favorite quotes

10 Inspiring Quotes on Overcoming Fear + Bonus Video of My Skydive!

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While packing for the move, I saw some of my childhood pictures that reminded me how scared I used to be, of so many things – darkness, loneliness, dogs, water/drowning, heights and more. And I realised how so many people go through their entire lives with one or more fears. That inspired this blog post. Sorry, no ‘Mush Talks‘ this Sunday.

I am not an expert on overcoming fears, but have successfully applied a simple strategy for anything I was scared of: Jump right in. That’s what made it possible not only to overcome many of the fears, but enjoy some of the most memorable adventures like scuba diving, skydiving, zip-lining, swimming with whale sharks etc. I hope these quotes and the skydive video inspire you to overcome at least one of your fears. If they don’t, then just jump right in!

  • There is no illusion greater than fear. Lao Tzu
  • The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. Nelson Mandela
  • He who is not everyday conquering some fear has not learned the secret of life. Ralph Waldo Emerson
  • Fears are educated into us, and can, if we wish, be educated out. Karl Augustus Menninger
  • Fear: False Evidence Appearing Real. Unknown
  • I am not afraid of tomorrow, for I have seen yesterday and I love today. William Allen White
  • Fear is only as deep as the mind allows. Japanese Proverb
  • Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. The fearful are caught as often as the bold. Helen Keller
  • The enemy is fear. We think it is hate; but, it is fear. Gandhi
  • Courage is not the absence of fear. It’s the ability to act in the presence of fear. Bruce Lee

You may view some more of my travel videos here.

Inspiring quotes by Paulo Coelho

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Three years ago on this blog (re-post from September 2009)
  • No one can avoid defeat. That is why it is better to lose a few battles in the fight for your dreams than to be defeated without even knowing why you are fighting.
  • We are allowed to make a lot of mistakes in our lives, except the mistake that destroys us.
  • If we pay close attention we will come to realize that no day is the same as another. Every morning brings with it a hidden blessing.
  • Absolute freedom does not exist; what does exist is the freedom to choose anything you like and then commit yourself to the decision.
  • Start to do something. That way, time will be an ally, not an enemy.

[Photo during a boat cruise on River Li, from Guilin to Yangshuo]

Inspiring Quotes on Success

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“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and to endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

“If you hear a voice within you say ‘you cannot paint’, then by all means paint, and that voice will be silenced.” (Vincent Van Gogh)

“Try not to become a man of success. Rather become a man of value.” (Albert Einstein)

“Don’t let the fear of the time it will take to accomplish something stand in the way of your doing it.The time will pass anyway; we might as well put that passing time to the best possible use.” (Earl Nightingale)

“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.” (Mark Twain)

“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing in the world is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.” (Calvin Coolidge)

“You can’t change the direction of the wind, but you can adjust your sails to reach your destination” (Unknown)

Please share your favorite quote on success through comments. Thanks.

[Photo taken recently near Tap Mun Island in Hong Kong]

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10 Essentials of Life by Leo Buscaglia

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From Living, Loving and Learning by Leo Buscaglia:

  1. Right Knowledge, to supply you with the tools necessary for your voyage.
  2. Wisdom, to assure you that you are using the accumulated knowledge of the past in a manner that will best serve the discovery of your presence, your ‘now’.
  3. Compassion, to help you accept others whose ways may be different from yours, with gentleness and understanding, as you move with them or through them or around them on your own way.
  4. Harmony, to be able to accept the natural flow of life.
  5. Creativity, to help you to realize and recognize new alternatives and unchartered paths along the way.
  6. Strength, to stand up against fear and move forward in spite of uncertainty, without guarantee or payment.
  7. Peace, to keep you centered.
  8. Joy, to keep you songful, and laughing and dancing all along the way.
  9. Love, to be your continual guide towards the highest level of consciousness of which man is capable.
  10. Unity, which brings us back to where we started – the place where we are at one with ourselves and with all things.

To me, life is God’s gift to you. The way you live your life is your gift to God. Make it a fantastic one.

What do you think is essential in life? Please share through your comments.

