More or less every week for the past year I’ve put 3 random thoughts together, along with a couple of quotes and other bits and pieces, in a post called 3-2-1 Mindset Mondays.
Anyway, below is a highlight reel of those thoughts. I started with 150 and kept cutting it down till I got bored. The final count was 88.
Whether you just read the first few, pick some at random, or grab a cuppa and dig deep – I hope you find some inspiration here.
If any of them exceed my limited expectations and resonate, then please drop us a line in comments section below. Equally, if you have any gems of your own please share – I’d love to hear them!
Wishing you all a pleasant weekend ahead,
AP2 🙏
- You can never be perfect. You can always be better.
- The moment you fix your beliefs you imprison your mind.
- By not addressing our own suffering we cause it in others.
- Focus has more to do with eliminating distraction than it does with effort.
- If you don’t give yourself real problems to solve your mind will make some up.
- A good time is worth more than any material possession.
- The change the world needs from you is for you to change, not for you to change the world.
- Forget to-do lists, make a get to-do list instead.
- When thinking in terms of being right, you’ve lost. When thinking in terms of trying to learn something, you’ve won.
- Forcing your views on others doesn’t make you right.
- Strength of character is the ability to remain true to yourself when things are going against you.
- The most important resource that gets stolen from you everyday = attention.
- Success isn’t achieving something, success is enjoying achieving something.
- Having a routine = A commitment to improvement.
- Praise is the enemy of progress if handed out thoughtlessly. Praise should be a reward that’s earned through hard work.
- Don’t make the mistake of thinking what others want from you is what you want to give.
- The best thing you can do to honour life is pay attention to it.
- Try not to simply think outside the box, but destroy it entirely.
- The need to be right is the ego equivalent of being on crack. It’s both extremely addictive and extremely damaging.
- The great thing about momentum is that it builds naturally, like a boulder rolling down the hill. The difficult part is getting it to move in the first place.
- Make it your mission to be an agent of calm in the midst of chaos. When the storm settles you will be well placed to pick up the pieces and put the world back together.
- The beauty of a moment comes from its impermanence. The moment you cling to it, it’s destroyed.
- You’re either trying to be a better person or you’re not. There is no such thing as a “good person.”
- A deliberately easy life makes us unhappy because it makes us weaker. Conversely a deliberately difficult life makes us happy because it builds resilience. It also helps us appreciate the everyday things that most people take for granted.
- The arguments you have in your head are pointless if you only have them with yourself. Speak up or let go.
- Laughing at someone else’s expense demonstrates your own insecurities. Conversely, the ability to laugh at yourself demonstrates resilience.
- What matters is that we make amends for our past in the present moment for the future world.
- If you can improve your life knowing you already have enough, then future failures will hurt less and future successes will bring more joy.
- For all wannabe bloggers: Forget the numbers and speak from your heart. Forget the numbers and concentrate on making connections. Forget the numbers and enjoy the journey.
- If you complain you suffer twice. If you blame you deny yourself the opportunity to learn. If you give up both of those habits you’ll go far.
- It’s difficult to love other people if you don’t love yourself. It’s difficult to love yourself if you don’t love other people. It works both ways.
- Freedom demands we choose our responsibilities. The same way that having a life demands we protect it. If you want freedom of choice then you have to choose to take responsibility for your life. If you don’t, someone else will choose your responsibilities for you. The danger is they will use that for their own profit and power by forming a narrative you refused to take responsibility for forming yourself. In doing so they will shut your mind from your heart. The moment that happens you’ve lost your freedom.
- It’s not a matter of quality over quantity. I believe that quantity produces quality amongst a sea of mediocrity. The greatest artists produce far more average work than they do masterpieces. The point is though, they produce far more work.
- It’s far easier to help those who actually ask for it.
- When you’ve only suffered enough to know what misery is, but not enough to know what for, then you must endure a while longer. Keep searching for the meaning and you will find your salvation.
