Quotes & Inspiration ~ Not a thing to do with real estate, but I love words that encourage, motivate, inspire, and build people up! This page is a work in progress - it seems I'm always running across something new that I love.

Be yourself. Everyone else is taken.

Everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle. Be kind always. 

How you make others feel says a lot about you.

Be kind whenever possible, and it is always possible. 

​Many of us crucify ourselves between two thieves - regret for the past and fear of the future.  ~ Fulton Oursler

Matthew 15:11 "It's not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out it; this defiles a person.” 

Criticism, like rain, should be gentle enough to nourish a man's growth without destroying his roots. ~ Frank A Clark

"Keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps a singing bird will come" {Chinese Proverb}

The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong. ~ Mahatma Gandhi

Be kind to unkind people. They're the ones who need it the most.

"In the midst of hate, I found there was, within me, an invincible love.
In the midst of tears, I found there was, within me, an invincible smile.
In the midst of chaos, I found there was, within me, an invincible calm.
I realized, through it all, that…
In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.
And that makes me happy. For it says that no matter how hard the world pushes against me, within me, there’s something stronger – something better, pushing right back."
~Albert Camus, French-Algerian philosopher, author, and journalist

I've never read a post written by someone who God didn't love. ~ molly hawkins

Trade your expectation for appreciation, and the world instantly changes.  ~ Anthony Robbins 

The most splendid achievement of all is the constant striving to surpass yourself and to be worthy of your own approval. ~ Denis Waitley

Only one thing has to change for us to know happiness in our lives: where we focus our attention.  ~ Greg Anderson 

Always treat others with kindness, not because they are good people, but because you are. 

Don't lose faith in your own dream trying to chase someone else's. Keep digging. - molly hawkins

"The Optimist’s Creed" by Christian D. Larson
I promise myself:
To be so strong that nothing can disturb my peace of mind. 
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person I meet. To make all my friends feel that there is something worthwhile in them. To look at the sunny side of everything and make my optimism come true. To think only of the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best. To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as I am about my own. To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future. To wear a cheerful expression at all times and give a smile to every living creature I meet. To give so much time to improving myself that I have no time to criticize others. To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble. To think well of myself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud words, but in great deeds. To live in the faith that the whole world is on my side, so long as I am true to the best that is in me.

Attitude is the little thing between an ordeal and an adventure.

Seek the valuable lesson in every setback or difficulty.

You can't control other people. You can only control your reactions to them.

Mistakes are a part of being human. Appreciate your mistakes for what they are: precious life lessons that can only be learned the hard way.

It takes a good deal of character to judge a person by his future instead of his past.

"Practice the pause. When in doubt, pause. When angry, pause. When tired, pause. When stressed, pause. And when you pause, pray." ~ Michael Bernard Beckwith

Don't walk through the world looking for evidence that you're not enough, because you'll always find it.  Our worth and our belonging are not negotiated with other people. We carry those inside of our hearts. ~ Brene Brown

Problems are to the mind what exercise is to the muscles, they toughen and make strong. ~ Norman Vincent Peale 

If we try and fit in for others, we no longer belong to ourselves. ~ paraphrased from Brene Brown

Resentment and holding grudges are like taking poison and waiting for the other person to die.

People with clear, written goals, accomplish far more in a shorter period of time than people without them could ever imagine. ~ Brian Tracy

"You live longer once you realize that any time spent being unhappy is wasted."  --Ruth E. Renkl

 "Those who make the worst use of their time are the first to complain of its shortness." -- Jean de La Bruyre 

 "Life is short, God's way of encouraging a bit of focus." --Robert Brault 

*"If I don't have time to live my life well the first time, when am I going to find the time to go back and live it over?" — Robert Fulghum

Every man should keep a fair-sized cemetery in which to bury the faults of his friends. - Henry Ward Beecher

 Words kill, words give life; they're either poison or fruit - you choose. ~ Proverbs 18:21.