[Photo: Tree outside the Heathrow Airport, March 2010]

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10 Inspiring Birthday Quotes

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  1. May you live all the days of your life. (Jonathan Swift)
  2. From our birthday, until we die, is but the winking of an eye. (William Butler Yeats)
  3. Because time itself is like a spiral, something special happens on your birthday each year: The same energy that God invested in you at birth is present once again. (Menachem Mendel)
  4. Very early, I knew that the only object in life was to grow. (Margaret Fuller)
  5. Growing old is mandatory; growing up is optional. (Chili Davis)
  6. To me, old age is always 15 years older than I am. (Bernard Baruch)
  7. When I was younger, I could remember anything, whether it happened or not. (Mark Twain)
  8. If I’d known I was going to live this long (100 years), I’d have taken better care of myself. (Ubie Blake)
  9. Old age is like everything else. To make a success of it, you have got to start young. (Fred Astaire)
  10. And in the end, it’s not the years in your life that counts. It’s the life in your years. (Abraham Lincoln)

Which one do you like best? Please share your favorite quotes through comments.

Also see 10 more inspiring birthday quotes.

For more inspiration, check out my newest book: Dhinchak Life

Be The Best You Can!

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“If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, ‘Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.’” (Martin Luther King, Jr.)

“Do the best you can, where you are, with what you have, now.” (African-American proverb)

“Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.” (Leonardo da Vinci)

“Make the most of yourself, for that’s all there is of you.” (Ralph Waldo Emerson)

“Doing the best at this moment, puts you in the best place for the next moment.” (Oprah Winfrey)

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Prayers, Thoughts and Quotes for the New Year

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I turn to you because you know everything, even what is hidden. If what I am doing is good for me, for my life now and hereafter, then let that task be easy and blessed. If what I am doing is bad for me, for my life now and hereafter, then remove me from that task. (The Prophet Mohammed)

Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. (Jesus – Mathew 7:7-8)

If there’s to be peace in the world, the nations must live in peace. If there’s to be peace among nations, the cities must not rise up against each other. If there’s to be peace in the cities, neighbors must understand each other. If there’s to be peace among neighbors, there must be harmony in the home. If there’s to be peace in the home, we must each find our own heart. (Lao Tsu)

In the new year, I will live one day at a time. I will make each day one of preparation for better things ahead. I will not dwell on the past or the future, only on the present. I will bury every fear of the future, all thoughts of unkindness and bitterness, all my dislikes, my resentments, my disappointment in others and in myself, my gloom and my despondency. I will leave all these things buried and go forward, in this near year, into a new life. (Thought for the day. Twenty-four Hours a Day)

[Photo of The Prophet’s Mosque, the second largest in the world, taken in Feb. 2004]

Favorite Quotes on Time

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The key is in not spending time, but in investing it. Stephen R. Covey

Make use of time, let not advantage slip. William Shakespeare

This time, like all times, is a very good one, if we but know what to do with it. Ralph Waldo Emerson

A man who dares to waste one hour of life has not discovered the value of life. Charles Darwin

Once you have mastered time, you will understand how true it is that most people overestimate what they can accomplish in a year – and underestimate what they can achieve in a decade! Anthony Robbins

If you want to make good use of your time, you’ve got to know what’s most important and then give it all you’ve got. Lee Iacocca Continue reading →

Inspiring Quotes: Paulo Coelho on The Journey

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When every day seems the same, it is because we have stopped noticing the good things that appear in our lives. (The Alchemist)

It is necessary to run risks, to follow certain paths and to abondon others. No one can make a choice without feeling fear. (Brida)

Profound commitment to a dream does not confine or constrain: it liberates. Even a difficult, winding path can lead to your goal if you follow it to the end. (Maktub)

Man needs to choose, not just accept, his destiny. (The Fifth Mountain)

Inspiring Quotes: Paulo Coelho on Chance

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It’s not difficult to rebuild a life. All we need is to be aware that we have the same strength we had before, and to use it in our favor. (The Fifth Mountain)

Life always waits for some crisis to occur before revealing itself at its most brilliant. (Eleven Minutes)

No one knows what is going to happen in the next few minutes, and yet people still go forward, because they have trust, because they have faith. (Brida)

The secret lies in the present – if you pay attention to the present, you will be able to improve it. And if you improve the present, whatever happens afterwards will eb better too. Each day brings us Eternity. (The Alchemist)