- There isn’t an inverse correlation between success and failure. The more you fail in life, the more you succeed. If you’re not failing it simply means you’re not trying as hard as you should. If you ask me, the only real failure is not trying. You need to put yourself in positions where you have to fail in order to succeed.
- Creativity has nothing to do with being the best but expressing your individuality. This is what makes the creative process so beautiful. It’s also what makes imitation such a terrible waste of your talents. There will always be someone who can do it better, but no-one who can do it the same.
- What the world needs from you and what society expects are two very different things.
- What if the only thing that is wrong with you, is that you think there is something wrong with you?
- Sit down every night and pat yourself on the back for the things you did well, then examine the ways in which you could have done things better. Bring both your sense of accomplishment and willingness to improve into your next day.
- How you treat others is how you treat yourself. Kindness expressed outwards extends inwards as well.
- The greater your understanding of how small you are, the bigger the person you become.
- People will always believe a confident lier over those who whimper the truth.
- The cost of convenience is your resilience.
- Competition is about pushing each other to improve. It’s about personal and collective growth. When we glorify it and make it about “winning at all costs” we turn people off. This defeats the purpose. Not only are those who compete weaker because they have less competition, those who don’t compete lose the ability to better themselves altogether. Don’t compete to win, compete to grow.
- Never forget that someone built the road you drive on.
- People won’t accept rocks that are hurled at them – they’ll either duck and hide, or throw them back.
- Courage is acting from a place of love, doing what you know to be right, not in the absence of fear, but because of it.
- Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger if that’s your attitude, otherwise it will make you weaker.
- Ignorance is bliss… but only for you, for everyone else it’s miserable.
- Knowledge alone isn’t enough. What you need is insight. Insight is what will set you free.
- If you’re not talking to yourself as you would your own family then perhaps you’re not showing yourself the compassion you should? And if you are, perhaps you’re not being as honest with yourself as you should?
- Attachments/Wanting = Unhappiness. Letting go/Generosity = Happiness.
- The time to start is now and thing to do is the one that scares you the most.
- Success is what we alone define.
- The mind is hardwired to keep you alive. It’s far more interested in your survival than achieving any sort of lasting happiness. That’s why it keeps tricking you.
- There is always a silver lining. You just have to look for it.
- Expressing gratitude is the best way to interpret reality – for the fact that we are alive is an extraordinary miracle.
- The problem with regret is that it takes you away from the present moment. Yet that’s exactly where all the opportunities lie to put things right.
- In a world where people are so afraid of what others think, honesty will take you far.
- We’re a society that loves to say the right thing without doing it. We need be one that does the right thing, with no need to say it.
- Emotion is a writer’s best friend.
- When you accept yourself for who you are you’re still aware that you can become something more. You still understand the benefits of becoming. The difference is you don’t attribute a threat level response to your actions.
- What follows a generation who got things wrong is one that understands why they must not make the same mistakes.
- An exercise in critical thought: Write down your opinions on a subject exactly as you think them. However outlandish, just put it down on paper and argue your side. Then go about proving it wrong in every conceivable way. Do the research, find the facts and consider the opinions that contradict your argument.
- Trying to create motivation is massively overrated. Trying to gain clarity is massively underrated.
- If you want to go up you have to overcome gravity.
- Original thought is often going ‘what if…’ and then thinking the exact opposite of what everybody else is.
- The art of conversation is about making the other person feel heard.
- Knowledge is power. Imagination is freedom.
- When doing something that makes you anxious it’s important to tell yourself that you can. Not because this will ease the nerves, but because when you manage to pull off that task you’ve been dreading, instead of feeling relief, you will gain confidence.
- You don’t always get to choose your problems in life, however, you always get to choose how you interpret and respond to those problems.
- Moving an inch forward prevents you falling a mile backward.
- If you miss the opportunity to appreciate the moment don’t stress, the next moment comes free of charge.
- You have to stop pouring water in your glass if you want to drink from it.
