Slogans are wisdom written in shorthand
June 20, 2018 6:32 PM Subscribe
What slogans or sayings have you found particularly helpful in some way in the course of your life?
I've never been in a 12-step program, but often I'll run across one of their slogans in a book or online and find that it really resonates with me, in a "good wisdom for life" kind of way, or somehow addresses a particular problem or situation in succinct and memorable way. The Serenity Prayer in particular has helped me find my way through life's knottier problems with a measure of sanity and grace. I also found some of Flylady's slogans to be similarly helpful. "Done is better than perfect!" helps me appreciate that making even a small improvement in an overwhelming task is worthwhile, and helps me become un-stuck from inertia. The short, memorable and wise formula seems to stick with me, and after a bit of repetition these sayings are easily called up from memory when I need them most.
I would like to discover more of these slogans and sayings that might help me cope with my problems and issues, or benefit from in some practical way. What are some slogans, sayings or other memorable bits of life wisdom that you have found particularly beneficial (and why, if you'd care to say)? Can be from a 12-step program or anywhere.
I've never been in a 12-step program, but often I'll run across one of their slogans in a book or online and find that it really resonates with me, in a "good wisdom for life" kind of way, or somehow addresses a particular problem or situation in succinct and memorable way. The Serenity Prayer in particular has helped me find my way through life's knottier problems with a measure of sanity and grace. I also found some of Flylady's slogans to be similarly helpful. "Done is better than perfect!" helps me appreciate that making even a small improvement in an overwhelming task is worthwhile, and helps me become un-stuck from inertia. The short, memorable and wise formula seems to stick with me, and after a bit of repetition these sayings are easily called up from memory when I need them most.
I would like to discover more of these slogans and sayings that might help me cope with my problems and issues, or benefit from in some practical way. What are some slogans, sayings or other memorable bits of life wisdom that you have found particularly beneficial (and why, if you'd care to say)? Can be from a 12-step program or anywhere.
When I had cell service through Verizon a few years ago, I would sometimes get automated status messages from them, and they would conclude with the tagline "Verizon: Make Progress Everyday". I found that strangely inspiring. Like, yeah, thanks Verizon, I will make progress in whatever I'm doing today, and tomorrow, and the next day. Thanks for having my back! I still think of that every once in a while.
posted by kevinbelt at 6:42 PM on June 20, 2018 [10 favorites]
posted by kevinbelt at 6:42 PM on June 20, 2018 [10 favorites]
1) Is this the hill I want to die on?
2) Not my circus, not my monkeys.
posted by matildaben at 6:43 PM on June 20, 2018 [24 favorites]
2) Not my circus, not my monkeys.
posted by matildaben at 6:43 PM on June 20, 2018 [24 favorites]
Best answer: When things look overwhelmingly awful, just say "At least it's not on fire."
(Note: Not useful when things are actually on fire.)
posted by Faint of Butt at 6:47 PM on June 20, 2018 [18 favorites]
(Note: Not useful when things are actually on fire.)
posted by Faint of Butt at 6:47 PM on June 20, 2018 [18 favorites]
Everything changes.
posted by Fig at 6:48 PM on June 20, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by Fig at 6:48 PM on June 20, 2018 [4 favorites]
The dogs bark, but the caravan moves on.
What we had we gave, what we kept is lost forever.
You wake 'em, you take 'em. (A saying my wife and I had when our three kids -- 30 months between all of them -- were little. ) The corollary is Sleep begats sleep.
The diet starts tomorrow.
Embrace the darkness.
posted by AugustWest at 6:49 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
What we had we gave, what we kept is lost forever.
You wake 'em, you take 'em. (A saying my wife and I had when our three kids -- 30 months between all of them -- were little. ) The corollary is Sleep begats sleep.
The diet starts tomorrow.
Embrace the darkness.
posted by AugustWest at 6:49 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
Perspective is everything.
posted by Iris Gambol at 6:59 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by Iris Gambol at 6:59 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
Best answer: When everything is an emergency, nothing is an emergency.
posted by the road and the damned at 7:02 PM on June 20, 2018 [12 favorites]
posted by the road and the damned at 7:02 PM on June 20, 2018 [12 favorites]
"When you're going through hell, keep going."
Similarly:
"The only way out is through."
posted by ROTFL at 7:03 PM on June 20, 2018 [18 favorites]
Similarly:
"The only way out is through."
posted by ROTFL at 7:03 PM on June 20, 2018 [18 favorites]
Similar to "done is better than perfect," I like "good enough is good enough" and "the perfect is the enemy of the good."
"Make the job smaller." When a task looks big, don't try to do it, try to make it a little easier to do later.
"This too shall pass," or, less poetically, "in six months everything is going to look totally different." Especially with parenting small kids--every single thing, good or bad, is a phase.
I also like "At the end of the day, who do you want to be?" This comes out of a conversation and doesn't mean much alone, but it's kind of similar to a What Would X Do? mantra, in that it's about imagining the person you'd like to be and doing what that person would do in a situation. (I like to use Breq, the main character of Ancillary Justice, who is the most effective and compassionate character I can think of.)
