‘The biggest adventure you can ever take is to live the life of your dreams.’
Never forget that who you are becoming is the single most important determining factor in your quality of life, now and for your future.
‘Your level of success, will rarely exceed your level of personal development, because success is something you attract by the person you become,’
First, we must understand and acknowledge the reality that 95% of our society will never create and live the life they really want. We must embrace the fact that if we don’t commit to thinking and living differently than most people now, we are setting ourselves up to endure a life of mediocrity, struggle, failure and regret – just like most people.
want a life of freedom, where I get to wake up and do what I want, when I want, with whomever I want. I want to get out of bed every day and truly love my life. I want to love my work, and I want to love the people I get to share my life and work with. That’s my definition of success.
Accept the paradigm: my past does not equal my future. Talk to yourself in a way that inspires confidence that not only is anything possible, but that you are capable and committed to making it so.
There is nothing to fear, because you cannot fail – only learn, grow, and become better than you’ve ever been before.
Always remember that where you are is a result of who you were, but where you go depends entirely on who you choose to be, from this moment on.
Keep in mind that you’re not supposed to ‘figure out’ what your purpose is, you get to make it up, create it, decide what you want it to be.
In other words, focus on growing and being the best you can be, pursuing your dreams and inspiring others to do the same. That’s your purpose.
‘How you do anything is how you do everything.’
The reality is that if we don’t change now, our life won’t change. If we don’t get better, our life won’t get better. And if we don’t consistently invest time into our self-improvement, our life will not improve. Yet, most of us wake up every day and stay the same.
If you really think about it, hitting the snooze button in the morning doesn’t even make sense. It’s like saying ‘I hate getting up in the morning, so I do it over, and over, and over again.’
Your life is made up of the physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual parts that make up every human being – or PIES for short.
our outer world is a reflection of our inner world.
In the attitude of silence the soul finds the path in a clearer light, and what is elusive and deceptive resolves itself into crystal clearness.
Being (who you need to be) and doing (what you need to do) are prerequisites for having what you want to have.
‘Yoga is a multi-faceted science that has applications for the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of life.
A person who won’t read has no advantage over one who can’t read.
Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body and prayer is to the soul.
On the one hand, we all want to be happy. On the other hand, we all know the things that make us happy. But we don’t do those things. Why? Simple. We are too busy. Too busy doing what? Too busy trying to be happy.
If we want to have more energy (which we all do) and if we want our lives to be healthy and disease-free (which we all do) then it’s crucial that we re-examine why we eat the foods that we do, and – this is important – start valuing the health benefits and energy consequences of the foods we eat as much as or more than the taste.
Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going.
our quality of life is created by the quality of our habits.
It was in that moment I realized that this is a gift of freedom not reserved for the chosen few, but one that is available to each and every one of us the moment we make the choice to take on challenges that are out of our comfort zone, forcing us to grow, to expand our capacity, to be and do more than we have been and done in the past. This is true freedom.
Every day, think as you wake up, ‘Today I am fortunate to have woken up, I am alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others. I am going to benefit others as much as I can.’
