Poems
fear is in my favor
fear can be an asset
to remind me of my agency
for what it's worth, I'm forwards focused
making good on gifts life gave to me
"perfect" prevents progress
obsession with perfection
is self-conscious selfishness
others' thoughts pose you no danger
the only risk is what they'll miss
what's my legacy?
if I have one regret
it's all the skills I never sharpened
though it's tragic to forget
it's even worse to be forgotten
Prompts
You'll Never Feel Fully Ready
Circumstances will rarely be ideal to start.
The perfect time to begin the work has long past.
The next best time is right now.
What are you waiting for?
Perfectionism is a Selfish Vice
Obsession with perfection isn't self-discipline, it's self-conscious selfishness.
The risk isn't what others will think, it's what they'll never hear if you quit over fear.
Hard Work is Relaxing
Working hard is misconceived as stressful, but relaxation requires effort.
The best cure for worries is dutiful action.
You can't wish away anxiety. You must act.
Purpose is Your Guiding Light
Following your purpose requires saying no.
If the answer is always yes, you don't stand for anything.
Use your purpose to know where your time is best spent, and where it isn't.
Hard Decisions Make an Easy Life
Once you choose to take the hard road resolutely, relentlessness is the only option.
What was difficult is now easy, because it's on your terms.
Admit When You Were Wrong
There's no shame in making mistakes, nothing wrong with being wrong.
By accepting your fault, it shows you're trustworthy, inspiring others to do the same.
Taking a Break Takes Discipline
Endurance requires throwing in the towel before you burnout.
Strike while the iron is hot, but know when to rest.
It isn't giving up, it's playing the long game.
Presence Dissolves the Gaze of Others
Every person you meet imagines a unique version of you.
All are as ephemeral as ego.
Present awareness is timeless, from beyond the eyes of others.
We Are Unreliable Narrators
Don't believe every story you tell yourself.
We are all biologically programmed to think negative thoughts over positive ones.
Have your worries come to pass?
The Same World is in Each of Us
We are all one consciousness aware of itself at distinct points.
What separates us is an illusion.
The space we experience from is identical in us all.
You are Awareness of Experience
The self as we know it is imaginary.
There is no "experiencer" behind existence.
There is only experience itself, and that is what we truly are.
Impermanence is Uplifting
Surrender your desire for unpleasant sensations to end and satisfying ones to extend.
Escape from a self-sustained cycle of suffering.
We All Have the Same Source
Everyone comes from and will return to the same source.
We were all born, and we all die.
Isn't this fundamental similarity greater than all our differences?
View Yourself as a Verb, Not a Noun
The self is not permanent.
It is a flowing process of subject and object merged into one.
The barrier between inner and outer worlds is an illusion.
All Emotions Are Worthy of Attention
Don't judge your emotions.
"Bad" emotions are messengers for your limiting beliefs, growing louder until they're heard.
Quiet them by listening.
Happiness Doesn't Require Conditions
Stop setting requirements for your happiness.
Transcend your identity tied to seeking solace and passing up pain.
Each moment is already complete.
Find the Courage to Ask for Help
You don't have to do it alone.
Being vulnerable means having the courage to admit when you need to lean on others.
Push past your fear; ask for help.