Do not compare your insides to other people's outsides.
posted by gideonfrog at 7:03 PM on June 20, 2018 [7 favorites]
"Make the job smaller." When a task looks big, don't try to do it, try to make it a little easier to do later.
"This too shall pass," or, less poetically, "in six months everything is going to look totally different." Especially with parenting small kids--every single thing, good or bad, is a phase.
I also like "At the end of the day, who do you want to be?" This comes out of a conversation and doesn't mean much alone, but it's kind of similar to a What Would X Do? mantra, in that it's about imagining the person you'd like to be and doing what that person would do in a situation. (I like to use Breq, the main character of Ancillary Justice, who is the most effective and compassionate character I can think of.)
Do not compare your insides to other people's outsides.
posted by gideonfrog at 7:03 PM on June 20, 2018 [7 favorites]
From my dad : The excellent is the enemy of the good
From a great art teacher : Don't let your work get too precious
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 7:04 PM on June 20, 2018 [4 favorites]
From a great art teacher : Don't let your work get too precious
posted by 5_13_23_42_69_666 at 7:04 PM on June 20, 2018 [4 favorites]
Best answer: Obstacles do not block the path, they are the path.
posted by maya at 7:04 PM on June 20, 2018 [25 favorites]
posted by maya at 7:04 PM on June 20, 2018 [25 favorites]
The act of observing disturbs the observed.
(A restatement of Heisenberg's uncertainty theory)
Ask questions first.
(That's one I made up myself, but it works for me, and I think it all the time.)
posted by amtho at 7:05 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
(A restatement of Heisenberg's uncertainty theory)
Ask questions first.
(That's one I made up myself, but it works for me, and I think it all the time.)
posted by amtho at 7:05 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
Put on your own oxygen mask first.
posted by pointystick at 7:06 PM on June 20, 2018 [11 favorites]
posted by pointystick at 7:06 PM on June 20, 2018 [11 favorites]
Best answer: Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.
I tend to rush under pressure and make mistakes that slow me down. This is apparently a Navy SEAL slogan, but I've found it useful in most areas of life.
posted by Knicke at 7:07 PM on June 20, 2018 [27 favorites]
I tend to rush under pressure and make mistakes that slow me down. This is apparently a Navy SEAL slogan, but I've found it useful in most areas of life.
posted by Knicke at 7:07 PM on June 20, 2018 [27 favorites]
Best answer: Morning is wiser than evening.
People who feel trapped make bad choices. That’s not an aphorism exactly, more an observation a mentor made once, but it felt true so I kept it.
posted by eirias at 7:10 PM on June 20, 2018 [7 favorites]
People who feel trapped make bad choices. That’s not an aphorism exactly, more an observation a mentor made once, but it felt true so I kept it.
posted by eirias at 7:10 PM on June 20, 2018 [7 favorites]
Also - and I feel like this one made an appearance on the blue or the grey recently, and smiled to myself - “all that is very well; but let us cultivate our garden.”
posted by eirias at 7:12 PM on June 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by eirias at 7:12 PM on June 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
To resist despair in this world is what it is to be free.
posted by pH Indicating Socks at 7:15 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by pH Indicating Socks at 7:15 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
There but for the grace of God go I.
And I'm not even particularly faith based. I just find it a great reminder to remind myself that we are all different
posted by Ftsqg at 7:15 PM on June 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
And I'm not even particularly faith based. I just find it a great reminder to remind myself that we are all different
posted by Ftsqg at 7:15 PM on June 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
Never be afraid of what you want.
posted by missmary6 at 7:26 PM on June 20, 2018 [5 favorites]
posted by missmary6 at 7:26 PM on June 20, 2018 [5 favorites]
If you can't go through go around.
posted by bjgeiger at 7:33 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by bjgeiger at 7:33 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
Money makes people funny.
People will forget what you said, and they'll forget what you did—but people will never forget the way you made them feel.
Never burn a bridge.
Shut up, listen, and learn.
posted by Rykey at 7:34 PM on June 20, 2018 [5 favorites]
People will forget what you said, and they'll forget what you did—but people will never forget the way you made them feel.
Never burn a bridge.
Shut up, listen, and learn.
posted by Rykey at 7:34 PM on June 20, 2018 [5 favorites]
Hindsight is 2020
posted by OrangeVelour at 7:34 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by OrangeVelour at 7:34 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
- Fuck 'em if they can't take a joke
- No good deed goes unpunished
posted by adamrice at 7:40 PM on June 20, 2018 [4 favorites]
Everything ain't for everybody. -It's ok to like different things, and it's ok when someone else doesn't like the things you like.
posted by glonous keming at 7:49 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by glonous keming at 7:49 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
"Tomorrow it's under the puppy."
