Words of the Week: Waiting

So I’m in a huge period of transition right now. In between two steps of life. Hanging in the balance, waiting to see what will come next.

And without a doubt, it’s difficult to just not know. It’s hard to simply wait, never knowing when the answers and change will come. I spend a lot of my time trying to figure it out, and all of my time is filled with thoughts of wonder. And sometimes worry (okay, actually…a lot of times worry).

I worry that I will not find what I’m supposed to be doing. That it will take a long time to get to that place. That once I get there, I will find myself unhappy.

But, deep down I know those worries are silly. And in my heart, I know this:

What’s meant to happen for me will happen when it’s supposed to, how it’s supposed to. And it will be amazing. That I know for sure.

Words of the Week: Talent

I have been spotting one of my favorite quotes all over lately. I’ve loved it since high school because it is so elegant yet beyond true. It always gets stuck in my head:

Isn’t this quote so beautiful? And, it’s really inspiring!

I mean, how many times do you feel like you can’t do something because you know you won’t do it best? I know I feel like that many times. But, it’s totally unjustified. In reality, you’ll never be the best at something. Somewhere, there will always be someone better, no matter how good you get or how hard you try. And that might sound depressing, but it is actually a great fact to motivate you and remind you that even though you’re not the best, you still have to try.

Not using your talent because you fear not being the best is like ripping off yourself and starving the rest of the world of something great.

Whenever you feel like what you can contribute isn’t worth it or doesn’t matter because you’re not quite the best, remember that if everyone felt that way, no one would ever contribute anything at all.

Worry Wart

This past week, I have been pretty psycho (and that’s putting it lightly). Ask my family, my best friends, and my boyfriend, and I’m sure they’ll be polite about it, but the truth of the matter is that I have acted crazy.

I don’t know if it was the fact that I was stuck in my dorm due to the blizzard, the anxiety of the snow that I always get, or a combination of those and other things, but I was just on the edge the whole week. One minute I was so happy I was singing a silly tune, the next I was hysterically crying telling everyone I didn’t want to speak to them.

Holy emotional roller coaster.

Thankfully, now I am feeling much better. But, looking back at the last week and how crazy I was, I fully realize that I worry too much. I have been that way my whole life, worrying about endless things – from things as silly as the weather to bigger, more real things. Many times, my worries are unjustified and totally ridiculous. When I worry, I get emotional and anxious, am beyond irritable, can’t sleep at night, and my face breaks out.

I am, all around, a worry wart.

I am fully aware that my worrying adds nothing good to my life, which is something I have to remind myself of over and over, each time I have a negative thought or begin to fear the worst.

I wish this was something I could change, and slowly, over time, I have been able to lessen these fits of anxiety, even though they sometimes (like this week) make their awful return.

I am always looking for ways to feel calmer in times of worry and stress, and this week on Pinterest I saw this quote:

It really struck me as so true and although I know it won’t eliminate my worries completely (I don’t think anything ever will), it does help me find peace.

Why do I put so much time and effort into thinking about what I don’t want to happen? Why not use that energy envisioning the outcomes I am hoping for?

This is something I am, very slowly, working on changing about myself in order to just be happier.

I know it’s a challenge, but I think that every day is a step in the right direction.

Words of the Week: Happiness

Over the past semester and especially over this break, I have been thinking a lot about the “self-inventory” I must do on myself in order to assess what I want to be doing and where I most want to be for the rest of my life.

My professors last semester consistently talked about finding what makes you happy – what town to live in, what people to surround yourself with, what job to go to every day – and made it clear that unless you find those things, you will not reach your full happiness potential.

At first, I was so unsure of what would make me happiest. It seemed so overwhelming to be thinking about all those things right then and there. I had and have no idea where I want to live the rest of my life or what exact job I want to go to every day. I am definitely a planner, but having to choose all those things with my future happiness impending seemed so, well, scary – much like many other aspects of senior year.

But also like being a college senior, so many aspects of making these decisions are also exciting. I think this is particularly exciting to me because I love the idea that I get to choose what I will be doing and where I will be. I, above anyone else, have the power to make myself happy.

Understanding the fact that I have that ability is probably the most important step towards that happiness for me. For so long, I felt so wrapped up in the need to make everyone else happy that I forgot my personal happiness was the most important thing of all. Once I worked towards pleasing myself instead of solely others, everything else seemed to fall into place.

I thought that this Audrey Hepburn quote was a great way to sum up how I feel in making these choices or even thinking about them:

The more I think about the decisions that I will eventually have to make for myself, the more I realize that there are so many different paths I could take that would all make me happy. When I think about that, though, it also makes me realize that no matter what choices I make, I will always ensure that I am filled with joy and always enjoying the ride of life.

