Happiness Quote

"Happiness can only exist in acceptance."  

                                                                                               ~Denis de Rougamont

Love Myself Poem

I found this beautiful poem on self-love today, which has been attributed to Charlie Chaplin. He is said to have written this on his 70th birthday. As we go through life, we come to more and more realizations, and this poem definitely contains great wisdom worth sharing. Enjoy!

As I Began to Love Myself  (attributed to Charlie Chaplin)
As I began to love myself I found that anguish and emotional suffering
are only warning signs that I was living against my own truth.
Today, I know, this is “AUTHENTICITY”.

As I began to love myself I understood how much it can offend somebody
As I try to force my desires on this person, even though I knew the time
was not right and the person was not ready for it, and even though this
person was me. Today I call it “RESPECT”.

As I began to love myself I stopped craving for a different life,
and I could see that everything that surrounded me was inviting me to grow.Today I call it “MATURITY”.
 
As I began to love myself I understood that at any circumstance,
I am in the right place at the right time, and everything happens
at the exactly right moment. So I could be calm.
Today I call it “SELF-CONFIDENCE”.

As I began to love myself I quit steeling my own time,
and I stopped designing huge projects for the future.
Today, I only do what brings me joy and happiness, things I love to do
and that make my heart cheer, and I do them in my own way and in
my own rhythm. Today I call it “SIMPLICITY”.

As I began to love myself I freed myself of anything that is no good for
my health – food, people, things, situations, and everything that drew
me down and away from myself. At first I called this attitude
a healthy egoism. Today I know it is “LOVE OF ONESELF”.

As I began to love myself I quit trying to always be right, and ever since
I was wrong less of the time. Today I discovered that is “MODESTY”.

As I began to love myself I refused to go on living in the past and worry
about the future. Now, I only live for the moment, where EVERYTHING
is happening. Today I live each day, day by day, and I call it “FULFILLMENT”.

As I began to love myself I recognized that my mind can disturb me
and it can make me sick. But As I connected it to my heart, my
mind became a valuable ally. Today I call this
connection “WISDOM OF THE HEART”.

We no longer need to fear arguments, confrontations or any kind of problems
with ourselves or others. Even stars collide, and out of their crashing
new worlds are born.Today I know THAT IS “LIFE”!

The 5th Pillar of Self-Esteem: Living Purposefully

Living purposefully means working towards and reaching goals we have set for ourselves, living productively, and effectively using our abilities and talents.

So if living purposefully is a major component of self-esteem, does it mean that people who are high achievers have a healthy sense of self-esteem? Not necessarily. All too often, people who accumulate a lot of external achievements may have gotten there because they wanted to prove their worth. Some have achieved a lot in their career, but their personal relationships are in shambles. Others may hide behind work in order to escape from other realities in their life.

I know this only too well from my own experience. In my previous career, I wanted to prove myself and my worth through my work, which gave me a tremendous amount of motivation to achieve. It seemed easier to “escape” into work and focus on it, so I wouldn’t have to worry about other aspects of my life. And while the external achievements helped build some validation and esteem, it didn’t really help me feel better about myself.

One thing I was missing was a higher purpose: what was I doing everything for? Of course I could set goals for myself: Take on more responsibility, get a promotion, buy a nice house. But these goals didn’t mean very much without a bigger purpose- and not just for my work, but for my life.  

Companies usually have a mission statement that guides the development of a vision and goals. And as part of my job in strategic planning, I applied these principles at work all the time. But I had no idea how to figure out my personal mission statement, until I left the corporate world and went to train as a coach.   

How do you figure out your purpose? The best way to identify your purpose is with the help of others. But you can start the process yourself.  Here is one way to begin: Take a sheet of paper and write “My purpose in life is to...” at the top. Then start writing as many different endings to the sentence as you can, without thinking too much. Just keep on going, filling the page. Put the paper away and revisit it later, marking the endings that resonate the most with you. This is a starting point – there will definitely be some clues to your purpose in life on that page.

The other important component of Living Purposefully is to set goals and take action. Once you know your purpose, it’s time to set specific goals that are in line with your purpose and identify action items to reach those goals.

I believe that our life purpose evolves over time, so it’s fine to start with something now and clarify or edit it later. My life purpose right now is to fall in love with myself and my life, and help others do the same. So my goals, whether it’s developing new workshops, spending time with my friends and loved ones, or writing a book, have a deeper meaning because they help me live my purpose.

How are you living your purpose today?

Living Purposefully is the 5^th Pillar from Dr. Nathaniel Branden’s book “The 6 Pillars of Self-Esteem.”

Every Moment is a Golden One

"Life has no other discipline to impose, if we would but realize it, than to accept life unquestioningly. Everything we shut our eyes to, everything we run away from, everything we deny, denigrate or despise, serves to defeat us in the end. What seems nasty, painful, evil, can become a source of beauty, joy and strength, if faced with an open mind. Every moment is a golden one for him who has the vision to recognize it as such." ~Henry Miller

Source: pauerconsulting.com via Manuela on Pinterest