"What other people think of you is none of your business."
posted by The otter lady at 7:50 PM on June 20, 2018 [9 favorites]
"What other people think of you is none of your business."
posted by The otter lady at 7:50 PM on June 20, 2018 [9 favorites]
One of the most memorable, for me, I acquired by reading how it overwhelmed someone else—the poet Dominique Fourcade in his long poem Everything Happens:
posted by Wobbuffet at 7:56 PM on June 20, 2018 [5 favorites]
Second visit to the Mallarmé show. I'm meeting Olivier Cadiot. I'm on time but Olivier, early, skims through the first room, waiting for me. Shows me presto Manet's note thanking Mallarmé for his support following the Jury's refusal of two of his paintings for the Salon of 1874—"you seen that?" I'd in fact seen it at the time of my first visit; Manet's note is banal and well-known, and I don't understand what's worth lingering over. "No, that!" he says, pointing to the heading of Manet's note paper. Stupor—I read the words: "Everything happens," how could such magic have escaped me? I was far from having seen it. Had Cadiot wanted to give me a gift of electricity and lightning, he could not have gone about it any differently.More is available as audio (skip to the middle for English). BTW, I wouldn't read it as just everything happens for a reason. For me, knowing a poet gave it this much attention, it has come to mean a lot of things: you never know; everything is in its own way surprising; all things are time; all things that will be are unfolding; and the unexpected will always happen too. I doubt it strikes you in the same way, but maybe the story of being struck by a phrase this way is relevant too.
or:
two words chose a self, nothing out of the ordinary
[...]
Here's what I think: in this past century and a half, there has been no event more decisive than the fact that a man chose these two words as a poetics, which are not Wittgensteinian, or, more importantly, that a man allowed himself to be chosen by these two intoxicating words, or, even more important, that he acted (in this case painted) as if these two words go without saying, a sort of adorable spinnaker, but it takes the most open and adventurous of spirits to unfurl its sail.
as soon as I saw that the day opened up to the point of dissolution and I have only dimness to offer to you
posted by Wobbuffet at 7:56 PM on June 20, 2018 [5 favorites]
This too shall pass.
It always seems impossible until it’s done.
Is does not matter how slow you go as long as you do not stop.
Everything you want is the other side of fear.
And my very favorite: the only normal people are the ones you do not know.
posted by netsirk at 7:59 PM on June 20, 2018 [8 favorites]
It always seems impossible until it’s done.
Is does not matter how slow you go as long as you do not stop.
Everything you want is the other side of fear.
And my very favorite: the only normal people are the ones you do not know.
posted by netsirk at 7:59 PM on June 20, 2018 [8 favorites]
Let love rule.
posted by headnsouth at 8:05 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by headnsouth at 8:05 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
Today is yesterday's tomorrow. (meant to fight procrastination, e.g. "I'll do that tomorrow...")
Regarding social media, especially Instagram: don't compare yourself to someone else's highlight reel.
posted by AFABulous at 8:07 PM on June 20, 2018 [5 favorites]
Regarding social media, especially Instagram: don't compare yourself to someone else's highlight reel.
posted by AFABulous at 8:07 PM on June 20, 2018 [5 favorites]
Best answer: 'Don't look at the rocks'
This is a saying in whitewater kayaking, at least where I was an instructor. Basically, if you're looking at the rocks, you end up on the rocks. If you're looking at the clean and easy line, you'll take the clean and easy line. If you're looking at the waterfall, you're going over the waterfall. Every beginner's first instinct is to look at the rocks, just like everyone's first instinct is to see the bad, avoid the hazard, and fear failure instead of looking for the good, seeking safety, and pursuing success (however we personally define it).
posted by cirgue at 8:16 PM on June 20, 2018 [36 favorites]
This is a saying in whitewater kayaking, at least where I was an instructor. Basically, if you're looking at the rocks, you end up on the rocks. If you're looking at the clean and easy line, you'll take the clean and easy line. If you're looking at the waterfall, you're going over the waterfall. Every beginner's first instinct is to look at the rocks, just like everyone's first instinct is to see the bad, avoid the hazard, and fear failure instead of looking for the good, seeking safety, and pursuing success (however we personally define it).
posted by cirgue at 8:16 PM on June 20, 2018 [36 favorites]
Basically the entirety of Desiderata. Collectively it's not exactly pithy but it is quite comprehensive.
posted by teremala at 8:23 PM on June 20, 2018 [15 favorites]
posted by teremala at 8:23 PM on June 20, 2018 [15 favorites]
You can’t think a person out of a position they felt themself into.
You can only eat an elephant one spoonful at a time.
Repetition is the basis for all learning.
posted by armoir from antproof case at 8:26 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
You can only eat an elephant one spoonful at a time.
Repetition is the basis for all learning.
posted by armoir from antproof case at 8:26 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
Ah, and another that's been on my mind lately: "keep nothing you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful".
posted by teremala at 8:32 PM on June 20, 2018 [7 favorites]
posted by teremala at 8:32 PM on June 20, 2018 [7 favorites]
Best answer: This quote from Andrew Carnegie helped me actually finish writing my novel:
People who are unable to motivate themselves must be content with mediocrity, no matter how impressive their other talents.
posted by Mchelly at 8:40 PM on June 20, 2018 [32 favorites]
People who are unable to motivate themselves must be content with mediocrity, no matter how impressive their other talents.
posted by Mchelly at 8:40 PM on June 20, 2018 [32 favorites]
A vision without a task is but a dream; A task without a vision is drudgery; A vision and a task is the hope of the world.
posted by brentajones at 8:43 PM on June 20, 2018 [11 favorites]
posted by brentajones at 8:43 PM on June 20, 2018 [11 favorites]
No one is indispensable or irreplaceable, to try is delusion.
