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All you need is a little motivation.
By Roland Legge — Written on Feb 13, 2019
It is easy to get overwhelmed by the excess of information you face every day.
The good news is that there is a way to transform this negativity into positivity: motivational and inspirational quotes!
First, you need to find a way to calm your mind, open your heart, and listen to your body. Because as you quiet your mind, you will calm your inner critic, too
Your inner critic is that negative self-talk within you that is trying to keep you stuck in your limiting beliefs — the limitations of your ego. The voice sounds loud, impatient, demeaning, and mean. It has good intentions to keep you safe by demanding that you stick to what you know. But in the end, it blocks you from true happiness.
To quiet your mind and inner critic, try meditation, dancing, singing, gardening, praying, getting a massage, or practicing yoga. Find something that feels good to you.
Take some time every day to do something that nurtures happiness for yourself. It might be one of the activities suggested above, or something as simple as taking the time to talk with a friend, enjoying a hot bubble bath, or curling up with your favorite book.
Learn how to be happy and boost your motivation by observing yourself in action. When you find yourself feeling down or engaging in negative self-talk, take a few deep breaths, acknowledge your feelings, let them go and focus on the present.
If you spend a lot of time on social media, you might want to take a break from it. Instead of responding to comments on Facebook be in touch with friends and family over the phone or video-based platform, like Skype or Zoom. Even better, meet someone in person over a meal.
Also, pets are awesome! If you don’t have a pet, find a friend or family member who has a furry friend. Dogs and cats know how to love you unconditionally. It is harder to feel down when you have a furry friend letting you know you are the most fantastic person in the world.
As you get to know yourself better, you will learn to notice the difference between the voice of your inner critic and the voice of your true self. When you can notice the difference, you then have a choice in how to respond to life and achieve your goals. You don't have to feel confined by your limiting beliefs.
Allow this to help you come to a place of radical gratitude, which is all about living with thankfulness. There is encouragement all around you if you pay attention and encourage positive thinking in yourself.
Here are 21 motivational and inspirational quotes that will help you quiet your inner critic and move past limiting beliefs and negative self-talk.
1. Find your rhythm in life
"Your mind, emotions, and body are instruments and the way you align and tune them determines how well you play life." — Harbhajan Singh Yogi
You are a whole human being. To be healthy, you need to have a quiet mind, open heart, and body awareness. When you can access these three areas of inner wisdom, you are going to be at your best.
2. Have some body wisdom
"There is more wisdom in your body than in your deepest philosophy." — Friedrich Nietzsche
Intuition is the wisdom of your body. Your body can guide you in making any decision. You probably have had a "gut" feeling about some decision you need to make. The important thing is for you to pay attention to your body.
3. The truth is within you
"Everything you'll ever need to know is within you; the secrets of the universe are imprinted on the cells of your body." — Dan Millman
Are you like many who look outside of themselves for solutions? It's not wrong and there are thousands of books on the shelves in bookstores and libraries that claim to have answers to your problems.
The only trouble is that these are solutions to someone else’s problem. The answer for you is right within you. Your quiet mind, open heart, and sensations of your body will show you the way.
4. Walk your talk
"When you show up authentic, you create space for others to do the same. Walk in your truth." — Anonymous
It is so easy to be hard on yourself. It seems more natural to see the good things in other people than ourselves. But the truth is that the only person you are called to be is your fantastic self.
5. Take risks
"You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into your wilderness of your intuition. What you will discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover is yourself." — Alan Alda
You will never grow if you don’t take risks. To grow as a human, you need to risk going into your inner world to find your true self.
It takes courage to quiet your inner critic and guts to get in touch with your real emotions. It takes faith to experience all the uncomfortable feelings and negative self-talk you have tried to repress for years.
The reward is great if you take the risk to do this work. Why? It is worth it because it will bring you an inner peace that has the potential to transform your life and make you happier.
6. There is a pearl in the pain
"Every experience, no matter how bad it seems, holds within it a blessing of some kind. The goal is to find it." — Gautama Buddha
Life is full of many ups and downs. No matter whether the experience is exhilarating or debilitating there is always a pearl. The challenge is to find what the blessing is for you.
7. Know your calling or vocation
"The things you are passionate about are not random. They are your calling." — Fabienne Fredrickson
Have you been given many callings or vocations in your life? If you pay attention, you will discover what they are. It is revealed to you through signs. These signs often come from people you meet in your life and in the opportunities that come your way.
8. Never give up
"When you have exhausted all possibilities, remember this — you haven’t. — Thomas Edison
Never give up on following your passions. You will experience times in your life when you will feel like something is not worth doing because it is not going in the way you had hoped.
Sometimes, you need to be patient and new opportunities will arise. They may not be what you expected, but it will be the right thing for you to do.
9. Being human comes with some suffering
"Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved." — Helen Keller
Pain is no fun. But it is often one of the most powerful tools for you to become a stronger healthier person.
