Never stop sculpting your own statue, until the divine virtue of splendor shines in you.
-Pierre Hadot
What virtues did you develop today? Our soul hears our thoughts and feels our actions.
Tag: growth
Unique
Nothing, therefore, is more important than that we should not, like sheep, follow the flock that has gone before us.
-Seneca
What makes you unique? The thing we should all strive for is to be the best at being ourselves. You are the artist and the art. Make your painting your own and one that highlights your unique qualities.
Strength
He who overcomes others has force. He who overcomes himself is strong.
-Lao Tzu
Are you your worst enemy? We can start to eliminate negative thinking by confronting it with positive actions aimed at growth. Much of this starts with acknowledging that we can only control our own thoughts and actions. If we can control it, it should be aimed at self-improvement and at adding value to the communities of which we are a member.
Future
Do not be troubled by the future: you will encounter it, if need be, with the same sword of reason in your hand that now serves you against the present.
-Marcus Aurelius
How do you view your future? Our focus should be on building confidence now. Use the present moment to cultivate a sense of strength before looking to the future. If you do this, your gaze will be tinted with courage and not with fear.
Stop and Start
Start where you are. You might be the most depressed person, the most addicted person in the world, the most jealous person in the world. You might think that there are no others on the planet who hate themselves as much as you do. All of that is a good place to start. Just where you are- that’s the place to start.
– Pema Chodron, The Pocket Pema Chodron
What stops you from starting? When we stop trying to be perfect we can start moving towards our ideal selves. There is no moment aside from the now so that is the best place to start because it could be the only place.
Dig — The Pocket Philosopher
Dig within yourself. There lies the source of good; a source whose waters will forever well up, if you but forever dig.
-Marcus Aurelius
How do you look inward on a daily basis? Are you constantly consuming food, sights, and sounds without ever questioning if they’re good for you? To dig within is to practice […]
Loss
Loss is nothing else than change.
– Marcus Aurelius
All is loss. All is opportunity. All is change. Failure and success both involve choice and the crafting of a perspective.
Awareness
Man is nothing other than his own project. He exists only to the extent that he realizes himself, therefore he is nothing more than the sum of his actions, nothing more than his life.
-Jean-Paul Sartre
What is the final sum of your actions this week? Who did you become? Awareness of actions, especially habits, is key.
Gratitude
The fool’s life is empty of gratitude and full of fears; its course lies wholly toward the future.
-Seneca
How often are you consciously grateful? Gratitude is much less fragile than desire, and the present is more stable than the future. Act now, inspired by gratitude.
The Pocket Philosopher 