You're going to do what you want anyway, so you might as well be happy.
There is a lid for every pot. (Thanks for being right Grandma H, my lid found me eleven years ago!)
Resting on laurels never got anyone anything worth having.
posted by Amor Bellator at 8:51 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
You're going to do what you want anyway, so you might as well be happy.
There is a lid for every pot. (Thanks for being right Grandma H, my lid found me eleven years ago!)
Resting on laurels never got anyone anything worth having.
posted by Amor Bellator at 8:51 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
Don't start until everyone knows what "right" even looks like.
It's not just a motivational thing to have a vision, although it is that. You can't do much without inspiring the team to do great things instead of just "good enough" things. A good vision can do that.
It's also a very practical thing though. How do you know when you're screwing it up, going down the wrong path, or getting sidetracked on non-essential trivia? Diff what you have against the vision. Are they the same? If not, is that what you're working on?
posted by ctmf at 8:54 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
It's not just a motivational thing to have a vision, although it is that. You can't do much without inspiring the team to do great things instead of just "good enough" things. A good vision can do that.
It's also a very practical thing though. How do you know when you're screwing it up, going down the wrong path, or getting sidetracked on non-essential trivia? Diff what you have against the vision. Are they the same? If not, is that what you're working on?
posted by ctmf at 8:54 PM on June 20, 2018 [2 favorites]
Best answer: I think about the day that that plane landed on the Hudson and when they kept asking the pilot if he wanted to land he kept saying “Unable” and then landed wherever he could. Nope, can’t do it, here’s what I’m going to do instead so get ready. Unable.
posted by bleep at 8:59 PM on June 20, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by bleep at 8:59 PM on June 20, 2018 [4 favorites]
"Time to put on my big girl pants..."
posted by WalkerWestridge at 9:18 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by WalkerWestridge at 9:18 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
Leap and the net will appear.
posted by bendy at 9:20 PM on June 20, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by bendy at 9:20 PM on June 20, 2018 [4 favorites]
“The enemy’s gate is down.” -Ender Wiggin, Ender’s Game. Always reminds me to look at things from different perspectives.
posted by apex_ at 9:52 PM on June 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by apex_ at 9:52 PM on June 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
Work your own program.
I heard it from someone who was benefiting a lot from Al-Anon. I’m not sure how broadly the saying is used in that context, but I remind myself of it in various situations. Big things, like when a family member is planning or doing something I think is very unwise and I feel like I should “help” them. Or, otherwise ineffectually using up mental or emotional energy about someone else’s situation and ignoring all the things I could be doing for myself.
posted by wryly at 9:57 PM on June 20, 2018 [4 favorites]
I heard it from someone who was benefiting a lot from Al-Anon. I’m not sure how broadly the saying is used in that context, but I remind myself of it in various situations. Big things, like when a family member is planning or doing something I think is very unwise and I feel like I should “help” them. Or, otherwise ineffectually using up mental or emotional energy about someone else’s situation and ignoring all the things I could be doing for myself.
posted by wryly at 9:57 PM on June 20, 2018 [4 favorites]
Things I have said to myself:
* Fear is the mind killer
* Is this the molehill you want to die on?
* Your time as a beautiful woman is much shorter than being a brilliant one
* Get the ugly done first
* Forward only, the boats are burnt
* The graveyard is filled with indispensable people
posted by jadepearl at 10:14 PM on June 20, 2018 [9 favorites]
* Fear is the mind killer
* Is this the molehill you want to die on?
* Your time as a beautiful woman is much shorter than being a brilliant one
* Get the ugly done first
* Forward only, the boats are burnt
* The graveyard is filled with indispensable people
posted by jadepearl at 10:14 PM on June 20, 2018 [9 favorites]
When you're stuck, move your feet. (I use that in climbing, but it works in other contexts.)
Life sucks and then we die, but at least we don't smell like elephants. (Engraved on my desk in 11th-grade AP English, 1981.)
"For those of nimble tongues: the strangest and most terrible power we possess is the power we have, each of us, over the chance-met, the stranger, the passerby outside our life and our kin. Speak as you would write, as if your words were letters of lead, graven there for all time, and for which you must take the consequences. And take the consequences." Dorothy Dunnett, Queens' Play.
posted by suelac at 10:14 PM on June 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
Life sucks and then we die, but at least we don't smell like elephants. (Engraved on my desk in 11th-grade AP English, 1981.)
"For those of nimble tongues: the strangest and most terrible power we possess is the power we have, each of us, over the chance-met, the stranger, the passerby outside our life and our kin. Speak as you would write, as if your words were letters of lead, graven there for all time, and for which you must take the consequences. And take the consequences." Dorothy Dunnett, Queens' Play.
posted by suelac at 10:14 PM on June 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
Trust in the benevolence of the Universe, if it weren't benevolent there would be no life. Without benevolence there would be no goodness.
posted by X4ster at 10:42 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by X4ster at 10:42 PM on June 20, 2018 [1 favorite]
Everyone has posted verbal examples, but sometimes music can say what words can't. Arthur Rubinstein uses a Chopin mazurka as a way of telling us that things can be bad in our lives, but music can heal.
https://youtu.be/H1_2K8K2W3U
posted by Agave at 10:52 PM on June 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
https://youtu.be/H1_2K8K2W3U
posted by Agave at 10:52 PM on June 20, 2018 [3 favorites]
Best answer: Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.
posted by escapepod at 10:56 PM on June 20, 2018 [13 favorites]
posted by escapepod at 10:56 PM on June 20, 2018 [13 favorites]
"If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together" - African proverb.