Book on my Shelf: The Spirit of the Season

If you’re looking for a great book this holiday season that really captures the essence of the season, I highly recommend The Gift by Richard Paul Evans.

My mom recommended this book to me several seasons ago and it was such an amazing read.

It’s a really easy and quick book, but that does not take away from how great the story is. It reaffirms love, faith, and the spirit of the season.

In short, this is nothing short of a truly inspiring story that will do nothing but get you int he holiday spirit. Most of all, though, it will remind you of the true meaning of the holidays.

Words of the Week: Pinspiration

Since I have been totally crazed with school work, internship work, and basically just life, I thought that this week it would be appropriate to put some inspirational quotes up for words of the week.

Getting back into the swing of things after an entire week off has definitely proven to be tough, especially knowing that Christmas break is so close yet so far away.

However, after almost a whole semester of very hard work, I know how important it is to continue working hard every day.

When I came across this jumble of inspirational quotes on Pinterest (I found some Pinspiration!), it really struck me and I keep coming back to it this week.

Yes, there are some cliched, overused, and perhaps overrated quotes included in this picture.

But there is one that I continue to think of as I am trudging (sometimes happily, other times miserably) through my what seems to be never ending mountain of work.

Just below the top right, it reads, “If you’re doing your best, you won’t have anytime to worry about failure.”

How true is that? How often do we think “I can’t do this” or “This is impossible”??

I know that I have been guilty of these negative thoughts, centering around the possibility of failure.

However, when you are so busy doing your best, you will have no time to worry about a negative outcome. This is so true for many things in life, like if you’re so busy loving people you will have no time to hate, if you are so busy being happy you will have no time to be sad, and so on. Why not apply that concept to the work we do, and sometimes struggle with, every day?

That quote has given me so much motivation this week, and I hope that you can find a quote in this photo that gives you the inspiration you’re needing to plow through to finals as well.

PS – I love this idea of surrounding yourself with your favorite quotes in times of need! I think I will do this to my wall for the next few weeks. Picture to follow!

Words of the Week: Learning to Let Go

Lately, I have been coming to realize the value of letting things go. Sometimes, I hold on so tightly to things from the past that do nothing but weigh me down and upset me. I often times forget to remember that I have the choice of letting them go.

While this letting go idea may not be something that can be accomplished in a day, a week, or even a month, it is something that can be worked on every day. Letting go is a learning process that takes patience, commitment, and sometimes courage.

Learning to release the difficulties of the past may not be the easiest thing to do but it is certainly the right thing. Not having the burden of past mistakes, tragedies, choices, and dramas allows me to have the room in my life to take on new and exciting things and promote the change it takes to move on. Letting go can do the same thing for you.

A Fresh Start

After visiting my sister at school this weekend, it has gotten me thinking. As she is just getting started with her college career, I find myself so excited for her yet jealous of her brand new adventure. There is something so exciting about a fresh start.

The more I think about it, though, the more it seems that we are all presented with fresh starts so often, we just fail to realize it. Of course, not all of these new beginnings are as monumental and life-changing as starting college, but they nonetheless exist. And I truly believe that what will become of them relies on what we make of them.

As cliche as it may sound, every day is a new beginning, a new chance to do something great. As is every week, every month, every semester, every new class you take, book you read, friend you make, or journey you embark on.

In moments where I find myself so overwhelmed about graduating college in the spring (ah!), I find solace in remembering that the best times of my life are yet to come and that a brand new beginning awaits me after I get my diploma. A brand new job with brand new people and brand new opportunities. Really, what could be more exciting than that?

The reality is that fresh starts are waiting for us around every corner, as long as we are willing to seize them.

Words of the Week

I’ve always been a big believer in quotes. I even have a quote journal I’ve kept since I was in middle school, with quotes I’ve found in books, on websites, and collected here and there.

I love the power quotes have to inspire you, bring tears to your eyes or a smile to your face, or simply make you think. Everyone has quotes that they can just relate to in some special way.

Here are the words of the week I keep referring to right now:

I am not the biggest fan of change, and am slowly but surely learning how to accept it on a more regular basis. I have been through so much change in the past year, and often times I feel overwhelmed by how incredibly crazy my life has been.

This quote is a great reminder that change isn’t only necessary but is a good thing! Without change, nothing would ever move forward, and I wouldn’t have so many of the great people, things, and opportunities that I am lucky enough to have now.

What are your favorite words to live by this week?