Hello friends and beautiful acquaintances... I've been feeling very existential lately, so let's help each other out by exchanging some wisdoms:
The best bits of advice I've ever received are the below:
From my maternal uncle who's been like a father to me at times 'always be the adult in every situation' - i.e. maintain your maturity and civility regardless of how someone treats you, or how they behave.
'Laziness is a privilege' because it means you can always rely on other people to do your dirty work from you. A smart Honours student told me that.
'Nostalgia is a lie. Nothing ever felt as good as how you remember it'. Some rando on the internet.
Watcha got?
I'm not sure if this constitutes as advice but I just finished 'The 100 Years of Lenni and Margot' (10/10 would recomment) and there's this quote and I think it hit me because a very dear friend of mine passed away very suddenly last week. The quote is 'When you get to Heaven, give 'em hell.' Now, I'm a Christian and I knew my friend very well and I can picture her causing havoc. In fact, when I was at work today, I was picturing her getting annoyed with God and doing Her paperwork. I know that seems silly but it made me feel better.
But that aside, I think there's something there for everyone whether you're a Christian or not.
I think so too! Everyone has provided fantastic input <3 <3
Great thread Shen
So this isn't really life advice per se, but I had a journalism teacher my first year of college, who reminded me very much of Neil Gaiman by the way, who once said that "It is okay to break the rules, but you have to learn the rules first." This is something that has stuck with me and my writing career ever since.
Another experience I had that I will take to my grave is in remembrance of the nights spent with my late maternal grandfather looking up at the stars while he drank his Coors Light. We'd talk for what seemed like a lifetime, although it was only mere minutes, about the mysteries of space. I'd mention random facts that I learned and he was always eager to listen. It's thanks to him and his willingness to listen to my childish fantasy that I've become so in tune with the creative side of me. It's also why I'm so vividly astounded by the limitless possibilities that lie just out of reach. The moral of this short tale is that I find that the greatest dreamers are the ones willing to listen, no matter how far-flung of an idea it may seem. Anything is possible.
I love this thread! At the top of my head mine would be...
(1) "Don't attribute to malice that which can easier be explained by stupidity."
--- Hanlon's razor
(2) "You wouldn't worry so much about what people thought of you if you realized how seldom they do."
--- Eleanor Roosevelt
(3) "The more you know, the more you realize how much you don't know.'
--- Albert Einstein
(4) "The quickest way to learn who someone is, is to ask them who their favorite fictional characters are."
--- Me lol
"Follow Your Heart,Take Action and Go Live the Life Your Truly Born to Live."
----Success Insider
"Live each day as if it is your last."
Don't remember who said it,yet it's extremely important to do so.
"Maybe God has something to say about your poetry."
-----My first roommate.
I maybe paraphrasing but during my very long chat,my roommate knew I wanted to be an actor,because I told them and thats when they said the last share quote.
@Shen Friebe Excellent topic! That nostalgia one really hit me hard!
I'm not sure if my two pieces constitute as advice but I try to remember them. They're both taken from Matt Haig's book Reasons To Stay Alive. As such, they are relating to mental health, specifically depression though I think they apply to mental health as an umbrella term. I can't remember the exact wordings but I hope you get the jist.
I have sad days. That doesn't mean I'm a sad person.
He used this excellent analogy. When you're in a period of depression, it's huge and overwhelming but it doesn't define you. It's always smaller than you. He said (I chickened out and found the right phrasing) 'It may be a dark cloud passing across the sky, but [...] you are the sky. [...] The cloud can't exist without the sky but the sky can exist without the cloud.'
From when I was 16 till about 21 I worked in a factory which more or less nearly destroyed my soul.
Finally I managed to leave and the boss was very helpful, he knew that I wasn't happy and that I needed more and he visto did his best to help me.
He was an accountant and quite a serious boring guy but on the day I left he said :
Remember, life is not a dress rehearsal.
I've always kept those words close.
Even 30 years later
@Rob Edwards @Adam Gary We're off to a great start, guys 😂😂 Always been a rebel, Rob? :P
Oh man! Why am I struggling to think of good advice that has been imparted onto me!? No wonder I am the way I am 😂
Just got two that my dad said to me when I was 16 and just been arrested by the police for my one and only time.
Never ever lie to your mother. Then he slapped me around the head.
Son, whatever you do in life, never, ever get caught!
Now My old dad talked a lot of twaddle at times, but these stayed with me.