Life lessons

 One of the hardest things about improving your life is remembering to practice what you’ve learned in a moment of temptation, frustration, or hardship. Anyone can follow a strategy as they read about it, but remembering to stick with it in the real world is tough.

Stories help with that. An engaging story sticks with you in a way that a research finding often can’t. While JamesClear.com promotes science-backed ideas, we don’t shun stories and lessons based on real life.

This page collects life lessons from my own life as well as from the lives of artists, creators, and innovators. 

Let’s dive in.

Lessons on Living a Meaningful Life

Not saying goodbye to dying family member. -

I’ve come across some people that don’t want to say goodbye to their family member when that person has died

Or they don’t know how to face the persons death. From

My own experience I’ve had to face it with courage and know that I did what I had to do regardless of the fact my half siblings didn’t actually acknowledge me or our family member who passed away.

The Proven Path to Doing Unique and Meaningful Work

Doing what is meaning full to you matters I like from my experience. My coaching matters to me because I’m helping others in need.

I can overcome depression - I’ve lost two siblings to suicide and I had to find a way to get through depression without taking my own life seriously because it is a serious issue in New Zealand and I don’t want to be the next one on the list of suicide tragedy. Affirmation to get through a day you feel depressed 👇

• What I Do When it Feels Like My Work Isn’t Good Enough: Read this article to learn how to deal with self-doubt and self-judgment, so that you can move past judging yourself and perform at a higher level.
• Make Your Life Better by Saying Thank You in These 7 Situations: I’m starting to believe that “Thank You” is the most under-appreciated and under-used phrase on the planet. It is appropriate in nearly any situation and it is a better response than most of the things we say. Let’s cover 7 common situations when we say all sorts of things, but should say “Thank You” instead.

All Life Lessons Articles

This is a complete list of articles I have written on life lessons. Enjoy!

• The Ultimate Productivity Hack is Saying No
• When the 80/20 Rule Fails: The Downside of Being Effective
• Absolute Success is Luck. Relative Success is Hard Work.
• Why Facts Don’t Change Our Minds
• The Shadow Side of Greatness
• The Downside of Work-Life Balance
• The Proven Path to Doing Unique and Meaningful Work
• Make Your Life Better by Saying Thank You in These 7 Situations
• One Research-Backed Way to Effectively Manage Your Stressful and Busy Schedule
• Scott Dinsmore: A Tribute
• How to Be Happy When Everything Goes Wrong
• This Zen Concept Will Help You Stop Being a Slave to Old Beliefs
• Why Old Ideas Are a Secret Weapon
• Overrated vs. Underrated: Common Beliefs We Get Wrong
• It’s Not Just About What You Say, It’s About How You Live
• How Experts Figure What to Focus On
• Famous Biologist Louis Agassiz on the Usefulness of Learning Through Observation
• What I Do When I Feel Like Giving Up
• You’re Not Ready for Marriage
• Use This Simple Daily Habit to Add More Gratitude to Your Life
• 5 Lessons on Being Wrong
• Joseph Brodsky Explains Perfectly How to Deal With Critics and Detractors in Your Life
• What I Do When it Feels Like My Work Isn’t Good Enough
• Martha Graham on the Hidden Danger of Comparing Yourself to Others
• Lessons on Living a Meaningful Life from Nichelle Nichols
• How to Build Skills That Are Valuable
• Do Things You Can Sustain
• Let Your Values Drive Your Choices
• Thoughts on Struggling to Finish My First Book
• Masters of Habit: Rituals, Lessons, and Quotes from Marcus Aurelius
• I Watched an Artist Create Stained Glass And Learned An Important Lesson About Life
• Feeling Uncertain Doesn’t Make You Weak, Weird, or Unqualified
• Do You Have to be Unhappy Now if You Want to be Successful Later?
• How to Be Thankful For Your Life by Changing Just One Word
• You’re Not Good Enough to Be Disappointed
• Haters and Critics: How to Deal with People Judging You and Your Work
• Random Ideas About Life
• What if You Treated Your Life Like a Team Sport?
• The Magic of Committing to a Specific Goal
• What Does it Mean to Live a Healthy Life?
• The Top Life Regret of Dying Hospital Patients
• 116 Years Old: Lessons Left Behind From the World’s Oldest Living Person
• The Easiest Way to Live a Short, Unimportant Life
• How to Be Happy: A Surprising Lesson on Happiness From an African Tribe