Top Inspirational Lifestyle Quotes

When I was in high school, my sister had brought home book after book about success, business and entrepreneurship. I remember reading Chicken Soup for the Soul as a young girl, and in first year university, I borrowed one of those books about achieving success and read it during my Spring Break beach vacation to Verodero, Cuba.  I know what you’re thinking: who on Earth picks up a book like this to read for the beach?  Well, I didn’t make time to order any books and I was in the business program, so I thought I would actually like it – and I was right! I did.  These books about achieving happiness and success in life were captivating and I read them page after page, but I was so caught up with school at that age that it was really just inspiration.

After I finished university, I took jobs that ended up offering little opportunity to getting me where I wanted to be.  I felt discouraged and confused about where I was headed in life. A couple of years into my career, I left the country to work on contract for a year in Japan, hoping that being there would light a fire in my eyes and give me a chance to rediscover who I was again.  That year, I ended an emotionally toxic long term relationship with my ex-boyfriend, and in the few months following, I questioned myself a lot.  As soon as I finished my contract, I spent the following 3 months travelling around Asia – ending up in Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, South Korea, Hong Kong and Mainland China. Challenging myself and going through such a big change in my life was hard.  It was during this time of change that those inspirational books brought real value to me.

I loved exploring the world, but more importantly, those experiences helped me rediscover who I was.  When I went through really rough moments, those inspirational quotes and values about about living a good life resurfaced and helped provide perspective again. Doing something new every day for 3 months was a real learning experience, and in fact, life-changing for me.  To this day, I try to lean to the positive side, explore and laugh as much as possible.

In these photos, Tom and I drove around the city and hit a bunch of new spots we’d never been.  Some new favorite pastry shops, cool wall art and new restaurants, which I’ll share with you in another post.

Pushing myself to try new things all the time, travelling whenever possible and making choices that align with what I want out of life are all influenced by the proactive decision I made to change what was negative to positive in my life.  Part of that attitude comes from the things I’ve read and the not-so-great moments I’ve experienced.

I have tons of these saved in my phone for days that are a little rougher than others, but I thought I’d share some lifestyle quotes with you today, in case they come in handy for you, too.

My Top Inspiration Quotes to Live By

Sometimes things fall apart so other things can fall together.
Good people inspire themselves.  Great people inspire others.
Be fearless and say yes to new adventures.
Courage isn’t having the strength to go on. It’s going on when you don’t have the strength.
Difficult roads often lead to beautiful destinations.
When you want to quit, keep going. That’s when you see results.
In order to be irreplaceable, one must be different.
Enjoy the small things in life.
Don’t put the key to your happiness in someone else’s pocket.
Stop being afraid of what could go wrong and start being excited about what could go right.

What are some of your own favorite lifestyle quotes?  I’d love to hear, and can’t wait to share the business and style related ones with you in another post!  If you enjoyed this post, please leave me a comment below.  I always love hearing from you.

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Xo,

Miki

Outfit:  OTS Top by Boohoo, available here.  Jeans by Paige Denim, similar pair here. Shoes by Public Desire available here. Bag (old) by Burberry Prorsum.  Accessories (old) by Forever21.

Photo credit to my one and only, Rise Again BJJ