Quotes about Taking Control

Alan Watts Quote on The Present and How It’s Not A Result Of The Past

“Everyone automatically assumes that the present is the result of the past. Turn it around, and consider whether the past may not be a result of the present. The past may be streaming back from the now, like the country as seen from an airplane.”
Alan Watts, Sunbeams (Page 14)

Beyond the Quote (Day 388)

Seeing the past as being the cause of your present steals from you the accountability that’s needed to take ownership of your future. For, you can’t change the outcome of your future if you’re busy blaming what happened in the past. You have to realize, as Watts outlines above, that it’s the present that caused the past, not the past that caused the present.

“In all circumstances—adversity or advantage—we really have just one thing we need to do: focus on what is in our control as opposed to what is not. Right now we might be laid low with struggles, whereas just a few years ago we might have lived high on the hog, and in just a few days we might be doing so well that success is actually a burden. One thing will stay constant: our freedom of choice—both in the big picture and the small picture. Ultimately, this is clarity.”
Ryan Holiday, The Daily Stoic (Page 27)

“I looked for someone outside of myself to dream up and create what only I could. I eventually realized that no one else can see your big picture. Only you know the journey you’re on. Others can contribute, and you should definitely surround yourself with smart people who lift you higher and share in your vision. But the truth is, even with wise counsel, only you know what your next step should be. All my best decisions in life have come when I’ve tuned in to what felt like the best move for me.”
Oprah Winfrey, via More Myself (Page 193)

Ram Dass Quote on Moving Forward and How Your Next Message Is Always Right Where You Are

“The next message you need is always right where you are.”
Ram Dass, Sunbeams (Page 7)

Beyond the Quote (Day 379)

Did you read that right? The next message you need—not the next message you want. Most of us are pretty good at ignoring the messages we don’t want to hear. So much so that many of us, I suspect, become blind and deaf to their presence entirely. The problem, of course, is that those messages tends to be the very messages that we most need to hear. And how do we hear something that we’ve become deaf to? How can we see again the messages that we’ve become blind to? It’s actually quite simple really.

“A wise person knows what’s inside their circle of control and what is outside of it. The good news is that it’s pretty easy to remember what is inside our control. According to the Stoics, the circle of control contains just one thing: YOUR MIND. That’s right, even your physical body isn’t completely within the circle. After all, you could be struck with a physical illness or impairment at any moment. You could be traveling in a foreign country and be thrown in jail. But this is all good news because it drastically reduces the amount of things that you need to think about. There is clarity in simplicity.”
Ryan Holiday, The Daily Stoic (Page 21)

“Serenity and stability are the results of your choices and judgment, not your environment. If you seek to avoid all disruptions to tranquility—other people, external events, stress—you will never be successful. Your problems will follow you wherever you run and hide. But if you seek to avoid the harmful and disruptive judgments that cause those problems, then you will be stable and steady wherever you happen to be.”
Ryan Holiday, The Daily Stoic (Page 19)

You have to care more about what you think.

“The proper work of the mind is the exercise of choice, refusal, yearning, repulsion, preparation, purpose, and assent. What then can pollute and clog the mind’s proper functioning? Nothing but its own corrupt decisions.”
Epictetus, via The Daily Stoic (Page 15)

Ryan Holiday Quote on Time Commitments and Learning To Say “No” To Wasteful Uses of Time

“One of the hardest things to do in life is to say ‘No.’ To invitations, to requests, to obligations, to the stuff that everyone else is doing. Even harder is saying no to certain time-consuming emotions: anger, excitement, distraction, obsession, lust. None of these impulses feels like a big deal by itself, but run amok, they become a commitment like anything else.”
Ryan Holiday, The Daily Stoic (Page 11)

Beyond the Quote (Day 371)

How many time commitments do you have that you don’t even realize you have? I just recently started tracking my screen time on my iPhone and was shocked to see the results. Imagine if your mind had a “use-time” breakdown and showed you in a pie chart how much time you spent thinking about all of the things you think about every day. Would you be just as shocked as I was when I saw my screen time? I suspect even more so.

“New year—a new chapter, new verse, or just the same old story? Ultimately we write it. The choice is ours.”
Alex Morritt

What will your life look like in 10 years?

Let go of that which is out of your hands.

Choose Your Hard

“Marriage is hard. Divorce is hard. Choose your hard.
Obesity is hard. Being fit is hard. Choose your hard.
Being in debt is hard. Being financially disciplined is hard. Choose your hard.
Communication is hard. Not communicating is hard. Choose your hard.
Life will never be easy. It will always be hard. But we can choose our hard. Pick wisely.”
Unknown

Beyond the Quote (336/365)

We’re wired to follow the path of least resistance. But, choosing to do what’s easy now doesn’t last. In fact, in almost every case, it only makes life harder later. It’s the principle of delayed gratification (more on this below).

So, while life can be easier from choosing the easier options, the truth is, it’s only a temporary easier. Experiencing the “hard” in life is not a matter of if, but a matter of when. And take heed, hard now and hard later are not created equal.

“The most profound personal growth does not happen while reading a book or meditating on a mat. It happens in the throes of conflict—when you are angry, afraid, frustrated. It happens when you are doing the same old thing and you suddenly realize that you have a choice.”
Vironika Tugaleva

Beyond the Quote (335/365)

Whenever you find yourself angry, frustrated, upset, or otherwise losing your cool, it helps to ask yourself: What state of mind is going to help me get through this in the most ideal way? I know, I know. Who is going to seriously ask themselves that question when they’re pissed off? It’s almost comical to think about someone who is about to blow their gasket—pausing—and asking themselves, “What state of mind is going to help me get through this in the most ideal way?” But, as comical as it sounds, within the framework of that question is a profound personal growth opportunity.

When's the last time you cleaned your mind's room?

James Clear Quote on Saying No and How To Get Better At Saying It

“When you say no, you are only saying no to one option. When you say yes, you are saying no to every other option. No is a choice. Yes is a responsibility.”
James Clear, Blog

Beyond the Quote (312/365)

This goes out to everybody who has a hard time saying, “No.“ Sure, saying no can be hard when you’re talking to a friend, family member, coworker, or even acquaintance. I get it. You don’t want to let the people you care about down. You don’t want to disappoint or upset those who ask you for a favor. You don’t want things to get awkward. But, as Clear points out above, what’s important to understand is that saying yes isn’t free of consequence in itself. It means you are saying no to every other option instead.

“Successful outcomes are never the result of a single choice. They are built up through good choices over time. A profitable business is never a choice, it is a series of choices. A fit body is never a choice, it is a series of choices. A strong relationship is never a choice, it is a series of choices.”
James Clear, Blog

“My ability to respond is limitless, but my ability to act is limited. I am one hundred percent responsible for everything I am and everything I am not, for my capacities and my incapacities, for my joys and my miseries. I am the one who determines the nature of my experience in this life and beyond. I am the maker of my life.”
Sadhguru, Inner Engineering (Page 66)

“Only if you realize you are responsible do you have the freedom to create yourself the way you want to be, not as a reaction to the situations in which you exist. Reactivity is enslavement. Responsibility is freedom. When you are able to create yourself the way you want, you can create your life the way you want as well. Your outer life may not be a hundred percent in your control, but your inner life always will.”
Sadhguru, Inner Engineering (Page 53)