Optimism is the one quality more associated with success and happiness than any other. ~ Brian Tracy

People are often unreasonable, irrational, and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.  If you're kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway. ...If you're honest and sincere, people may deceive you. Be honest and sincere anyway..... If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway. The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway. ~ Mother Teresa

In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our responsibility. ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude. – Denis Waitley

 "Be peaceful on purpose."   ~ Joyce Meyer

"There is nothing nobler than risking your life for your country." ~ Nick Lampson ❤️🇺🇸💙

I think we forgot when Jesus said to love your neighbor, he knew your neighbor would act, look, believe, and love differently than you. It's kind of the whole point.

Worry is a down payment on a problem you may never have. 

Every morning is destiny's way of telling you that your purpose in life is yet to be fulfilled.

Work for a cause instead of applause. Don't strive to make your presence noticed; just make your absence felt. 
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 "What it lies in our power to do, it lies in our power not to do." ~ Aristotle

"Be the change you want to see in the world." ~ Gandhi

God doesn't propose to judge a man til he's dead, so why should we?

Let others lead small lives, but not you.  Let others argue over small things, but not you.  Let others cry over small hurts, but not you.  Let others leave their future in someone else's hands, but not you. ~ Jim Rohn

To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you. ~ C. S. Lewis

If we will be quiet and ready enough, we shall find compensation in every disappointment. ~ Henry David Thoreau

People often say that motivation doesn't last.  Well, neither does bathing.  That's why we need them both daily.  ~ Zig Ziglar

The discontented man finds no easy chair. ~ Ben Franklin

Instead of worrying about what people may say about you, spend time accomplishing something they will admire.  ~ Dale Carnegie

For every minute you are angry, you lose sixty seconds of happiness. ~ Emerson

It is not happy people who are thankful. It is thankful people who are happy. 

"I love the light, for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness, for it shows me the stars."  ~ Og Mandino

 Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant."                 ~ Robert Lewis Stevenson

You cannot truly understand God's love for you until you realize he has this same love for those you like the least.

"Circumstances don't create character.  They reveal character." ~ Zig Ziglar

Nothing is more displeasing to God than complaining saints. 

Compassionate people are kind even in anger. 

Do more for the world than the world does for you. 

“‎Today is a new day. It's a day you have never seen before and will never see again. Stop telling yourself the 'same crap, different day' lie! How many days has that lie stolen from you? Seize the wonder and uniqueness of today! Recognize that throughout this beautiful day, you have an incredible amount of opportunities to move your life into the direction you want it to go.” - Steve Maraboli

We often hold friends by holding our tongues. A still tongue makes a wise person.

Gratitude and attitude are not challenges; they are choices. ~ Robert Braathe

“If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.” ~ Albert Einstein

Anger is fear. The more frightened a person is. The angrier they are. - Byron Katie

To get up each morning with the resolve to be happy is to set our own conditions to the events of each day. To do this is to condition circumstances instead of being conditioned by them." ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

The moment you accept responsibility for EVERYTHING in your life is the moment you gain the power to change ANYTHING in your life. - Hal Elrod

Life's blows cannot break a person whose spirit is warmed at the fire of enthusiasm. ~  Norman Vincent Peale  
When someone steps across the line and starts to condemn you, it's a sign that it's more about them than about you. 

Forgiveness doesn't mean condoning the past. It means deciding to let go of bitterness, judgment, and regret and moving on with life.  

If you don't build your dream, someone else will hire you to build theirs. 

"Placing the blame or judgment on someone else leaves you powerless to change the experience. Taking responsibility for your beliefs and judgments gives you the power to change them." Byron Katie

Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary. ~ Steve Jobs 

Time is what we want the most, but what we use the worst.  ~ William Penn

“It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” - Aristotle

"In order to have faith in our own path, we do not need to prove that someone else's path is wrong." ~  Paul Coelho

Many people don't realize that their opinion of the world is often a confession of character.

​Worrying is praying for stuff you don't want. - Jen Sincero

“We judge others by their behavior. We judge ourselves by our intentions.” Ian Percy

You can not control how you feel, but you can ALWAYS choose how you act. - Mel Robbins

Flaming enthusiasm, backed up by horse sense and persistence, is the quality that most frequently makes for success. ~  Dale Carnegie 

"No one has ever made himself great by showing how small someone else is." ~ Irvin Himmel

​"Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors."  - African proverb

Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go. William Feather

Enthusiasm is the electricity of life. How do you get it?  You act enthusiastic until it becomes a habit.