"Whit's fur ye'll no go past ye" Scottish proverb
posted by rongorongo at 10:57 PM on June 20, 2018 [6 favorites]
"Whit's fur ye'll no go past ye" Scottish proverb
posted by rongorongo at 10:57 PM on June 20, 2018 [6 favorites]
Best answer: Motivation follows action.
I.e. you shouldn't wait for motivation before you act. Motivation will come when you start to see results.
posted by Youremyworld at 11:49 PM on June 20, 2018 [14 favorites]
I.e. you shouldn't wait for motivation before you act. Motivation will come when you start to see results.
posted by Youremyworld at 11:49 PM on June 20, 2018 [14 favorites]
Best answer: "Don't stop when the hell comes."
This has kept me going in the face of adversity, and surprisingly enough when I have attempted to do the *right* thing in a high-pressure office environment full of other actors trying to move me towards their own agenda - which would have accomplished the "wrong" thing.
A more eloquent way of saying it was (depending on your preferred medium) from Steve Rodgers / Sharon Carter:
"Compromise where you can. Where you can't, don't. Even if everyone is telling you that something wrong is something right. When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree by the river of truth, and tell the whole world 'No, You Move.' "
posted by alchemist at 12:24 AM on June 21, 2018 [5 favorites]
This has kept me going in the face of adversity, and surprisingly enough when I have attempted to do the *right* thing in a high-pressure office environment full of other actors trying to move me towards their own agenda - which would have accomplished the "wrong" thing.
A more eloquent way of saying it was (depending on your preferred medium) from Steve Rodgers / Sharon Carter:
"Compromise where you can. Where you can't, don't. Even if everyone is telling you that something wrong is something right. When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree by the river of truth, and tell the whole world 'No, You Move.' "
posted by alchemist at 12:24 AM on June 21, 2018 [5 favorites]
If I knew what I was doing, why would I bother?
posted by flabdablet at 1:00 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by flabdablet at 1:00 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
The people who matter don’t mind and the people who mind don’t matter.
posted by LizBoBiz at 1:22 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by LizBoBiz at 1:22 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
Let no-one live rent free in your head.
(Actually the title of a trip-hop album I quite liked in the mid-90s, no idea if it has an older origin.
posted by Busy Old Fool at 1:59 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
(Actually the title of a trip-hop album I quite liked in the mid-90s, no idea if it has an older origin.
posted by Busy Old Fool at 1:59 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
The rain when it falls doesn't hurt me
Let me stumble and walk into graves
Let the mist make me blind, it won't trouble my mind
For I'm just walking on, walking on
Also:
What a relief it is to tell a tale that ends supremely well.
(said repeatedly, quickly, in an optimistic way to get through a very trying situation)
posted by humuhumu at 2:21 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
Let me stumble and walk into graves
Let the mist make me blind, it won't trouble my mind
For I'm just walking on, walking on
Also:
What a relief it is to tell a tale that ends supremely well.
(said repeatedly, quickly, in an optimistic way to get through a very trying situation)
posted by humuhumu at 2:21 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
"Fail better." (Samuel Beckett)
"Never attribute to malice that which can adequately be explained by stupidity." (Origin unknown, but possibly Robert Heinlein)
posted by yankeefog at 2:22 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
"Never attribute to malice that which can adequately be explained by stupidity." (Origin unknown, but possibly Robert Heinlein)
posted by yankeefog at 2:22 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
Die well.
posted by LizBoBiz at 2:58 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by LizBoBiz at 2:58 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
A short poem from an unknown poet, I think from Ghana, that has helped me to keep going and pull through when things were rough. I've used it for all kinds of situations, but only when things were or felt really bad.
I have broken my nose
against a stick
I have broken my left hip
I have something in my eye
And still I go on.
posted by Too-Ticky at 3:13 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
I have broken my nose
against a stick
I have broken my left hip
I have something in my eye
And still I go on.
posted by Too-Ticky at 3:13 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
The world does not have to be the way it is.
posted by Catseye at 3:14 AM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by Catseye at 3:14 AM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
Be brave enough to break your own heart.
posted by sockermom at 4:18 AM on June 21, 2018 [6 favorites]
posted by sockermom at 4:18 AM on June 21, 2018 [6 favorites]
Best answer: if you're not making mistakes, then you're not doing anything.
-John Wooden paraphrasing Ward Lambert
Work as if you were in the early days of a better nation.
-Alasdair Gray
relevant AskMe.
posted by zamboni at 4:38 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
-John Wooden paraphrasing Ward Lambert
Work as if you were in the early days of a better nation.
