Leaving time (each one as needed) to answer the doubts that assail us and question our life trajectory can turn out to be the key to continue on the right or the wrong path. The following 40 phrases may help you get your life back on track.
- You may be interested: 60 reflections of life that will mark you.
40 phrases to reflect on life
The key in life, if it exists, has to do with paying attention and learning from experience . We must not allow (or if) that the monotony and the habit of day to day make us live as if we were controlled by a kind of automatic pilot. As long as we have enough strength, we must take over from that pilot and be the ones who live.
To contribute to this end, below, we are going to present a series of quotes from various authors about life. Reading them carefully is not enough, you must make them yours and reflect on how and why they fit into your life, and then formulate a “what for”.
1. Taking advantage of good advice requires more wisdom than giving it (John Churton Collins)
We did not start with this quote by chance. Any kind of affirmation usually requires little effort to repeat it to another person, just a little memory. The real challenge is to make the affirmation your own, feel it and live it. Don’t get overwhelmed if you believe in what you read even if you don’t feel the same way, it’s normal.
For example, repeating many times that I must live in the present will not make me stop thinking about the past . This should not distress us as it is normal. In any case, taking it into account and reflecting on the subject in question is the first step in internalizing any idea.
2. Poverty does not come from the decrease in wealth, but from the multiplication of desires (Plato)
Quote that probably reminds us of the famous saying: “It is not richer who has more, but who needs less . ” He demonstrates the example of those great tycoons who amass immense amounts of goods, at the same time that in order to maintain these goods they need others, thus generating a kind of fish that bites its own tail.
An interesting difference between Plato and the more current saying that we have mentioned, is the difference between desire and need. Undoubtedly, there are very few needs even if we have convinced ourselves otherwise. Most of the things that people “need” are nothing more than wants.. Rethinking both concepts in your life will bring you closer to well-being.
3. We are never as vulnerable to suffering as when we love (Sigmund Freud)
This maxim so successful of the father of psychoanalysis should not be taken lightly. Probably, it would be enough to reflect a little to realize that almost always that we have been done real harm it has been because of people we loved .
It is a condition of life. Similarly, that we will (usually unintentionally) harm other people who love us. Being able to forgive each other (when deserved) will therefore be a sine qua non condition to live in harmony with others.
4. When you see a giant, first examine the position of the sun; it is not going to be the shadow of a pygmy (Novalis)
This reflection emphasizes the idea of stopping to reflect before letting ourselves be tormented by the giant/problem. Sometimes the problems and the shadow they create in front of us is nothing more than that, a shadow. Take some time to calm the emotions and see if the one who creates the shadow is a giant or something much smaller.
5. Those who do not know history are condemned to repeat it (Edmund Burke)
Many reflections we hear today refer to experience and the need to learn from it in order to live a little better. There are several in this list, including this one.
Burke’s phrase here, especially emphasizes the fact of falling back on the same problems of the past. To avoid this, we must understand why we made the mistake ; Only then will we reduce the chances of falling into it again.
6. Time is what we want most and also what we use the worst (William Penn)
Many times we struggle to save time throughout our day, as if we were aware of its true value, but then, that time so hard saved, it we waste on fruitless things. Take some time to think about things that are not worth your time ; For this, perhaps it will help you to ask yourself the following question: What will I value in 10 or 20 years from what I do today?
7. It takes a life to learn to live (Seneca)
The illustrious Seneca brings us a brief quote with a paradoxical touch. He reminds us that mistakes are inevitable in life and that we will only know what to do to avoid them, the day our path has ended .
8. I don’t know what the key to success is, but I know the key to failure: try to please everyone (Bill Cosby)
Assuming that there is a general definition of failure (it is better for each one to apply their own), the best way to fall in it is to try to please everyone, or even the majority of people.
The people that almost everyone likes are those capable of telling each one what he wants to hear; and that option is not recommended in the long term.
9. Believe that your life is worth living and that belief will help create the fact (William James)
Any idea we have, however true or false, will gain strength if we believe in it. Strength is not enough to achieve an objective , it also requires high doses of perseverance, experience and suitable conditions.