Choose people who lift you up... the ones who encourage you when you're down & cheer for you when you're up... These are your people.

Do your best to make sure that every single person you meet has a better day because of you.  As you give joy to every person you encounter daily, you bring joy to yourself.

“Anything that annoys you is for teaching you patience.
Anyone who abandons you is for teaching you how to stand up on your own two feet.
Anything that angers you is for teaching you forgiveness and compassion.
Anything that has power over you is for teaching you how to take your power back.
Anything you hate is for teaching you unconditional love.
Anything you fear is for teaching you courage to overcome your fear.
Anything you can’t control is for teaching you how to let go and trust the Universe” ― Jackson Kiddard 

"When it comes to forgiveness, it's much better to err on the side of grace if we are to err."

"Wise people make haste to forgive, because they know the true value of time, and will not suffer it to pass away in unnecessary pain.” - Samuel Johnson

​The book is called "Opportunity", and its first chapter is called "New Year's Day".
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I'm stronger because of hard times, wiser because of my mistakes, and happier because I've known sadness. 

Do things for you, not for the approval or satisfaction of others. You'll attract the people who will matter. 

Life has no remote. Get up and change it yourself.

 If you do what is easy, your life will be hard. But if you do what is hard your life will be easy. ~ Les Brown

While one person hesitates because he feels inferior, the other is busy making mistakes and becoming superior. - Henry Link

Don't compare your struggles to anyone else's. Don't get discouraged by the success of others. Make your own path and never give up. ~ Korvan 

Almost all our suffering is the product of our thoughts. We spend nearly every moment of our lives lost in thought, and hostage to the character of those thoughts. You can break this spell, but it takes training just like it takes training to defend yourself against a physical assault. ~ Sam Harris 

Sometimes when circumstances or disappointments bump you off track, it's the beginning of an even bigger dream coming true, that could not have come true on the track you were on. 

If you want to be an original, be prepared to be copied. ~ Coco Chanel

​Forgive others as quickly as you expect God to forgive you.

​"The critical ingredient is getting off your butt and doing something. It’s as simple as that. A lot of people have ideas, but there are few who decide to do something about them now.” --Nolan Bushnell

​You can only be YOUR best self, not someone else's, so be your best self, and let other's work on theirs. That's where your happiness will be.

To bear trials with a calm mind robs misfortune of its strength and burden. - Seneca

Yesterday is heavy. Put it down.

Let the shortcomings of others inspire you to work on your own. ~ Mike Dooley
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“Until we can manage time, we can manage nothing else.”  --Peter Drucker

Wealth consists In not having great possessions, but in having few wants.  - Epictetus

Needing approval is like saying your view of me is more important than my own opinion of myself. ~ Wayne Dyer

The greater the outward show, the greater the inward poverty. ~ Jiddu Krishnamurti

Set a goal every day that makes you want to leap out of bed in the morning!

If you knew everyone's story, you would love them. You couldn't really hate someone if you knew everything that happened to them between their birth and now - all the skeletons, all the secrets, all the hurts and hidden pain... If you truly knew them, you'd get it. - Emma Stone (with changes/additions by molly hawkins)

Stop being so critical about yourself, and you'll stop being so critical about other people. ~ Joyce Meyer   

We can either spend a moment wishing it were different, or we can embrace the moment. 
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Let's go invent tomorrow rather than worrying about what happened yesterday. - Steve Jobs

Be so busy looking for good, doing what you can, and focusing on the positive that you don't have time for drama, complaints, & gossip. ~ molly hawkins

“Life is short. Do stuff that matters.” --Siqi Chen

“I don’t wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.” --Pearl S. Buck

If you really want a healthy mind and a positive attitude, stop feeding your mind garbage all day long. Unfollow and disengage with negative people and pages. You’re never going to change them anyway.  REFUSE to speak negatively about yourself or other people, & stop complaining & blaming. If you want to “feel” happy, you’ve got to take CONSISTENT positive happy actions, and eventually the feelings will follow.  ~ molly hawkins

Gratitude is riches. Complaint is poverty. - Doris Day

Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it's time to pause and reflect. ~ Mark Twain

Snow is God's way of making a dirty world look clean. 

