Inspiration

What are your goals? At some point in life everyone has them. Education? Status? Family? Money? Work? Leisure? Pleasure? Art? Maybe your goals are all of these things. But our most important goal should be to find inner contentment because none of these preceding things in whole or part can bring that. Contentment is found inside ourselves through self discovery and self understanding followed by finding our place in the world. And while our place in the world may include things like money, family, status, etc., contentment is not found in such things but rather the way in which we receive such things. Without inner contentment, all these things can have the opposite effect. Contentment doesn’t mean life will be easy or that there won’t be struggle and discord at times, but it does mean that we take responsibility to find inner peace without looking for it from outside ourselves. That way we project onto the world rather than having the world project onto us.

The world is a crazy place. We start out as innocent children in a world of wonderment, but the image is soon shattered (dreadfully earlier for some than others) as we discover a world full of war, violence, crime, greed, and struggle of every kind. Each one of us is forced to try to make some sense of it. For anyone to have what could reasonably be called a fulfilling and meaningful life, the starting place is inside ourselves. The biggest battle any of us ever fight is inside our own head, and the battle of life will be won or lost there, despite the condition of the world or individual circumstance.

We begin to come to grips with the insanity and difficulties of the world when we look into ourselves and discover and decide where we fit in. It is a process. Socrates said “know thyself,” and his sage advice still applies today. It is when we don’t understand ourselves well enough that the world affects us rather than us affecting the world.

Look inside, look in the mirror, and decide who that person will be. Know yourself, make peace with yourself, and be your own best friend. Look deeper, live better, and give yourself the best chance of finding contentment in a chaotic world.
---Dan Hare

“Life is not a spectacle or a feast; it is a predicament.”
---George Santayana, Articles and Essays

“If life worth living? That depends on the liver.”
---Anonymous (c. 1855)

“The Unexamined life is not worth living.”
---Socrates, in Plato, Dialogues, Apology.

For more inspirational discussion and information, read Dan’s book, ask Dan a question, or hire Dan for a seminar, guest speaking appearance, or private coaching session.