- Maybe we should imagine losing our loved ones in a car accident? Maybe we should take the time to imagine losing everything we hold dear? Maybe imagining the worst is exactly what brings what’s right in front of us, sharply into focus? Maybe meditating on our mortality – our own inevitable demise – is exactly what gives us freedom in the present? Maybe we will find more joy in everyday life by embracing these difficult emotions rather than chasing after a bigger pay check or slimmer waistline? What do you think?
- Learn to love yourself before you start searching for your knight in shining armour. That way you won’t need them to be your knight in shining armour. That way you’ll have realistic expectations going into your next relationship and the strength to deal with it should it fall apart.
- When you compare yourself to others you reject who you are.
- Kindness is not about avoiding conflict at all costs. Kindness is not about telling white lies so you don’t have to hurt someone else’s feeling. That’s not kindness, that’s cowardice.
- Contacting a friend a day keeps the demons at bay.
- I have two cycles for you. The first I like to call the Positive Cycle Of Hope. It looks like this: Hope inspires action that creates positive results that generates more hope (repeat). The second I like to call the Negative Cycle Of Hopelessness. It looks like this: Hope coupled with an inability (or unwillingness) to take action creates (99% of the time) negative results that generates feelings of despair and hopelessness (circle back to point 2 and repeat). The point I want to make? Hope must be tied to action otherwise it’s dangerous.
- Be careful what you say yes to in life. Often it’s the things we acquire for security that ends up imprisoning us.
- It’s funny how giving away everything for nothing in return gives you everything you want.
- The two most important things are your family and today. Connect the dots.
- If you only ever live in the moment, why would you rush it?
- In your attempts to avoid suffering you suffer more.
- Those who refuse to acknowledge their parent’s shortcomings are bound to repeat them.
- Both the best defence and the best weapon against the voices of hatred is to demonstrate they don’t generate any in your own heart.
****
If you like to read more of AP2’s titbits on life, then please check out his personal blog here: https://clear-air-turbulence.com
You can also find him trying to make friends on twitter here: @AnxiousPilot
I will not lie…I only got to point 35 because these are profound thoughts that need to be sipped like fine wine. I will take my time with the rest and then return to read them all again. I can’t agree with you more on all of them. It’s like looking into a mirror of one’s own life. It takes special observation and life experience to assimilate such snippets of wisdom. Detachment from the self can lead to wondrous results. It’s not about ‘I’, ‘me’, or ‘my’, but the concept of acceptance and awareness. Live and let live may sound cliched, but its the mantra to peaceful existence.
I appreciate there’s a lot to take in. I kinda figured people would just scroll and read at random. I’m pleased the first 30 odd resonate with you. I completely agree with you about acceptance. Learning to accept is life’s biggest lesson (as hard as it is). Thank you for sharing your thoughts Terveen. Wishing you well 🙏
Wishing you well too. Keep writing and inspiring!
#66 is great I’ve spent so much time trying to obtain motivation which cost me a lot of clarity. Great list AP !
Thanks Karac! Often I’ll take 5 minutes to sit and be still when I feel demotivated or stressed. Often it makes all the difference. Glad you enjoyed the list 🙏
yeah it is true nobody is perfect in the world and we can always be better and better
Done is better than perfect. I think the secret is to settle for better and forget the idea of perfection altogether. Otherwise it ends up paralysing us. Thank you for sharing your thoughts 🙏
Yeah, I can relate to Terveen’s comment. 88 is way too much to check down at once. I only got till point 8 before my mental fuse melted down. It has probably something to do with the way I deal with lists: I like to check off the items on it . Has nothing to do with the quality of the quotes, but most of them are open ended challenges. Not like: seen that, done that, got the T-shirt, and move on to the next challenge on the list.
I understand. I wasn’t expecting folks to read the whole list but I’ll try harder to cut it down next time! Thank you for sharing your thoughts 🙏
#14. “Having a routine = A commitment to improvement.”