​If a thought hurts, question it. ~ Byron Katie

The happiness of your life depends on the quality of your thoughts.

“Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.” --Pablo Picasso

Remain calm during bad times, grounded during good times, and hopeful during all times. 

An unhealed person can find offense in pretty much anything someone else does. ... A healed person understands that the actions of others have nothing to do with them..... Every day YOU get to decide which one you're going to be. - author unknown
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Never be defined by your past.  It was just a lesson, not a life sentence.

​See all obstacles as learning experiences.  

​Another person's apology isn't required for you to choose forgiveness. ~ molly hawkins

Whatever the dangers of the action we take, the dangers of inaction are far, far greater. ~ Anthony Charles Lynton Blair 

Be careful how you talk to yourself because you are always listening. Be kind.

While we wait for life, life passes.

Each misfortune you encounter will carry in it the seed of tomorrow's good luck. ~ Og Mandino

“So what do we do? Anything. Something. So long as we just don’t sit there. If we screw it up, start over. Try something else. If we wait until we’ve satisfied all the uncertainties, it may be too late.” --Lee Iacocca
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Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain but it takes character and self control to be understanding and forgiving. ~ Dale Carnegie

Kindness is easy if you'll only speak of others in the same way you hope they'd speak of you. - molly hawkins

Trying to meet everyone's expectations is like trying to drain the ocean with a teaspoon. ~ Joyce Meyer

The people in your life should be a source of reducing stress, not causing more of it.

FACT: If you hear something unkind about me, guess what ~I do NOT want to know it, so do not tell me! SERIOUSLY. I just want to stay right here in my happy bubble pretending that everybody is nice and kind.  Don't ruin my dream! ~ molly hawkins

Don't mourn bad decisions.  Overcome them with good ones. - Joyce Meyer.

To speak ill of others is a dishonest way of praising ourselves. ~ Will Durant

"Whenever anyone has offended me, I try to raise my soul so high that the offense cannot reach it." - Rene' Descartes  

The chains of habit are too light to be felt until they're too heavy to be broken - Warren Buffett

When we focus on our gratitude, the tide of disappointment goes out, and the tide of love rushes in. - Kristin Armstrong

​Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor. - Truman Capote

"I am interested in everyone’s opinion. There is always something to be learned. The lack of civil discourse is disconcerting to me. Your opinion... is important to me primarily because I respect you. It would not matter whether we held the same opinions.... It is troubling and frankly, rudely annoying that there is so little respect for others' opinions unless they correlate with yours. If I wanted to only be surrounded with people who think as I do, a mirror would be dull company."  Alice Ray Murphy

Hanging onto resentment is letting someone you despise live rent-free inside your head. ~Ann Landers 

For as long as you wish to keep someone in your life, understanding them, as opposed to changing them, will wildly improve chances they'll also wish to keep you in their life. 

“You can’t be that kid standing at the top of the waterslide, overthinking it. You have to go down the chute.” --Tina Fey

There's so much good in the worst of us and so much bad in the best of us that it behooves none of us to talk about the rest of us! ~ (Our mom said this repeatedly to us growing up if we ever started to grumble or gossip about someone else. And I STILL need reminding.)

The person who removes a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.

"What we appreciate appreciates." - author, Lynn Twist

You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” - C. S. Lewis 

Success is not measured by what you accomplish, but by the opposition you have encountered, and the courage with which you have maintained the struggle against overwhelming odds. ~ Orison Swett Marden

A loving heart says: I'm kind because others have not been kind to me. A hardened heart says: I'm cruel because others have not been kind to me. ~ Julie Perkins Cantrell

When we are upset, it's easy to blame others. The true cause of our feelings, however, is within us. For example, imagine yourself as a glass of water. Now, imagine past negative experiences as sediment at the bottom of your glass. Next, think of others as spoons. When one stirs, the sediment clouds your water. It may appear that the spoon caused the water to cloud. But if there were no sediment, the water would remain clear. The key, then, is to identify our sediment and actively work to remove it.

Worry forgets the good things that hope remembers. 

“You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do.” --Henry Ford

A failure means you've put forth some effort. ~ Zig Ziglar

We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have. ~ Frederick Keonig

​There's nothing in nature that  blooms all year long, so don't expect yourself to either.

