Top Tips for Living a Nice Life
Solicited or not, everyone gets snippets of advice or learns life lessons from time to time. Some seek daily inspiration from Pinterest, and others are imparted wisdom from others. Either way, we've all heard bits of advice that stick with us, inspire us, and help us through life. We love learning from one another, and hope you can connect with a thought or two, as well.
Amy - Don’t Be Distracted
I get a lot of advice, so narrowing it down to one of my favorite life lessons is really hard. I printed one out and put it on my wall, though. It has been an important piece of advice to me this week, especially: “One of your greatest strengths as a principal is your curiosity as well as your ability to find opportunity everywhere. Put those two things together, though, and you can easily be pulled off mission to explore all kinds of fun, interesting, supposedly lucrative opportunities. Don't be distracted by your curiosity and your conquering attitude.” It was in a book I read by a business consultant, and I’ve been thinking about it a lot lately. On the regular, when I need a little inspiration, I take a peek into my “Well Said” Pinterest board. There are tons of fun little bits of advice on the board. You’re welcome to peruse it whenever you need a little pick-me-up.
J’Lyn - Offense is taken — Not Given (one of the best life lessons)
I go to an incredible church here in Nashville (s/o The Belonging Co.). My pastor often reminds us that offense is taken — not given. I think this can be applied to all areas of our lives — work, friendships, day-to-day life. Offense is a trap that we can easily find ourselves in when we think that someone is slighting us. Sometimes, there is legitimate mistreatment taking place, but often times, the hurt we feel is merely a matter of misunderstanding. We can choose how we respond in those situations. Whether we dwell on it for days and let it eat us alive — or just let those moments roll off our backs to keep our hearts and minds open. I, personally, have found that living an un-offended life is the way to go. It's a choice you have to deliberately make, but you'll be free flying and feeling fine when your choosing to live life without becoming offended all the time. Feeling inspired? Check out some more weekly inspiration from the Nice Girls on social, or send us a shout to get in touch.
Heather - Defer Gratification
My whole life, my dad has half-jokingly reminded us, “always defer gratification,” which he applies to all kinds of situations, from eating dessert to making big decisions. It has been one of the best life lessons for me to reference as I graduated college and moved on into adult life. This year, I finished school and started a career. This means that for the first time, I have very distinct “work days” and “weekends.” As soon as the spontaneous adventures of college ended, my perspective shifted to be more present and purposeful with my work. You shouldn’t live only for the weekend… but it is pretty nice to save some fun things and really enjoy them later, both with small things and with bigger things, too.
Sam - Stay In Your Lane
The best advice I've received this year is to “stay in your lane.” When I was younger, I thought that the more hats you could wear and the more you knew about everything, the more successful you could be. However, as I've gotten older (and wiser, I hope!) I've learned that playing to your strengths, honing one aspect of your craft really well, and allowing others to shine in their strengths is really how you get ahead. A wise person (Sonya) once said, you can do anything, but you can’t do everything. This is one of the great life lessons for us type A's. Simplified, this is really just teamwork. Do what you do well, and let others do what they do well. Together we will move forward with much less effort than if one person tries to carry the load alone. So stay in your lane, hold up your end of the work, and cheer on others as they do the same.
Sonya - Let It Be
My fave of the life lessons I've learned is not really anything I have heard from anyone particular. It’s a quote I read that I feel is really good advice. It said, “A secret to happiness is letting every situation be what it is instead of what you think it should be.” I think that so many times in life we try to control a situation or outcome. We expect situations to be a certain way because we want it to go our way. But those expectations cause stress and anxiety. The key is to let the situation be what it is. I have had to tell myself time and time again this year, just let it be. Have faith, and let it be. In those moments, a big weight is lifted off my shoulders.
Nichole - Never Ruin a Good Day
Every day is a new opportunity to be the best version of yourself. Each of these new opportunities deserves your best shot. Sometimes it’s hard to let go of disappointment. But your bad days don’t need to have power over the good ones. I heard some advice recently that said “never ruin a good day by thinking about a bad yesterday,” and it’s so true. Sometimes it takes a while to get through the hard days, and that’s okay. But there is so much you can do for your happiness by staying present and refusing to spend extra energy on the bad stuff.