Just a note… that assumes it’s a *constructive* routine. 😉
In general, life is full of manure. Our choice is to dump it in a weed choked field or to use it to fertilize a bed of flowers.
Cheers! (ツ)v
You mean binge watch NETFLIX every night isn’t constructive? 😂
I love that quote v! You’re right. A good question to ask, what are you willing to suffer for?
Thank you for weighing in.🙏
AP2… wow… very powerful ideas. I wrote down like 10 impactful ideas into my journal. About 3 of them caused serious reflection. I’m grateful I found your blog on here.
I’m so pleased you found it a valuable list. Thank you for kind words. 🙏😊
I was not even half way but was already inspired.
Thank you Moses. If it inspired then I’m happy 😊 🙏
You have an amazing collection of these thoughts!! I truly loved it and this collection would be much useful to me!!
I’m glad you found the list of value. Thank you for your kind words 🙏
So much to think about! I particularly liked #84. Have a great weekend. 😀
Glad it resonated Lesley. Thank you. Have a great weekend too 😊🙏
A lot to ponder and absorb but many are Thought provoking indeed…
In order to truly succeed
don’t just do what’s expected….
do the unexpected when you can!
Thinking outside the box. Going above and beyond is important. To put it another way, finding the thing that you’ll always go above and beyond for = your passion. Thank you for sharing your thoughts 🙏
I just saved this post, so that I cam read a bit everyday!
That means a great deal – thank you. I hope my words help you! 🙏
Lots of good advice to use in improving daily life. Thank you
Most welcome. Thank you Neil. 🙏
Thank you for this! I’m not gonna lie, number 27 spoke to me the most simply because I just finished writing a piece about a similar (if not the exact) topic which I’m gonna post soon on my blog I recently started 2 weeks ago. If this is not a sign then I don’t know lol. Thanks once again.
I’m please you liked that one! It’s one of my favourites as well. Often wearing our past mistakes like a badge of honour helps us going forward. I wish you well on your journey 🙏
Hi, AP2. I see what you did there with the word “Pointless” in your title! Clever. Clever. There’s an embarrassment of riches here. There are so many good points; it was hard to narrow down to a favorite. I’ll say that number 2 has long been my philosophy of life and thinking. For years, when I was of university age and grew my hair long and had an enormous beard and read all the great classic texts of philosophy, I used to change my beliefs on a regular basis as a method of avoiding intellectual “fossilization.” This kept my thinking very dynamic and unattached to dogmas. You know, I have a great book idea: Why not write 88 meditations of each of these 88 ideas? We might even collaborate. What do you think?
Thank you Troy. I like the idea of fluid beliefs. Many people have it in their heads that beliefs are fixed, but I don’t believe (ha) that’s true at all. Beliefs are always shifting/evolving with time. And if not, then they are merely strengthening. Nothing is more dangerous than the latter.
I have been searching for a good book idea to get stuck into for a while. It’s a great idea. I would be very keen to collaborate. I’ll give it some more thought and fire you an email in the near future.
8th 11th 13th
13 is a popular one talking to a few other people. 8 – Yes I always write a get to-do list now. Makes it feel much less arduous. Thank you Christina 🙏
It’s almost bedtime, and I didn’t get very far, I suspect more of them are good inspiration, so my suggestion is to split them up and re-post them for us people with short attention span. Personally I like #1 the best of the ones I read.
All these thoughts came from a series of smaller posts I put out every week on my personal blog. I thought it would interesting to collate them into one big post. The idea was to read/scroll at random. I also have too short an attention span to read such a post in its entirety. Thank you for taking the time to read what you could manage and leave your thoughts. Chase growth, not perfection. (I’ll make the list shorter next time 😉) Wishing you well 🙏
Woo! 88 thoughts. My favorite is 71, which is so true! Procrastination can be caused when we don’t feel confident about the task at hand. Furthermore, I love this universal paradox, “It’s funny how giving away everything for nothing in return gives you everything you want.” Growing up, I learned that it was polite to return the favor, every single time! However, I now believe that we give out of love, without expectation of anything in return. 🙂 Thanks for sharing.