"Proverbs 17:22 A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones."

If you are really thankful, what do you do? You share. ~ W. Clement Stone
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“We’ve broken the world into us and them, only emerging from our bunkers long enough to lob rhetorical grenades at the other camp.  We write off half the country as out-of-touch, liberal elites or racist misogynist bullies…. Even when someone does call for understanding from the other side, the conversation nearly always devolves into who deserves more empathy…. We routinely refuse to acknowledge the flaws in our positions or the merits in our opponents’…. The end of this spiral of rage and blame begins with one person who refuses to indulge these destructive impulses. We just have to decide it’s going to start with us.” - Megan Phelps-Roper, former member of Westboro Baptist Church

There's nothing we cannot live down, rise above, or overcome. ~ Ella Wheeler Wilcox  

Fear... is forward. No one is afraid of yesterday. ~ Renata Adler

Don't tell me what THEY said about me. Tell me what YOU did to make them think it was ok to say it in your presence. 

Have you ever noticed that sadness in your life has never, ever lasted? Holding on or thinking you're not worthy can always be fixed!

There is a calmness to a life lived in gratitude, a quiet joy. - Ralph H. Blum

“You see, in life, lots of people know what to do, but few people actually do what they know. Knowing is not enough! You must take action.” --Tony Robbins

"Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary." ~ Steve Jobs 

If you. want to achieve greatness, stop asking for permission.

Anger is the feeling that makes your mouth work faster than your mind.

 " Yesterday, I was clever.  So I wanted to change the world. Today I'm wise.  So I'm changing myself." ~ Unknown

 Just because someone's sin is different from mine, it doesn't mean it's worse. ~ molly hawkins
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Wanting to be someone else is a waste of who you are. - Kurt Cobain

Let gratitude be the pillow upon which you kneel to say your nightly prayer.  - Maya Angelou

Despite how open, peaceful, and loving you attempt to be, people can only meet you as deeply as they've met themselves.

The person who seeks all their applause from outside has their happiness in another's keeping .    ~ Dale Carnegie  

Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions. ~ Albert Einstein

You are good enough, worthy enough, and lovable enough. You are exactly the right kind of person, in the right place, at the right time. Otherwise, you wouldn't have been instilled with such dreams in the first place. 

Care about people's approval and you will be their prisoner. ~ Lao Tzu

I never considered a difference of opinion in politics, in religion, in philosophy, as cause for withdrawing from a friend. - Thomas Jefferson

Habits are safer than rules. You don’t have to watch them, and you don’t have to keep them either. They keep you.  ~ Frank Crane

“To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” - Ralph W. Emerson

 "Luck is a matter of preparation meeting opportunity."  ~  Lucius Annaeus Seneca 

Gratitude doesn't change the scenery. It merely washes clean the glass you look through so you can see the colors. - Richelle Goodrich

The kindest thing that you can do for others is become a happy, joyous person.  ~ Brian Tracy

Stop trying to make somebody happy who's already decided that they aren't going to be happy. ~ Joyce Meyer

Do not follow where the path may lead. Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.  ~ George Bernard Shaw

Happiness is not pleasure.  It’s victory.  ~ Zig Ziglar 

When I don't like me, I don't like you. ~ Byron Katie

It is our choices, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities. ~ J. K Rowling

Whoever is happy will make others happy, too.  He has courage and faith will never perish in misery.  ~ Anne Frank

You can make yourself happy or make yourself miserable.  It’s the same amount of effort.  ~  Ray Bradbury

Sometimes it's the last key on the chain that unlocks the door. Don't give up.

"Time is limited, so I better wake up every morning fresh and know that I have just one chance to live this particular day right, and to string my days together into a life of action, and purpose." — Lance Armstrong

There's only one way to avoid criticism.  Do nothing.  Say nothing.  And be nothing. ~ Aristotle

If you want to see the sunshine, you have to weather the storm.

Nobody ever wrote down a plan to be broke, fat, lazy, or stupid. Those things are what happen when you don’t have a plan. ~ Larry Winget

Maturity comes when you stop making excuses and start making changes.

Success consists of going from failure to failure without giving up.