No person ever deserves to suffer, but when you do, you want to learn as much as you can from experience, even if it is no more than learning to have empathy for other peoples suffering.
10. Stay true to your heart
"Be true to your heart ... put your whole heart and soul into it, and then whatever you do, it will shine through." — Jamie Brewer
Staying true to your heart requires you to walk your talk. If you hold something dear to your heart, make sure your job does not violate is important to you.
11. Follow your passions
"Do activities you're passionate about — which make your heart and soul feel perky — including things like working out, cooking, painting, writing, yoga, hiking, walking, swimming, being in nature, being around art, or reading inspiring books." — Karen Salmansohn
What brings out the passion in you? What excites you? What makes you want to work hard?
The older you get, the more you realize how quickly life goes by. Make the best of your life and live it as thoroughly as you can.
12. Empathy is a powerful trait
"Empathy is the most mysterious transaction that the human soul can have, and it's accessible to all of us, but we have to give ourselves the opportunity to identify, to plunge ourselves in a story where we see the world from the bottom up or through another's eyes or heart." — Sue Monk Kidd
Empathy gives you a glimpse into someone else’s suffering. It reminds you that we are all part of the human family. It reminds you that we need each other through life. It is reminding you that not one of us is perfect.
13. You are beautiful
"Today I see beauty everywhere I go, in every face I see, in every single soul, and sometimes even in myself." — Kevyn Aucoin
It is easy to see beauty in everyone but yourself. The truth is that you are beautiful in your own way. Go forth and reflect the power and mystery of the universe.
14. See the world through a new perspective
"No one has yet realized the wealth of sympathy, the kindness, and generosity hidden in the soul of a child. The effort of every true education should be to unlock that treasure." — Emma Goldman
The greatest gift you can give your child is your full attention. Your calling is to nurture your child’s innate gifts of sympathy, kindness, and generosity. You can bring it out in your child just by reflecting compassion, kindness, and generosity to them.
15. Embrace your wholeness
"Nothing can cure the soul but the senses, just as nothing can cure the senses but the soul. — Oscar Wilde
Your senses are a pathway to your soul as the soul is the pathway to your truth. Your thoughts come from your mind, heart, and body.
When you are in tune with your wisdom, you will experience a flow to your life. Even in the hardest times, you may experience a sense of feeling guided.
16. Open the door to your soul
"Always trust your instincts. They are messages from your soul. They are that inner part of you that strives to make you whole." — Anonymous
Over time you will learn to discern the difference between the voice of your inner critic and your inner self. Your instincts when you are emotionally, physically, and mentally healthy will guide you well.
17. Practice radical gratitude
"Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul." — Henry Ward Beecher
Living your life with radical gratitude has the power to transform it. Living a happy life of appreciation requires you intentionally to identify your blessings.
18. Cherish the miracle of creation
"When I admire the wonders of a sunset or the beauty of the moon, my soul expands in the worship of the creator." — Mahatma Gandhi
When you need to be inspired, you don't need to look far. All you need to do is open your eyes. There is mystery and wonder all around us if you pay attention.
19. Put compassion into everything you do
"Put your heart, mind, intellect, and soul even into your smallest acts. This is the secret of success." — Swami Sivananda
If you want to make significant changes in your life start with little things. Mastering small things can help you to make bigger changes in your life.
20. Listen to your inner voice
"Let yourself be silently drawn by the stronger pull of what you truly love. It will not lead you astray." — Rumi
Hallmark doesn’t know a lot about love. But Rumi knows that love is all about wanting the best for the person you love. It is to encourage your desire to re-discover every day how your love is called to keep transforming the world.
When you live by this kind of deep love, you will find a richness in life that will change the way you see and experience the world.
21. Live as though the world is already just
"Courage is not having the strength to go on. It is going on when you don’t have the strength." — Theodore Roosevelt
Your goal is to find courage in you. When you are in tune with your three energy centers (mind, emotions, and sensations), your courage will reveal itself. It is the courage to live with love, justice, compassion, and generosity despite what you see going on around you.
Life is a gift that is meant to be lived fully with love, purpose, and patience.
Your inner wisdom and the truth gleaned from the outside world will show you the way to living your life in a way that is a blessing to the whole world.
You will do well if you take care of your physical, emotional, and mental needs. Making an effort to be at your best will help you to more confident. Intentionally doing what you need to do to stay healthy will bring you a sense of inner peace and help you break through limiting beliefs.
It is one thing to hear these quotes in your head, but even more important to experience these tidbits of wisdom in the feelings of your heart and the sensations of your body. Through the wisdom of your inner world, you will find joy, hope, life, purpose, and meaning.
Roland Legge is a Life Coach who offers coaching through REL Consultants for individuals, couples, families, and executives to help them to be the best they can be. Join his private newsletter list for Free Monthly Advice and get Your Free Enneagram Test and sign up for a Free 30 Minute Discovery Call in his Acuity Scheduling Calendar.
This article was originally published at REL Consultants. Reprinted with permission from the author.