10. Life is very simple, but we insist on making it complicated (Confucius)
Confucius plays here with the meaning of the word “simple”. If we want to understand the functioning of the human being, the universe or a love relationship, the complexity is very high.
But if we change the perspective to a more general approach, we will realize that any human life is governed by the same patterns: being born, feeding, socializing, seeking and giving affection, struggling to achieve goals and dying. Whatever you do, that’s all there is to it.
11. Life is subject to change, but growth is optional. Be smart with your choices (Karen Kaiser Clark)
Living means changing. It is impossible to live without making decisions , even if the decision is not to make any decision. At the moment we decide, we discard other options, which sometimes would have been better, but we will never know. Grow with each decision, allow this growth to help you with your next choice.
12. Creativity requires that courage be detached from certainties (Erich Fromm)
If you want to act, it is generally good to have prior knowledge (both yours and others) and the certainties that are known about the subject. But if you want to bring creativity and do something different, you must get rid of this knowledge and courageously bet on new solutions.
13. Doubt is one of the names of intelligence (Jorge Luis Borges)
The really intelligent person questions, questions, invests his time in knowing and nourishing himself with experiences, distrusting dogmas.
14. From a small spark you can light a flame (Dante)
Most of the great works in the life of a person or even a society began with small acts. That is why, whenever you are going to embark on a path with a goal in mind, you should set small short-term goals , these, little by little, will light a great flame. If not, try changing paths.
15. Man is the only creature that refuses to be who he is (Albert Camus)
Due to the inability of animals to reflect on their goals and their existence, they do not make decisions about it; Just the opposite of human beings. This great virtue sometimes becomes our great defect ., since sometimes, we end up fighting against what we really are, believing that we can change something intrinsic to us.
16. Nothing reinforces authority as much as silence (Leonardo da Vinci)
Many sayings allude to the importance of keeping silent. One of the great characteristics of wise people is that they tend to remain silent, allowing the sense of hearing to take center stage. This is very good, but Leonardo da Vinci gives us an example of an occasion, in which silence may not be the best option .
17. Hope is a good breakfast, but a bad dinner (Francis Bacon)
Hope, sometimes used as a synonym for faith, appeases the soul and evils; giving a halo of light that keeps the spirit alive. But if this becomes their only food, hope will take its toll and we will end up starving.
18. The person who has lost the ability to erase his hatred is old, irreparably (Jose Ingenieros)
Hate is a complex feeling capable of diverting us from reason and causing us to act with an impulsiveness that will later take its toll on us. That is why learning to control and eliminate it will keep us healthy and young , because hate deteriorates the psyche.
19. The environment shapes the actions of the individual (BF Skinner)
If you are rethinking your life, there is an axiom that you must always keep in mind: the context modulates the behavior of people. Keep in mind, wherever you go, that each person has as many ways of behaving as environments in which he participates (always with a margin according to her personality). You should also apply this to yourself.
20. Have blind faith, not in your ability to win, but in the ardor with which you want it (Horacio Quiroga)
Capacity is useless if there is no motivation behind it that drives it towards a destination. That “ardor”, in its proper measure and well channeled, is usually the key to achieving certain goals .
21. Health is not valued until the disease arrives (Thomas Fuller)
Similar to the phrase “you don’t know what you have until you lose it” , applied by Thomas Fuller to the specific case of health. Most of us, luckily, have health for much of our lives, but don’t try to enjoy it and appreciate it until it’s too late. Do those things that your health allows you today, before tomorrow comes.
22. No person can think clearly when their fists are clenched (George Jean Nathan)
Again, a quote that emphasizes the fact that when we are (too) emotionally activated we lose objectivity and the ability to reason clearly . If your goal is to assess the situation and choose wisely, wait until you open your fists.
23. The word “happiness” would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness (Carl Gustav Jung)
The father of analytical psychology makes an intelligent observation about human dichotomies. The meaning of well-being would not make sense without pain and suffering , but also vice versa. Pretending to be happy without allowing ourselves to experience sadness would make us blind to true happiness.
24. Time takes everything and gives everything (Giordano Bruno)
A crushing statement that cannot be escaped. There will be things that you will have to live despite your will , and others that you will want to keep but will go away.
