Ralph Waldo Emerson

We begin with a choice

“To be old and wise, you must have been young and stupid.” I think that as soon as you understand that nobody owes you anything and you don’t have the right to be heard, seen, or appreciated, it makes it so much easier to let go of all of that. This action will free up all of your brain to do the things that you said you wanted to do in the first place.

 

It’s an epiphany when you realise that no one owes me anything as when I start believing that you owe me something, then I have signed up for that outcome and the toxic cycle of betting on the outcome. I have gratitude for the freedom that this realisation has given me, and I refuse to dance to the beat of someone else’s drum. I am grateful to those people who have given me the opportunity to do my work.

The years teach much which the days never knew.
— Ralph Emerson

This is to have succeeded

Portrait of Ralph Waldo Emerson by A.E. Smith (Getty Images)

Portrait of Ralph Waldo Emerson by A.E. Smith (Getty Images)

Success according to Ralph Waldo Emerson is:

· To laugh often and much. 

· To win respect of intelligent people and the affection of children.

· To earn the appreciation of honest critics and 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.