88 Truths I Have Learned in Life

1. You can’t change other people, and it’s rude to try
2. It is a hundred times more difficult to burn calories than to refrain from consuming them in the first place
3. If you’re talking to someone you don’t know well, you may be talking to someone who knows way more about whatever you’re talking about than you do
4. The cheapest and most expensive models are usually both bad deals
5. Everyone likes somebody who gets to the point quickly
6. Bad moods will come and go your whole life, and trying to force them away makes them run deeper and last longer
7. Children are remarkably honest creatures until we teach them not to be
8. If everyone in the TV show you’re watching is good-looking, it’s not worth watching
9. Yelling always makes things worse
10. Whenever you’re worried about what others will think of you, you’re really just worried about what you’ll think of you
11. Every problem you have is your responsibility, regardless of who caused it
12. You never have to deal with more than one moment at a time
13. If you never doubt your beliefs, then you’re wrong a lot
14. Managing one’s wants is the most powerful skill a person can learn
15. Nobody has it all figured out
16. Cynicism is far too easy to be useful
17. Every passing face on the street represents a story every bit as compelling and complicated as yours
18. Whenever you hate something, it hates you back: people, situations, and inanimate objects alike
19. Ralph Waldo Emerson’s works alone can teach you everything you need to know about living with grace and happiness
20. People embellish everything, as a rule
21. Anger reveals weakness of character, and violence even more so
22. Humans cannot destroy the planet, but we can destroy its capacity to keep us alive. And we are
23. When people are uncomfortable with the present moment, they fidget with their hands or their minds. Watch and see
24. Those who complain the most, accomplish the least
25. Putting something off makes it instantly harder and scarier
26. Credit card debt devours souls
27. Nobody knows more than a minuscule fraction of what’s going on in the world. it’s just way too big for any one person to know it well
28. Most of what we see is only what we think about what we see
29. A person who is unafraid to present a candid version of herself to the world is as rare as diamonds
30. The most common addiction in the world is the draw of comfort. It wrecks dreams and breaks people
31. If what you’re doing feels safe, there is probably a better course of action
32. The greatest innovation in the history of humankind is language
33. Blame is the favorite pastime of those who dislike responsibility
34. Everyone you meet is better than you at something
35. Proof is nothing but a collection of opinions that match your own
36. Knowledge is belief, nothing more
37. Indulging your desires is not self-love
38. What makes human beings different from animals is that animals can be themselves with ease
39. Self-examination is the only path out of misery
40. Whoever you are, you will die. To know and understand that means you are alive
41. Revenge is for the petty and irresponsible
42. Getting truly organized can vastly improve anyone’s life
43. Almost every cliché contains a truth so profound that people have been compelled to repeat it until it makes you roll your eyes. But the wisdom is still in there
44. People cause suffering when they are suffering themselves. Alleviating their suffering will help them not hurt others
45. High quality is worth any quantity. in possessions. fiends and experiences
46. The world would be a better place if everyone read National Geographic
47. If you aren’t happy single, you won’t be happy in a relationship
48. Even if it costs no money, nothing is free if it takes time
49. Emotions exist to make us strongly biased towards or against something. This hinders as often as it helps
50. Addiction is a much greater problem in society than it’s made out to be. It’s present in every person in various forms, but usually, we call it something else
41. “Gut feeling” is not just a euphemism. Tension in the abdomen speaks volumes about how you truly feel about something, beyond all arguments and rationales
52. Posture and dress change profoundly how you feel about yourself and how others feel about you, like it or not
53. Everyone thinks they’re an above-average driver
54. The urge to punish others has much more to do with venting frustration than correcting behavior
55. By default, people think far too much
56. if anything is worth splurging on, it’s a high-quality mattress. You’ll spend a third of your life using it
57. There is nothing worse than having no friends
58. To write a person off as worthless is an act of great violence.
59. Try as we might be otherwise, we are all hypocrites
60. Justice is a human invention that is in reality rarely achievable, but many will not hesitate to destroy lives demanding it
61. Kids will usually understand exactly what you mean if you keep it to one or two short sentences
62. Stuff that’s on sale usually has an annoying downside
63. Casual swearing makes people sound dumb
64. Words are immensely powerful. One cruel remark can wound someone for life
65. It’s easy to make someone’s day just by being uncommonly pleasant to them
66. Most of what children learn from their parents isn’t taught on purpose
67. The secret ingredient is usually butter, in obscene amounts
68. It is worth re-trying foods that you didn’t like at first
69. Problems, when they arise, are rarely as painful as the experience of fearing them
70. Nothing — ever — happens exactly as you pictured it
71. North Americans are generally terrible at accepting compliments and offers of help
72. There are not enough women in positions of power. The world has suffered from this deficit for a long time
73. When you break promises to yourself, you feel terrible. When you make a habit of it, you begin to hate yourself
74. A good nine out of ten bad things I’ve worried about never happened. A good nine out of ten bad things that did happen never occurred to me to worry about
75. You can’t hide a bad mood from people who know you well, but you can always be polite
76. Sometimes you have to remove certain people from your life, even if they’re family
77. Anyone can be calmed in an instant by looking at the ocean or the stars
78. There is no point in finishing a book you aren’t enjoying. Life is too short for that. Swallow your pride and put it down for good, unfinished
79. There is no correlation between the price of a brand of batteries and how long they last
80. Breaking new ground only takes a small amount more effort than you’re used to giving
81. Life is a solo trip, but you’ll have lots of visitors. Some of them are long-term, and most aren’t
82. ‘One of the best things you can do for your kids is to take them on road trips
83. The fewer possessions you have, the more they do for you
84. Einstein was wiser than he was intelligent, and he was a genius
85. ‘When you’re sick of your own life, that’s a good time to pick up a book
86. Wishing things were different is a great way to torture yourself
87. The ability to be happy is nothing other than the ability to come to terms with how things change
88. Just enjoy it. Millions of people on this Earth would kill to be you. You’re fucking awesome