Real excellence and humility are not incompatible one with the other, on the contrary they are twin sisters. - Jean Baptiste Lacordaire

Real excellence and humility are not incompatible one with the other, on the contrary they are twin sisters.
- Jean Baptiste Lacordaire

Like many people, I have a constant battle with self-importance. Sometimes I am very pleased with myself and believe that other people's happiness depends on me. Much more often, I have self doubts and believe that I am inadequate. I fully identify with the words my friend Philip wrote recently, "I usually go back and forth between feeling like I'm more important than I really am or that I'm not important at all. Either way is simply self-centeredness. What I would like to be all day, every day, is God-centered."

I find self-centeredness to be a great cause of self-inflicted suffering, whether it shows up as an inflated ego or as feeling worthless. For me, happiness comes when I remember that others' opinions of me are just their opinions - nothing more. I find happiness in moving toward my goals regardless of the applause or the jeers of others.

Further reading:
Abraham Lincoln: Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them?

Happiness blooms in the presence of self-respect and the absence of ego. - jlh

How to be Happy - 7 Secrets for a Happy Life

Eleanor Roosevelt quote: The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.

The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.
- Eleanor Roosevelt

Powerful Dreams Inspire Powerful Action.
When you can taste, smell, and touch your dream, you can enroll the world.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Never stop dreaming your inspired future. Believing in your dreams is only the first step, but unless you have a dream that you believe in, you are leaving your future to random chance.

Further reading: Eleanor Roosevelt: It is better to light a candle than to curse the darkness

Mary Anne Radmacher: Dare to dream of your great success

Martin Luther King, Jr. - Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.

How to get over regrets and resentments

If you aren't in the moment, you are either looking forward to uncertainty, or back to pain and regret.
- Jim Carrey

Regrets and their cousins, resentments, are a huge cause of self-inflicted suffering. Sometimes it takes years of psychotherapy to gain freedom from regrets about what you did or did not do, and freedom from resentment over what others did or did not do. Sometimes it takes a lifetime of self-talk to remember to put the past in the past where it belongs. However, sometimes a simple symbolic act can help immeasurably to grant ourselves freedom from the past.

One of the quickest ways to move past a regret is to hold a RELEASE ceremony. Reverently build a small fire. Write each regret or resentment on a slip of paper. Hold the paper for a moment, and then feed the paper with the regret or resentment to the cleansing fire. Visualize your trouble going up in smoke. Try it, it's amazingly freeing.

Further reading: How To Stop Worrying By Using the Qigong Release Exercise

The Paradox Of Living In The Moment - How To Be Happy Today And Prepare For Tomorrow

Does it ever get easier to release the resentment and the anger, and to forgive?

Why I Choose to Believe that Others are Never the Cause of My Unhappiness

What To Do When Your Whole World Is Falling Apart? 6 Support Ideas To Stop Anxiety and Give You Back Your Life

Regrets, Resentments and the Path to Forgiveness - Stop Anger & Live Happy With Conscious Awareness

You don't have the power to make life "fair," but you do have the power to make life joyful. - jlh

Pravs World quotes and images - Pravs J inspires India, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka

Pravs J's Pravs World quotes and images provide inspiration to India, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka.

Pravs J is the virtual name of a young man from Mumbai who has been anonymously providing inspiring quotes and images over the internet for the last ten years at pravsworld.com and more recently pravstalk.com. India, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka, and to some extent, Indonesia, Japan, and Singapore have been captivated by the inspirational quotes he superimposes over graceful pictures. The words are seldom Pravs J's own, but are are carefully selected famous and not so famous inspiring quotes and short stories - which are seldom attributed to their authors.

Pravs J describes himself as a biker and cricket fan who frequents internet cafes. His modest dreams include being President of India and driving a Formula 1 racing car.

"I believe life's rich experiences need to be shared with others - for me this is the way one builds knowledge." - Pravs J

Rabindranath Tagore quote: Love does not claim possession, but gives freedom.

Love does not claim possession, but gives freedom.
- Rabindranath Tagore

The next time you say, "my wife," "my husband," "my children," or even, "my friend," pause for a moment and ask yourself whether there isn't just a tiny bit of possessiveness in that statement.

True love is a process of co-creation in which neither feels ownership or superiority. Jealousy is a highly destructive force for love and relationships.

Further reading: The #1 Secret of Great Relationships
Rabindranath Tagore quotes

Learning to Dance in the Rain

My favorite Simple Truths' book Learning to Dance in the Rain is now a free video. Watch the video and consider buying the book. It's on sale for a short time only.

"Life's not about waiting for the storms to pass...
It's about learning to dance in the rain."
~Vivian Greene

This beautiful quote by Vivian Greene inspired Mac Anderson and B J Gallagher to write the book...Learning to Dance in the Rain...The Power of Gratitude.


Learning to Dance in the Rain [the book]
From: Simple Truths

Value your own opinion more, and others' opinions less - Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Value your own opinion more, and others' opinions less.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Whatever anyone else says or does, their words and their actions are truly about themselves. Don't take it personally when they rant, even if they direct their unhappiness in your direction.

While I appreciate how unpleasant it is to have others making unreasonable demands of you, it may help to remind yourself that it's not personal. Others are often 100% focused on their own issues and their own perceived needs. They project their frustration out into the mirror of life. When they look into that mirror, they think they are seeing your face, but in reality, they are seeing their own emotions.

Remember to love yourself and to take time for yourself.

Further reading: Joseph Campbell: The world is perfect. It's a mess. It has always been a mess. We are not going to change it.