When life's challenges leave you feeling breathless, down and out, do not allow despair to steal your confidence and make you doubt your abilities. 

All of us have experienced moments where it felt like life has slapped us down. Moments where you felt bone weary and down in the dumps. Running on empty, numbs you to the everyday joys and suddenly just living becomes a chore. That is when it is time to change up your game and practice self-care. Do something different, be more spontaneous and practice mindfulness to rid your mind from those intrusive negative thoughts. Take a walk in nature, connect with friends over a cuppa, play with your pets, bake a cake, or start growing plants. Spend time reflecting on the Divine and take a moment to cultivate a gratitude mindset, giving thanks for all the things that make your life worthwhile. Sometimes inspirational words can help to snap you out of your funk, offer encouragement and inspiration that may act as a balm for your weary soul. 

There are times when you need a little inspiration to motivate you, to pick yourself up when you are feeling down. To get going when you feel stuck. The brevity of quotes allows for a quick read that is packed with insightful, meaningful, and wise soundbites. These words of wisdom will impact your mindset, which is bound to help you look at life in a more positive way. Change your thoughts, change your life. Let these words permeate your very being and fill you with gratitude for your very existence. Allow these quotes to reignite your spark and motivate you to live your best life. 

The key to being happy is knowing you have the power to choose what to accept and what to let go - Dodinsky 

Happiness is a state of being brought about by the decisions you make about the happenings in your life. There is truth in the saying behind every cloud is a silver lining, as you choose what to focus on. Holding on to past hurts is a sure way of staying in the pain and that is something our minds are predisposed to do. It does not mean not acknowledging the hurt, but that you should process it and then let it go. That means, removing the thorn from the happening so that it cannot cause you more pain. Why, you ask? because our mind tends to zero in on past hurts. Focusing on uplifting moments is better than dwelling on past hurts, as dwelling on it causes you more pain. Instead be thankful that you survived, which in itself is cause for happiness. Your life does not get better by chance but by choice. The choices you make are informed by the quality of your thoughts and depend on the quality of your mind. Learn to change the things you can and accept the things you cannot change. 

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony - Mahatma Gandhi 

This refers to living in congruence, which relates to a life approach where your actions and words reflect your beliefs. Your lifestyle will reflect your beliefs when they are all in sync. 

After Tuesday, even the calendar goes W T F - Unknown 

Hilarious, we have all been there. When a bad week seems to take forever to pass. Hang in there, you are not alone. 

Happiness doesn't depend on any external conditions, it is governed by our mental attitude - Dale Carnegie 

Happiness is a state of mind that comes from your thoughts and is not brought about by anything outside of yourself. It is the ability to adopt a positive mindset and let go of things that you cannot change. To be happy with the things that you have, instead of miserable about the things that you do not have is a choice that you can and should make. Positivity is a choice. 

Two things prevent us from happiness; living in the past and observing others - anonymous 

Learn to release negative thoughts that cannot undo the past but just add misery and focus your thoughts on positive things that will enhance your state of being. The past is akin to a personal history book that we can reference to prevent repeating mistakes. The past holds life lessons from which we learn to make better choices.  

Our history is not there to incriminate us for life, it should not be a life sentence but it gives us an opportunity to learn from our mistakes and move on, the better for the lessons we learnt. You can only live in the here and now, the present is where the action is at, where history gets made and plans for the future are laid. The only one you should compare yourself with is yourself, always striving to do and be better. Life is not a competition, do not compare yourself to others, you have your own unique path. You can and should only work on yourself. You can take inspiration from others or be an inspiration to others. You cannot live someone else’s life, so live you own. After all, nobody can live your life for you. 

Let your smile change the world, but don't let the world change your smile - Connor Franta 

Do you, stay true to who you are. Do not let your challenges and triumphs turn you into what pleases others, to the detriment of your authentic self. Growth does not equate to inhabiting a fake persona but means allowing your life experiences to shape you. You cannot lie to the deepest part of yourself. Conformity is overrated, authenticity is priceless. 

When life knocks you down, roll over and look at the stars - Unknown 

Yes, sometimes it is better to take a breather and get a fresh perspective before jumping back into battle. Yep, the night sky and stargazing will reignite your sense of wonder and inspire you with gratitude to be part of this marvellous creation. It is ironic, but it is only when we are down and out, that we truly let go and let God. This is the time when we ponder with greater earnestness the meaning of life and experience a state of true humility and recognition of self in relation to the Divine. 

If you don't like where you are, move. You are not a tree - Jim Rohn 

A profound reality check. Yes, we are apt to forget that we have the power to initiate change through action. Despite a widely held belief to the contrary, each situation presents you with a choice and it is opportune to remember that not choosing is also a choice. We are prone to complain about being stuck, for example, in a dead-end job, a horrible relationship, an unpleasant situation forgetting that the only thing standing between a dire situation and a better one is ourselves. We have the power to change, but sometimes we lack the courage to do the necessary. So, stop complaining about where you are. Make the necessary moves to be where you want to be. 

Don't let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice - Steve Jobs 

Stay true to your own vision, do not let others discourage or distract you from your goals or bully you into conforming to their expectations. Turn inwards and stay committed to the counsel of your inner voice and ignore the loud clamouring of others trying to dissuade, discourage and distract you from your chosen path with their opinions cleverly cloaked as advice. Instead remember that an opinion is a personal belief and not a fact. So, stay true to your vision and know what you intuit is right for you.