-Alasdair Gray
relevant AskMe.
posted by zamboni at 4:38 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
Best answer: My personal slogan is "Do no harm, take no shit."
posted by lollymccatburglar at 4:39 AM on June 21, 2018 [11 favorites]
posted by lollymccatburglar at 4:39 AM on June 21, 2018 [11 favorites]
On other themes:
Stop learning, start dying.
The only stupid questions are unasked ones.
If you can't find it, you don't own it.
posted by zamboni at 5:05 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
Stop learning, start dying.
The only stupid questions are unasked ones.
If you can't find it, you don't own it.
posted by zamboni at 5:05 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
'Today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday.'
(A version of this was posted upthread, and described as anti-procrastination. I take it more as 'don't worry so much'.)
'At least we didn't kill any ballerinas today.'
From an old workplace involved in the arts. Meaning: however much we messed up today, all our errors amount to little in the grand scheme of things & were made in the pursuit of something positive.
posted by yesbut at 5:09 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
(A version of this was posted upthread, and described as anti-procrastination. I take it more as 'don't worry so much'.)
'At least we didn't kill any ballerinas today.'
From an old workplace involved in the arts. Meaning: however much we messed up today, all our errors amount to little in the grand scheme of things & were made in the pursuit of something positive.
posted by yesbut at 5:09 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
First do it right, then do it fast. [Cynical version: If you can't do it right, do it anyway.]
Do not worry. Worrying is like paying interest on a debt you may never have owed. (Charlie Papazian)
I am the one thing in life I can control. (Hamilton, "Wait for it")
posted by Huffy Puffy at 5:34 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
Do not worry. Worrying is like paying interest on a debt you may never have owed. (Charlie Papazian)
I am the one thing in life I can control. (Hamilton, "Wait for it")
posted by Huffy Puffy at 5:34 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
Best answer: "Eat the frog" (Mark Twain, the frog is something you don't want to do but have to do, the idea being that the sooner you eat the damn thing the less time you have to suffer dreading it)
posted by fingersandtoes at 5:58 AM on June 21, 2018 [5 favorites]
posted by fingersandtoes at 5:58 AM on June 21, 2018 [5 favorites]
not pithy, but "will I be glad of the time/energy/agita I'm putting into [whatever] when I'm on my deathbed" is something I use to stop spiralling and gain perspective.
posted by fingersandtoes at 6:01 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
posted by fingersandtoes at 6:01 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
In the midst of winter, I found there was, within me, an invincible summer.
Find a place of rest in the middle of things.
No matter how many clouds, the blue sky is always there.
Not everything that can be faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed that is not faced.
posted by kitkatcathy at 6:08 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
Find a place of rest in the middle of things.
No matter how many clouds, the blue sky is always there.
Not everything that can be faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed that is not faced.
posted by kitkatcathy at 6:08 AM on June 21, 2018 [4 favorites]
Best answer: You must revise your life. (William Stafford)
But then I have nature and art and poetry. If that is not enough, what is ? (Vincent Van Gogh)
posted by FencingGal at 6:12 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
But then I have nature and art and poetry. If that is not enough, what is ? (Vincent Van Gogh)
posted by FencingGal at 6:12 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Your life is what you did today, not what you plan to do tomorrow.
posted by Construction Concern at 6:17 AM on June 21, 2018 [8 favorites]
posted by Construction Concern at 6:17 AM on June 21, 2018 [8 favorites]
You are perfect because you are not.
posted by janey47 at 7:05 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by janey47 at 7:05 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
I've been struggling with anxious thoughts and catastrophizing, so now I have "It's not a problem until it's a problem" on a poster above my desk to remind me to, well, stop imagining every potential problem and just focus on the here and now.
posted by TwoStride at 7:43 AM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by TwoStride at 7:43 AM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time is now.
posted by acanthous at 8:20 AM on June 21, 2018 [16 favorites]
posted by acanthous at 8:20 AM on June 21, 2018 [16 favorites]
A summary of the Dunning-Kruger effect:
The incompetent overestimate their ability: the competent underestimate their ability.
posted by SemiSalt at 8:47 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
The incompetent overestimate their ability: the competent underestimate their ability.
posted by SemiSalt at 8:47 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
if you don't know where you're going, a step in any direction is a good start.
n.b. have had mixed results with this one: sometimes one might wind up saddled with educational debt.
better results from "every day in every way i am the one with the problem," though more of a destructive mantra than wisdom.
also:
"Invest in the millennium. Plant sequoias.
Say that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you will not live to harvest.
Say that the leaves are harvested
when they have rotted into the mold.
Call that profit. Prophesy such returns.
Put your faith in the two inches of humus
that will build under the trees
every thousand years."
-from Wendell Barry's "Manifesto: The Mad Farmer's Liberation Front," all of which bears consideration.
posted by 20 year lurk at 8:52 AM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
n.b. have had mixed results with this one: sometimes one might wind up saddled with educational debt.
better results from "every day in every way i am the one with the problem," though more of a destructive mantra than wisdom.
also:
"Invest in the millennium. Plant sequoias.
Say that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you will not live to harvest.
Say that the leaves are harvested
when they have rotted into the mold.
Call that profit. Prophesy such returns.
Put your faith in the two inches of humus
that will build under the trees
every thousand years."
