I had everything I could possibly want – yet I was failing to appreciate it. Bogged down in petty complaints and passing crises, weary of struggling with my own nature, I too often failed to comprehend the splendor of what I had.
I enjoy the fun of failure. It’s fun to fail, I kept repeating. It’s part of being ambitious; it’s part of being creative. If something is worth doing, it’s worth doing badly.
Happiness is hard because it’s very subjective. I know the people that seem happiest to me, but whether they are actually – what they’re really like inside is really hard to say.
Money. It’s a good servant but a bad master.
Time waits for no ovary.
Enthusiasm is more important than innate ability, it turns out, because the single more important element in developing an expertise is your willingness to practice.
Work harder to appreciate your ordinary day.
The more I examine the issue of clutter, the more effort I put into combating it, because it really does act as a weight.
In the scope of a happy life, a messy desk or an overstuffed coat closet is a trivial thing, yet I find – and I hear from other people that they agree – that getting rid of clutter gives a disproportionat e boost to happiness.
People feel happier when they feel like they’re progressing. When they feel like something in their life is growing or getting better.
We must exercise ourselves in the things which bring happiness, since, if that be present, we have everything, and, if that be absent, all our actions are directed toward attaining it.
There are no do overs and some things just aren’t going to happen. It is a little sad but you just have to embrace what is.
We tend to overestimate what we can do in a short period, and underestimate what we can do over a long period.
I used to be very disciplined about only buying three books ahead of what I was reading, but my husband corrupted me, and now I’m dozens ahead of myself!
Outer order contributes to inner calm.
Feelings follow actions. If I’m feeling low, I deliberately act cheery, and I find myself actually feeling happier. If I’m feeling angry at someone, I do something thoughtful for her and my feelings toward her soften. This strategy is uncannily effective.
Pay close attention to any flame of enthusiasm.
Guard your children’s free time – from you.
I can build a happy life only on the foundation of my own nature.
We are happy when we are growing.
There is a preppy wabi-sabi to soft, faded khakis and cotton shirts, but it’s not nice to be surrounded by things that are worn out or stained or used up.