Some encouraging words for you

Hi friends.

I finished reading and taking notes on a book called My So-Called Freelance Life a couple of months back, and there were some really encouraging words in the back of it to give aspiring freelancers a kick of motivation to get their careers started. (FYI, I highly recommend this book to anyone considering self-employment. It's funny, easy to understand, and very informative.)

I was putting the words that encouraged me the most into a Microsoft Word document yesterday when I realized that they were pretty relevant to everyone, not just self-employed people. So I decided to re-word a few things to make the advice more applicable to everyone and then share these encouraging words with all of you. If you want, you can put them on a blank document, print it out, and put it somewhere where you can see it every day (if you're into that kind of thing). That's what I'll be doing! :-)

Ignore the naysayers.

Don't try to be perfect---you're human.

Be true to yourself and the things that feel right to you as an individual.

Treat people well. 

Know what you're worth. 

Keep setting new goals.

Branch out into the unknown.

Learn.

Get inspired.

Make friends.

Encourage.

Collaborate.

Celebrate your successes. 

Learn from your defeats without dwelling on them. 

Have fun. 

<3 Madison

p.s. Thank you to everyone who has liked me on Facebook so far. If you haven't yet and you want to, here's the link: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Journey-of-a-Soul-Searcher/165291803602478 Seeing new likes makes me happy. 

p.p.s. Pinterest is pretty cool. If you've ever wondered what my favorite quotes or books are, what places I want to visit, what kind of music I listen to, or what I love/what makes me happy, wonder no more!: http://pinterest.com/madisonnier/

Yay for awkward self-promotion.. 

Time

"It's such a shame to waste time. We always think we have so much of it." ~ For One More Day by Mitch Albom

I've read a lot of books and a lot of quotes, but every now and then, one will come along that makes me stop and think---REALLY think. 

I get just as annoyed with cliches as the next person. But every now and then, I will read something that puts meaning behind those cliches.

You always hear people say the following statements:

"Live each day to the fullest because tomorrow is never guaranteed."

"Get off your bumhole and start living! What are you waiting for?"

"Time flies. Savor each and every moment."

Blah blah blah. When you hear the same thing over and over again, it starts to lose its meaning. It becomes stale and uninspiring after awhile. 

But why DO we waste time? Despite reading all these quotes about taking time for granted, what is our motive behind continuing to waste time anyway? 

It's because we think we have all the time in the world.

We think we've got nothing but time. "There's always tomorrow. There's always next week. There's always next month. There's always next year." 

And then before we know it, all this time has gone by and we're left scratching our heads. That's when we start grieving all that lost time---all that wasted time when we could've done something, but didn't because we thought we had plenty of time. 

I thought my childhood would be long enough, but I was wrong.

I'm 20 years old now, and I'm sitting here thinking my 20s will be long enough. I bet I'm wrong about that too. 

<3 Madison   

You are a somebody

You know what I hate? When people say stuff like, "I want to be somebody. I don't want to be a nobody my whole life."

First of all....Huh?  

Second of all, EVERYBODY is a somebody. I don't believe in calling anybody a nobody. It goes against everything I stand for. 

Society has a way of shedding a bad light on people who are dubbed as "ordinary." People who work medial jobs, people who aren't rich, famous, or taking over the world, etc. 

"You can do better than that." People say. "Don't be average. Don't be a loser. Make something of yo self!" 

Gahhh! This bugs me so much, and I don't know why I haven't addressed it yet. This is the exact reason why so many people feel like they don't measure up. They tell themselves, "I can do better than this. I'm not good enough. I'm not appreciated. I'm a loser. Blah blah blah." 

You guys. I want you to think about a job title or a position in life that you think most people tend to look down on. Maybe it's being a janitor. Or a fast food restaurant employee. Or a stay-at-home mom who does "nothing" all day. (PSH. Seriously people?!?!?) Now think about what we would do without these people. We would be surrounded by trash and messiness, we wouldn't have delicious french fries (gasp), and the world would be full of helpless children with parents who are too busy to take care of them.  

Everybody is a somebody. Everybody plays some sort of role in the world, no matter how big or small. 

Don't be ashamed of the role you play. (Unless you're a serial killer or you eat babies or something. You guys know what I mean. -_-) 

Sure, it's okay to dream big or reach for something that makes you feel more fulfilled. But some people are fine and dandy right where they are, and that's perfectly (more than perfectly) okay too. 

Last week, I found out that one of the janitors who worked at my high school passed away awhile back. I was so sad. I cried for days. He was the happiest, sweetest, most fun-loving man ever, and everyone at my high school knew who he was. He was always smiling, singing, and asking people about their day. He left his mark and will always be remembered as a beloved member of my high school community...And HE was "just a janitor." Doesn't matter much, does it? Of course not.  

Only YOU can define what makes you worthy. And I swear the list of reasons for your worth is ridiculously long. It's sad that so many people don't realize that. 

<3 Madison 

Things to remember

It has been one of those weeks where I need to sit down and remind myself of a few things. Because once again, that crazy, mean voice inside my head has been telling me all of these things that make me wake up at three in the morning with tears and anxiety.

The last time I had one of those "I need to sit down and remember why I'm still here" moments, the most popular piece of my soul that exists on the internet came out of me. (http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-3986/10-Things-to-Remind-Yourself-on-a-Daily-Basis.html)

So the other night, I decided to read through some of my old blog posts---the ones I wrote when I was feeling more inspired, worthy, and happy. And reading through all of those posts re-enforced those feelings a little bit.

So today, I want to give you some important reminders to carry around with you this week. (And next week and the week after that and the week after that...)

~ You are more than you give yourself credit for. http://journeyofasoulsearcher.blogspot.com/2012/03/dont-underestimate-yourself.html

~ You deserve the same amount of love that you give to your loved ones. http://journeyofasoulsearcher.blogspot.com/2012/03/self-love-epiphany.html

~ It is okay to hurt and struggle and be a human. http://journeyofasoulsearcher.blogspot.com/2012/02/who-made-you-king-of-anything.html

~ You are enough. http://journeyofasoulsearcher.blogspot.com/2012/01/enoughness.html

~ Most of the things that don't feel okay are actually perfectly okay. (This is probably my favorite post I've ever written.) http://journeyofasoulsearcher.blogspot.com/2011/11/its-okay.html

~ Contrary to popular belief, bad days can get better. http://journeyofasoulsearcher.blogspot.com/2011/08/bad-days-can-get-better.html

~ Life doesn't come with a rulebook. Live it YOUR way. http://journeyofasoulsearcher.blogspot.com/2011/06/life-doesnt-come-with-rulebook.html

I don't expect you to read all of the above in one sitting. You can if you want, of course. But you don't have to.

Lastly, I just want you guys to know that your nice comments, tweets, and emails mean more to me than I can express. I'm so glad you can relate to what I have to say. I'm so glad I've made you feel better or more inspired. I'm so glad you think I'm awesome. You're pretty awesome too.

I save all of the nice feedback I get and read through it when I feel crappy. I sort of want to print it all out and put it on my bedroom wall or something. So thanks. :-)

I hope everyone has a wonderful week and a wonderful summer!

<3 Madison

p.s. Did you guys notice my radical social networking buttons located to your left?! I'm finally starting (trying) to get more involved in the social networking world. So please join me on Twitter, Pinterest, and Facebook. I'll try to be as active as I can on each account without being annoying.