71 is one of my personal favs as well (even if I do say so myself).
If you do something from the goodness of your heart – then it becomes its own reward. You don’t need anything in return. Thank you Spiritual Fantasia 🙏
Aw haha, the act of giving is receiving. Love that!
Yea i too read at random, it’s a lot to take in at one go but wonderful thoughts. 87 though, made me smile. 59 regretting and losing out on the present…have been making the most of it lately…time is limited and who knows what the future holds
I’m glad you enjoyed them – reading at random was my thinking with this post. 87 – yes our parents aren’t/weren’t perfect – none of us are. I think a failure to see that is a problem for some. No point living with regret. Learn and then let go. As you say, time is finite. Thank you for leaving your thoughts. Wishing your well 🙏
89. If you can put 88 inspiring, worthy-to-read thoughts together, you have done some thinking.
🙂
Perhaps too much thinking 😂. Which, I think, is my bigger problem. Thank you 🙏
This is amazing! And profound. I’ll be back to read them randomly again 😀
Thank you. I’m pleased 😊🙏
Friggin’ love this, AP2. So many gems. 🦋
Thank Snap! I’m so pleased m you liked it. 🙏
39. What if the only thing that is wrong with you, is that you think there is something wrong with you?
I loved this one! I’m reading a book called The Gifts of Imperfection and just read a chapter with a similar theme, that really shifted my perspective. The author talked about how sometimes we wake up and go over all the things we need to do, and at the end of the day go to bed thinking about all the things we didn’t get done over the day. Overall, both refer to us thinking about the things we are LACKING. The shift in perspective came when she pointed out that the remedy to this kind of thinking is GRATITUDE. Instead of focusing on what you DIDN’T DO, you can focus on practicing gratitude for what you DID do. In the end, what’s the point of giving yourself a hard time for not completing your to-do list anyway? It really resonated with me.
There is a huge amount of utility in gratitude. Often we fight instead of accepting. It’s counter intuitive but the way to change is to first accept. Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I’ll put the book on my reading list. 🙏
You had me at #1 itself. I truly believe the very concept of “perfection” is flawed.
These could just as well be daily affirmations!
Certainly many of them would work well as daily affirmations. Perfection is a fantasy. Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I appreciate it. 🙏
The most important resource that gets stolen from you everyday = attention. This is so true
Don’t I know it! Thank you Ritika 🙏
I will be saving these. Thanks!
Profound thoughts. I love the points you have chosen to be highlighted. Was a good read. #mywordskraft
Thank you Anish – Glad you enjoyed it! 🙏
Can you read also my blogs please I’m new here
Three seconds into the thoughts and I already got thinking about alot of stuff.. lovely this peace is what I can say about it. But putting all this thoughts in one place is just too much for my simple mind, i will read them again one by one. Am glad I found your blog
Ha yes – there is a great deal to chew on in that post – a collection of thoughts from the past year or so. I put it out there for people to scan at their leisure. Not something I would be able to read in one go either! Thank you for stopping by and taking the time to read and comment. Wishing you well 🙏🙂
A year or so you say? That’s impressive. Hats off!
Oh how number 5 resonates strongly with me! Our minds can become so ingrained with always looking out for what might hurt us, or what dangers are around us, that we might not see the real fun problems to solve! For me that is finding a new story to write, or a new song to play!
I’ve only made it a short way into the list but even after reading just 10, I see find myself chuckling at the beautifully intelligent simplicity in some of the gems. 💛
Thanks Hamish. It’s a long post. A collection of many random thoughts I had over the past year or so. Don’t feel obliged to read all at once. Skim at your leisure. Thanks for your kind words as always brother. 🙏
That was a perfect read for the first coffee on a Sunday morning! I have to admitt, I caught myself getting mad at your for some … Or was it myself?