-from Wendell Barry's "Manifesto: The Mad Farmer's Liberation Front," all of which bears consideration.
posted by 20 year lurk at 8:52 AM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
If nothing we do matters, then all that matters is what we do.
posted by teleri025 at 8:57 AM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by teleri025 at 8:57 AM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
From an article by Laura Vanderkam to combat how inexorable the passage of time feels.
"How was this day different from every other day?"
Then write your answer down.
From the middle of Kipling's If
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it...
posted by peacheater at 9:09 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
"How was this day different from every other day?"
Then write your answer down.
From the middle of Kipling's If
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it...
posted by peacheater at 9:09 AM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice from Rush - Freewill.
I did the best I could with what I knew at the time.
posted by bookdragoness at 9:11 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
I did the best I could with what I knew at the time.
posted by bookdragoness at 9:11 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
Best answer: "You are just one decision away from a completely different life!"
Think about it, how would your life change if you sold your house, started that business, moved to another country, left that abusive or dead relationship, got pregnant, went to school? This is very inspiring for me to go ahead and take that leap in some situations. You're in control!
posted by LakeDream at 9:38 AM on June 21, 2018 [5 favorites]
Think about it, how would your life change if you sold your house, started that business, moved to another country, left that abusive or dead relationship, got pregnant, went to school? This is very inspiring for me to go ahead and take that leap in some situations. You're in control!
posted by LakeDream at 9:38 AM on June 21, 2018 [5 favorites]
"It is only possible to live happily ever after on a daily basis." -Margaret Bonanno
"Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right." -Henry Ford
"The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity." -Amelia Earhart
"With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts" -Eleanor Roosevelt
"Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one." -Marcus Aurelius
posted by helloimjennsco at 9:48 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
"Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right." -Henry Ford
"The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity." -Amelia Earhart
"With the new day comes new strength and new thoughts" -Eleanor Roosevelt
"Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one." -Marcus Aurelius
posted by helloimjennsco at 9:48 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
Best answer: "I'll have to get over this sooner or later... Why not now?"
--Larry Niven, from a thought by his character Louis Wu in the novel The Ringworld Engineers
posted by lockedroomguy at 10:29 AM on June 21, 2018 [6 favorites]
--Larry Niven, from a thought by his character Louis Wu in the novel The Ringworld Engineers
posted by lockedroomguy at 10:29 AM on June 21, 2018 [6 favorites]
Best answer: From a frugal/minimalist mindset, I like this one (not sure who originated it):
Use it up; Wear it out; Make it do; or Do without
posted by hydra77 at 10:36 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
Use it up; Wear it out; Make it do; or Do without
posted by hydra77 at 10:36 AM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
One of Brian Eno's oblique strategies: State the problem in words as clearly as possible.
posted by ProtoStar at 11:23 AM on June 21, 2018 [5 favorites]
posted by ProtoStar at 11:23 AM on June 21, 2018 [5 favorites]
Don’t try to win over the haters. You are not the jerk whisperer.
posted by tamitang at 12:56 PM on June 21, 2018 [12 favorites]
posted by tamitang at 12:56 PM on June 21, 2018 [12 favorites]
When you know better, do better.
Has helped me immensely when I start obsessing about mistakes I've made in the past and how differently I'd handle them now.
posted by Twicketface at 1:12 PM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
Has helped me immensely when I start obsessing about mistakes I've made in the past and how differently I'd handle them now.
posted by Twicketface at 1:12 PM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
Just do the next right thing.
posted by melesana at 1:18 PM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by melesana at 1:18 PM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
'Desserts' is 'stressed' spelled backwards.
The best time to do X was 2 years ago. The next best time is now.
posted by Ahniya at 2:49 PM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
The best time to do X was 2 years ago. The next best time is now.
posted by Ahniya at 2:49 PM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
Every hundred years, all new people.
posted by janey47 at 3:30 PM on June 21, 2018 [7 favorites]
posted by janey47 at 3:30 PM on June 21, 2018 [7 favorites]
Not as eloquent as the original but how I remember it: " I can't change yesterday; but today . . ."
In recharging myself I shorten it to "but."
From a good friend: If you don't know where you're going any road will take you there.
From Churchill: Honey in the mouth and a dagger in the belly.
All of these are great.
posted by KneeDeep at 4:33 PM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
In recharging myself I shorten it to "but."
From a good friend: If you don't know where you're going any road will take you there.
From Churchill: Honey in the mouth and a dagger in the belly.
All of these are great.
posted by KneeDeep at 4:33 PM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
Best answer: Praise and blame are both the same (i.e. they both demonstrate someone else's judgement of you).