25. It is better to be king of your silence than slave of your words (William Shakespeare)
Keeping silence is not easy. There are many situations in which we need to speak up because we think we are right or right, but perhaps keeping silent is smarter . Not always, but often it is.
26. If we do good out of interest, we will be cunning, but never good (Ciceron)
If you make the decision to do good for your own interest, no one should blame you for it, but don’t be fooled, that will not make you a good person.
27. Two things can destroy a person: an external strength and an internal weakness (David Carradine)
Everyone has enemies both inside and outside of himself . Keep it in mind both for yourself, when you face life, and for others, when they face you.
28. When a fool takes a path, the path ends and the fool continues (Anonymous)
Sometimes it is due to ignorance, other times due to pride. Whether it is one or the other, be careful not to always keep the same path even if you are not getting the expected results. Perseverance has a limit that when exceeded is considered stupidity.
29. Do not find the fault, find the remedy (Henry Ford)
Obviously, to find the remedy you must first have found the fault. However, the famous Henry Ford made mention of this quote so that we do not forget that the essential thing is to invest efforts in finding the remedy and it will be useless to anchor ourselves in the fault.
30. If you want something you never had, you must do something you never did (Anonymous)
This phrase mentions again the issue of the thin line between perseverance and stubbornness. If time passes without results, try something else .
31. A man who is a master of patience is a master of everything else (George Savile)
The importance of patience in learning is paramount. Without her, we would throw in the towel at the slightest setback. Having this trait well accentuated will allow us, over time, to dominate any activity .
32. Those who do not move do not notice their chains (Rosa Luxemburg)
Perhaps there are “very happy” people who follow a routine that allows them not to hear their shackles. The sound of these can be very unpleasant, so much so that there will be times when they paralyze us , but only when we hear them can we fight to take them off.
33. People offend those they love before those they fear (Machiavelli)
Feeling indifference towards another person allows us, normally, to be immune to their offenses. The opposite happens with those we love.
Keep in mind that these people are the ones who can harm you the most, but you can also harm them. Therefore, mutual trust is the key to any deep relationship.
34. The occasion must be created, not wait for it to arrive (Francis Bacon)
Luck exists. You can spend one day at home watching TV, go out to throw the garbage and find a winning lottery ticket. However, it is much more sensible to go buy the ticket every week or even look for a job .
35. Asking for forgiveness is intelligent, forgiving is noble and forgiving oneself is wise (Anonymous)
According to this phrase, which is not without reason, the person who is capable of forgiving, showing that he has forgiven and forgiving himself, will be equally intelligent, noble and wise. An ideal combination that will require a lot of effort to be achieved; but it will be worth it .
36. The greater the difficulty, the more glory there is in overcoming it (Epicurus)
The merit of an action is measured by the difficulties that, in principle, made it difficult to carry it out. Calculate the risks and benefits of what you undertake , keeping in mind that normally, difficulty and glory go hand in hand.
37. Each man is a creature of the time in which he lives and few are capable of rising above those ideas (Voltaire)
The human being is an animal subject to the conditions of the environment. Complexities such as culture, religion, the political system and social beliefs modulate our ideas and actions. Only a few can occasionally look over them.
38. To err is human, but it is more so to blame others for it (Baltasar Gracian)
Any activity carried out skillfully has a person behind it who has been wrong many times. This means that as human beings, we all make mistakes , but also, this is as natural as blaming others for our mistakes. In any case, normality is not a valid justification.
39. One cannot step twice on the same river (Heraclitus)
This, a priori, enigmatic phrase, hides a great truth behind. We have talked several times about how the context modulates our actions and ideas, but this context is constantly changing . No two moments are the same throughout space and time; in the same way that the same water atoms never pass through the river and these, in turn, change the river as they pass.
40. Do not waste your time, because life is made of that matter (Benjamin Franklin)
If you have come this far reading all of the above, congratulations. But as we said at the beginning, it is not a question of reading the phrases, but of internalizing them, reflecting and applying them in your life ; otherwise, the time you have invested in reading them will be wasted in the long life that awaits you.
