Inspiration: "You have to stand beside yourself, 100%, every day" - 30 Lessons to Excel in Life in Your 30s and Beyond

You have to stand beside yourself, 100%, every day. – Self-respect, self-worth and self-love. There’s a reason they all start with “self.” You can’t receive them from anyone else. You are GOOD enough, SMART enough, ATTRACTIVE enough, and STRONG enough. Believe it! Own it! And never let insecurity and negativity run your life. There will always be someone who tells you that you can’t do something. Your mission is to smile and prove them wrong. One smile at a time.
Nothing great ever comes from a comfort zone. Period. – If you want to stunt your growth and feel stuck in the same place forever, keep making excuses. If, on the other hand, you want to stop feeling trapped, you have to start doing things that make you uncomfortable – things you aren’t very good at. There is no excuse for remaining stuck. There is no excuse for doing the same exact mundane things over and over again. Life is too short. Ask yourself if what you’re doing today is getting you closer to where you want to be tomorrow. What a disgrace it would be for you to grow old without ever seeing the beauty and strength of your full potential.
Fight for it. Do what’s right, not what’s easy. – Short-term adversity and failure are two of the surest stepping-stones to life-long success. Things can change if you want them to, at any age. As I awoke this morning, I marveled at my life today. Where once I woke with dread at the thought of a new day, now I wake with excitement to begin – grateful to be doing what I’m doing for a living. I am so happy I did what I had to do, and struggled through the tough times and the fears, and realigned my life with the things that make me happy. When friends ask me how I did it, as they sometimes do, I tell them, “Hard work and persistence. It’s a small price to pay for a changed life.”
Be a beacon of honesty and respect. – Be the type of person you want to meet and be around. Be the type of person whose actions, words and values always agree with each other.
Neglecting your interests and passions is self-deception. – Doing so is like pretending to be someone you’re not – living a lie. Don’t do it. Live a life you are proud of. Follow your excitement. When you lose yourself in the things you love, you will find yourself there, too. (Read The 4-Hour Workweek.)
Challenge yourself to beat your own personal records. – No one can do it for you – you have to choose to use your wings. Challenge yourself to be who you know you are capable of being. Challenge yourself to follow through – to live what you preach, to walk your talk. Don’t worry about how slowly you feel you’re heading towards your goals, or how many roadblocks you find, or how many detours you’re forced to take. As long as you keep doing your thing, you’re still cruising far ahead of everyone who’s too scared to even try.
Your struggles are really your best growth opportunities. – Know in your heart that there is strength inside you that is greater than the troubles you face. Stay strong. Be positive. We all struggle sometimes. Life’s about breaking our own limits and outgrowing ourselves to live our best lives. The more obstacles you overcome, the stronger you become. The one who falls and gets up is so much stronger than the one who never fell. You will honestly never know how strong you truly are until being strong is the only choice you have. Keep going. Keep growing.
Your alleged flaws will often work for you. – The little things about you that you think are your flaws are often the reasons others fall in love with you. Accept your flaws. Admit your mistakes. Don’t hide and don’t lie. Deal with the truth, learn the lessons, endure the consequences of reality, and move forward. Your truth won’t penalize you. The mistakes won’t hurt you. The denial and cover-up will. Flawed and vulnerable people are beautiful and likable. Liars and phonies are not. Every beautiful human being is made entirely of flaws, stitched together with good intentions and finished with unique qualities.
Let go and grow. Embrace change. – Always respect yourself enough to walk away from anything that holds you back and no longer grows you. Thank your past for all the lessons, and move forward. By leaving behind your old self and taking a leap of faith into the unknown, you find out who you’re truly capable of becoming. You can’t grow unless you’re willing to change. You will know you’re on the right track when you become uninterested in looking back. . .