There's a reason they call it self-respect (i.e. because you can't give it to someone else).
posted by rpfields at 6:29 PM on June 21, 2018 [6 favorites]
There's a reason they call it self-respect (i.e. because you can't give it to someone else).
posted by rpfields at 6:29 PM on June 21, 2018 [6 favorites]
Wherever you go, there you are.
posted by Mike Mongo at 6:52 PM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by Mike Mongo at 6:52 PM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
Ignore alien orders.
posted by Mike Mongo at 6:52 PM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
posted by Mike Mongo at 6:52 PM on June 21, 2018 [2 favorites]
Everything always works out.
posted by Mike Mongo at 6:53 PM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Mike Mongo at 6:53 PM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
The truth makes us laugh.
posted by Mike Mongo at 6:53 PM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Mike Mongo at 6:53 PM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
It's not that serious.
posted by Mike Mongo at 6:54 PM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by Mike Mongo at 6:54 PM on June 21, 2018 [1 favorite]
Best answer: The things we do to avoid being alone make us alone
(I.e. The ways we hide our true selves or our true feelings--which we do out of fear that people won't stay if they see us for who we really are--prevent people from ever truly seeing us or connecting with us)
posted by mabelstreet at 8:04 PM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
(I.e. The ways we hide our true selves or our true feelings--which we do out of fear that people won't stay if they see us for who we really are--prevent people from ever truly seeing us or connecting with us)
posted by mabelstreet at 8:04 PM on June 21, 2018 [3 favorites]
Best answer: "I cannot control this situation. It is completely beyond my control" (I won't go into it and yes I use the word 'control' twice). Surrendering is a very powerful thing.
Also - "the man/woman's a dick". I need to use this because I am really bad at blaming people for being obnoxious in real time and instead I internalise it so this shoots everything back out at the correct target, for want of a better expression.
posted by ihaveyourfoot at 5:17 AM on June 22, 2018
Also - "the man/woman's a dick". I need to use this because I am really bad at blaming people for being obnoxious in real time and instead I internalise it so this shoots everything back out at the correct target, for want of a better expression.
posted by ihaveyourfoot at 5:17 AM on June 22, 2018
Best answer: I just happened to get this in my email just now. Emphasis mine.
A few words at the end of the day from Mariama Kaba (@prisonculture on Twitter):posted by AFABulous at 9:07 AM on June 22, 2018 [8 favorites]
"Many years ago, I heard a nun who was giving a speech say 'hope is a discipline.' It stuck with me and became sort of a mantra for me. I understood her to be saying that hope is a practice. That hope is not an emotion or something fluffy. But rather that it is something that we have to commit to daily. It's something to practice every day. And so every morning that I am blessed to wake up, I decide again to practice hope. That doesn't mean that I'm an optimist. It means that I am hopeful. There's a difference."
May the bridges I burn light the way.
posted by mon-ma-tron at 5:31 PM on June 22, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by mon-ma-tron at 5:31 PM on June 22, 2018 [3 favorites]
How could I forget this one: "Be the hero of your story, not the victim."
posted by jadepearl at 6:03 PM on June 23, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by jadepearl at 6:03 PM on June 23, 2018 [1 favorite]
Best answer: Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.
i.e. enlightenment is all very well and good but if no one is doing the day-to-day logistics then--
posted by Rush-That-Speaks at 4:24 PM on June 26, 2018 [3 favorites]
i.e. enlightenment is all very well and good but if no one is doing the day-to-day logistics then--
posted by Rush-That-Speaks at 4:24 PM on June 26, 2018 [3 favorites]
Everything will be different tomorrow (via a local restaurant - formerly food truck - chain)
posted by tangosnail at 9:41 AM on June 27, 2018
posted by tangosnail at 9:41 AM on June 27, 2018
"Fly the airplane." In its intended context, this is used as step one in every emergency checklist. Fly the airplane first, deal with the crisis second. If you stop flying the airplane, you have gone from a bad situation to an almost certainly unrecoverable situation.
My wife shared with me this one, which she heard from a professor - "practice makes consistent." The argument here is that practice doesn't make you better unless you're practicing the right things the right way; all you'll really do is ingrain bad habits if you're doing it otherwise.
posted by backseatpilot at 10:00 AM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]
My wife shared with me this one, which she heard from a professor - "practice makes consistent." The argument here is that practice doesn't make you better unless you're practicing the right things the right way; all you'll really do is ingrain bad habits if you're doing it otherwise.
posted by backseatpilot at 10:00 AM on June 27, 2018 [2 favorites]
Computers can sense fear.
posted by flabdablet at 7:54 PM on June 27, 2018 [3 favorites]
posted by flabdablet at 7:54 PM on June 27, 2018 [3 favorites]
Best answer: Feel the fear and do it anyway.
Worry is not preparation.
What's my part?
posted by soakimbo at 9:34 PM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]
Worry is not preparation.
What's my part?
posted by soakimbo at 9:34 PM on June 27, 2018 [1 favorite]
"You can do so much in ten minutes. Ten minutes, once gone are gone for good. Divide your life in ten minute units and sacrifice as few of them as possible in meaningless activity." - Ingvar Kamprad, founder of IKEA
"If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself but to your own estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment." - Marcus Aurelius
posted by qsysopr at 10:55 AM on July 6, 2018 [2 favorites]
"If you are distressed by anything external, the pain is not due to the thing itself but to your own estimate of it; and this you have the power to revoke at any moment." - Marcus Aurelius
posted by qsysopr at 10:55 AM on July 6, 2018 [2 favorites]
Lack of "yes" times time equals "no."
posted by BeginAgain at 3:41 PM on July 15, 2018 [1 favorite]
posted by BeginAgain at 3:41 PM on July 15, 2018 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by juliplease at 6:37 PM on June 20, 2018 [50 favorites]