Words to Live By
If you're not comfortable talking about it, you shouldn't be doing it. There is are major advantages to living your life in such a transparent fashion. Some people are tempted to ask about sacred and intimate parts of my life when they hear about this rule. To those, I say: Grow up. I will not cast my pearls before swine. Nevertheless, as a pearl is not meant to be hidden, so too will I share with those who will appreciate its value.
Treat everything as better than your own. Treat others as yourself. You are one of many. Every person you pass has their own back-story—their own struggles, their own family, aunts, uncles, siblings—and you know NONE of it. Those relatives mean just as much to them as your own mean to you. Their interests are just as valid; their lives just as important; their opinions have just as many life-stories built in as yours do. Respect them, and think of them the way you hope they think of you.
Wear one face no matter where you are or who you're with. Yes, you have different social groups with different interests and different behaviors. In many cases, you don't dare mix them. Nevertheless, you can be the same. Christ walked with, talked with, and healed both the beggar and the king. He was better than them all, yet edified their lives equally. Do the same, and when those social circles happen to cross, you shouldn't be ashamed of either of them.
Believe in the power God gave you. Question: Why did God, who, by primitive definition, can do all things and thereby doesn't need any of your help in building this universe, create you in the first place? Because YOU are the reason he created EVERYTHING ELSE. He's building YOU. Don't forget that. He's made you to be an incredibly awesome individual capable of so many things, and on top of it all, He's given you the choice to be who you want to BE. God is not going to give you everything you ask for, but he's not going to let you sit back and ruin your life either. Because it's ironically applicable: God will "give you the beating [or blessing] not that you deserved, but that one that [you] needed." ~College Humor Batman
If you don't have time to do it right the first time, you'd better have time to do it again. This adage I owe to my father. It carries with it several implications that guide my life. "Give 100% to everything you do." "If you can't give it 100%, it's not worth doing." "Live life without regrets." "You can succeed in all you try your hand at if you give it enough effort."
"This Is Your Life. Are you who you want to be?" Don't cheat yourself. There is no reason why you can't be happy. There is no reason why you can't be exactly who you want to be in life. Rich and famous? Sure. Go for it. The only thing to stop you is when you choose to quit going after it. These are lyrics by Switchfoot from a song entitled, "This Is Your Life," and as cheesy as it sounds, they changed my life. I was not happy with who I saw in the mirror. He didn't stand for anything. He lived one way around family and another way around friends. He hadn't done anything meaningful for someone else in years. And I changed all that. I wanted to be different, and I did something about it. And it feels great. My new dream? To be that cheesy young LDS dad, work a job I love, and make everyone I meet smile.
The gospel is at the core of it all. You can't say much more than that. Let the Gospel of Jesus Christ be the motivating factor in all your decisions, big or small. Don't let a day go by without thanking God for what you've been given, who you are, and who you have the possibility to become. I love Life. It's a great adventure, and I'll be terribly sad when it's over. And then I'll remember that it's never over, thanks to Him and His Son.
I could come up with more, but these are at my core, and anything beyond them would be mostly a composite of the above. Enjoy, and I hope they help you find out who you want to be.
