Nothing you don't already know: Remarkable reminders about meaning, purpose, and self-realization

by Alexander Den Heijer

You often feel tired, not because you’ve done too much, but because you’ve done too little of what sparks a light in you.

The reason many people suffer is not that life is too tough; it’s that they haven’t found something worth living for.

A fulfilling life is not a life that’s without suffering, a fulfilling life is a life that’s worth the suffering.

Sometimes the best way to change ourselves is to change our environment.

Changing is not the problem; letting go of your resistance to change is.

Think about it, many of the seemingly difficult things in life are actually quite easy. Quitting a job, ending an unhealthy relationship, asking someone for a date… it only takes one decision. How easy! What is hard though is to make that decision. It’s the hesitation to make a decision that consumes our energy, not the decision itself.

It’s not the mountain in front of us that we must overcome; it’s the hurdle within ourselves.

People will say to you “you can’t do it”, but what they are really saying is “I would be too afraid to try that, myself.” Don’t let others with limited views affect yours.

The point of living isn’t to arrive at the future; it’s to arise in the present.

The fear of making a mistake is more harmful than the mistake itself.

The future is only scary for those who are unable to deal with the present.

Instead of trying to get rid of unpleasant feelings, it’s more rewarding to learn to relax while experiencing an unpleasant feeling.

Welcome everything, no matter how unpleasant. The release of our suffering is found in the unconditional acceptance of it.

The insecure compete against other people, while the confident compete against themselves.

Dive deep into your fear. Face it. Embrace it. Make friends with it. This doesn’t mean you will no longer have fear; it means fear will no longer have you.

Change may bring challenges, but with every challenge comes an opportunity to grow and evolve.

The way you see yourself is reflected in how you treat yourself.

If we filter our views through our beliefs, we don't actually see; we project. Projecting leads to judgment; true or false, right or wrong. This is not how we learn; this is only how we confirm what we already believe. To discover new truths, we must question our beliefs.

If we want to grow, we must learn to be completely open; to observe without judgment.

People who frustrate you may reflect a part of yourself that you haven’t embraced yet.

Never be a victim. Rock bottom is nothing more than a story we tell ourselves. Reframe the story and move on. Life is not about what happens to us; life is about how we bounce back.

As Mark Twain said, “The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.”

Nothing is right or wrong in itself. See the world exactly as it is: perfectly imperfect.

The results we want tomorrow are manifested by the rituals we implement today. Focus on the rituals. It’s all about the process. Take care of the small steps, and the results will eventually come.

Maybe it’s not about the dream; maybe it’s about who we become while we’re chasing it.

The point is not to be successful. The point is to be successfully.

Instead of blaming people for their behavior, it’s much better to see if we can understand their hidden needs. True understanding eradicates blame.

See everything that happens as an invitation to expand your ability to love, and you will find that your potential to love has no limits.

Great people don’t influence you to be like them; they inspire you to be yourself.

Too often we are trying to change people according to a picture we have in our mind. We want to change them in a way that it matches our preferences. Inspiring people don’t do this. They don’t shape us the way they want us to be. Instead, they encourage us to shape ourselves in a way that’s best for us.

It’s not on us to change people. People are not our possessions. People cannot realize themselves if they cannot express themselves. We may support other people and encourage them, but it’s on them to find their own way.

If we solve people’s problems, we produce followers. If we encourage people to solve their own problems, we produce leaders.

Interesting people may be noticed, but interested people are the ones who are remembered.

Inspiring are the people who have never lost their childlike curiosity. It’s refreshing to meet people who are genuinely curious and interested. It’s even more refreshing to be such a person.

Sometimes the best thing you can do to people is to really be with them. There is no present more precious than your presence.

Use your time to leave behind something that is timeless. Leave a legacy. Not for the sake of being remembered, but for the sake of leaving the world a bit better off as a result of your existence.

Judge your day by what you’ve put into it, not by what you got out of it.