Dig through any Pinterest account long enough and chances are you'll come across a board titled something to the effect of "Words to Live By" or "Quotes to Remember." I personally have a board overflowing with quotes and inspirational thoughts that I use as my laptop background, quietly chant to myself, or hope to paint on a canvas one day.
What I love about a good quote is the power it can carry. It's like a book's version of an energy shot.
As we so easily get caught up in hoarding these sweet nothings, I wonder what makes us find some pins worth saving. Even more curious, what can take these from little inspirations to an impactful, daily reality? Could applying my silly collection of pins really influence my day?
To put this to the test, I sifted back through the depths of my own Pinterest quotes board and somehow narrowed it down to my five favorites.
1. "Can you remember who you were, before the world told you who you should be?" -- Danielle LaPorte
2. "We cannot cure the world of sorrows but we can choose to live in joy." -- Joseph Campbell
3. "There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self." -- Ernest Hemingway
4. "If it is important to you, you will find a way. If it's not, you will find an excuse." -- Ryan Blair
5. "What is done in love is done well." -- Vincent Van Gogh
Some of these I can recall discovering years ago, but they still pack a punch.
Bringing these insights to the forefront of my mind, I set off on my typical Wednesday. At first I felt pretty silly walking around with a printed out arsenal of quotes in hand. However as the day went on and stress set in, I pulled out a few to try and calm my nerves. Surprisingly, these words gave me a hearty dose of much-needed motivation. Some simply gave me a boost of confidence, while others slowed me down and forced me to remember the reason why I value working so hard, even to the point of extreme stress.
At this point in the year, I feel like we could all use a few little reminders of why we do what we do. Why are we working so hard? Are we putting our hard work and energy towards the right things? Are we doing everything possible to achieve our goal? Has our focus shifted? Since we already have a ready-made store of miniature inspirations, let's put them to work!
Applying these truths resulted in a much different type of Wednesday for me. I felt more: courageous to step out of my comfort zone, empowered about my current state in life, motivated to work harder at my tasks, sensitive concerning the days of others, loving towards myself and those around me, and determined to live my day to the fullest extent possible.
Let's use our most cherished words of wisdom to do more than decorate our walls and journal pages. Let's bring them into our lives with purpose.
