The main cause of unhappiness isn’t in the experience, but how you think and feel about it. So how about thinking awesome things…a lot…about everything. What if instead of seeing the flaws in others, all we saw was the greatness, the brilliance.
My Darling One and I decided some time ago that this would be our one new thing to experience this year…looking for and finding the greatness in others. Yes, that includes the idiot drivers on the road, the difficult people we might meet, the bores, the loud mouths, the…well you get my point.
As you can see this is an important skill, highly relevant to our everyday life. We just have to get a little better at it so that we don’t have to see these characteristics in ourselves because, truth be told, we know how life laws operate and we wouldn’t see the petty and the small or the great and the noble in others, unless it was in us too. Ouch!
We’re working on looking at everyone through the eyes of love.
Throughout the centuries our writers and poets and artists have found ways to cut through the hubub of life and put ideas that might be difficult to hear and understand, into simple words. Words that reach us at our deepest level. Words that touch our soul and remind us of our very own greatness quotient.
As you know I’m a big fan of quotes, and today I wanted to share 21 brilliant quotes on the greatness that you are, the greatness you have within you, the greatness that is yours for the taking, in my tiny attempt to let you see yourself through the eyes of love. Here’s my rainbow of quotes and may you find a ray of sunshine or your very own pot of gold
The great thing in this world is not so much where you stand, as in what direction you are moving. ~ Oliver Wendell Holmes
If you cannot do great things, do small things in a great way. ~ Napoleon Hill
Great things are not accomplished by those who yield to trends and fads and popular opinion. ~ Jack Kerouac
Unless you choose to do great things with it, it makes no difference how much you are rewarded, or how much power you have. ~ Oprah Winfrey
There is a great man who makes every man feel small. But the really great man is the man who makes every man feel great. ~ G. K. Chesterton
Everybody can be great… because anybody can serve. You don’t have to have a college degree to serve. You don’t have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. A soul generated by love. ~ Martin Luther King, Jr.
You were put on this earth to achieve your greatest self, to live out your purpose, and to do it fearlessly. ~ Steve Maraboli
You were born with potential. You were born with goodness and trust. You were born with ideals and dreams. You were born with greatness. You were born with wings. You are not meant for crawling, so don’t. You have wings. Learn to use them and fly. ~ Rumi
Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great. ~ Mark Twain
Your greatness is revealed not by the lights that shine upon you, but by the light that shines within you. ~ Ray Davis
Our key to greatness lies in who we are which we can give to other people in a way that when they walk away from us, they are able to say in their hearts that they have taken away something with them quite extraordinary. ~ C. JoyBell C.
You must expect great things of yourself before you can do them. ~ Michael Jordan
Do not confuse notoriety and fame with greatness. . . . For you see, greatness is a measure of one’s spirit, not a result of one’s rank in human affairs. ~ Sherman Finesilver
The man capable of greatness of soul will open wide the windows of his mind, letting the winds blow freely upon it from every portion of the universe. ~ Bertrand Arthur William Russell
As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world – that is the myth of the atomic age – as in being able to remake ourselves. ~ Mahatma Gandhi
Never underestimate the power of dreams and the influence of the human spirit. We are all the same in this notion: The potential for greatness lives within each of us. ~ Wilma Rudolph
Man’s greatness lies in his power of thought. ~ Blaise Pascal
If a man has any greatness in him, it comes to light, not in one flamboyant hour, but in the ledger of his daily work. ~ Beryl Markham
Do any of these quotes speak to you? Share your thoughts with a comment.
Encourage one another.
Love Elle
xoxo
Did you enjoy this article?
Alex Blackwell January 14, 2013 at 12:33 pm
What a great list Elle. The quote that resonates with me the most is the one from Steve Maraboli. It is filled with so much hope and encouragement.
Alex
Alex Blackwell recently posted…20 Simple Rules for an Amazing Life
Elle January 15, 2013 at 6:29 am
Welcome back Alex, I’ve missed you. The wonderful thing about quotes is that they are gentle reminders of who we are and what we can do and I often will use them as an affirmation for the day. A thought that I return to because it feels good.
Galen Pearl January 14, 2013 at 9:49 pm
Yes, this one. “There is a great man who makes every man feel small. But the really great man is the man who makes every man feel great.” This reminds me of my friend who is a brilliant law professor, a graduate of Harvard Law School, the recipient of many honors and awards. If you met him, though, you would never know this unless someone else told you. He would be busy asking you about your life, always being supportive, helping however he could, being funny and friendly and humble. You would leave his company feeling great about yourself!
Galen Pearl recently posted…Like Magic, Only Real
Elle January 15, 2013 at 6:34 am
What a wonderful friend Galen. There are definitely people in this world who leave you feeling better than you did. They’re the people that ‘feel’ so good to be around, the encouragers of life. And to me, they’re worth their weight in gold.
Fran Sorin January 14, 2013 at 10:48 pm
Elle – Wonderful list. Never heard the Mark Twain quote ~ love it. Fran
Fran Sorin recently posted…Garden Photo Point of View
Elle January 15, 2013 at 6:35 am
Thank you Fran. It’s fascinating the different quotes that speak to different folks. I should take another look at them and see which one truly speaks to me.
Sandi Faviell Amorim January 15, 2013 at 12:06 pm
Love quote collections and this is a fab list Elle!
Sandi Faviell Amorim recently posted…Six Impossible Things
Elle January 15, 2013 at 4:30 pm
Why thank you Sandi. I love quote collections too as you can no doubt tell. It seems I also love stating the obvious. Sigh.
Betsy/Zen Mama January 18, 2013 at 5:51 pm
Well, I somehow missed this one! Thanks for all the inspiration!! I’m going to write these down for future use and reference.
Thanks Elle!
Betsy/Zen Mama recently posted…5 Ways I Found Balance In Thailand