Plain and simple!

We complicate things. I know I do. I worry. I stress. I get in my own head. Let’s not even talk about how I get in my own way.

I saw a meme the other day that simplifies things to the nth degree. I would give credit, but there was no attribution, just wisdom out the wazoo. It was like opening the front door and finding Warren Buffett or some other billionaire standing there with a big nine-digit check with my name on it, flowers, balloons and a crowd cheering for me. Go Brian go, it’s your birthday.

If not good old Warren, then the Governor and Mayor and community singing my praises. Wahoo.

Of course, I had to include a a couple of my own. I know good wisdom when I see it, I just have problems following the advice.

The wisdom:

Missing someone? Call.

Want to meet up with someone? Send an invite.

Want to be understood? Explain.

Have questions? Ask.

Don’t like something? Say it.

Like something? State it.

Want to be inspired? Wake up with the sun.

Want something? Ask for it.

Need peace? Sit on the edge of a mountain stream.

Want faith in something bigger than yourself? Pray.

Anxious about something? Go for a walk.

Need patience? Watch an ant work.

Need a friend? Offer some piece of kindness to others.

Need courage? Look into a child’s eyes.

Love someone? Tell them.

Above all else? Say please and thank you.

Keep your life simple.

What do you think?

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“Simplicity is the final achievement. After one has played a vast quantity of notes and more notes, it is simplicity that emerges as the crowning reward of art.” —Frederic Chopin

“I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.” —Lao Tzu

Great leaders are almost always great simplifiers, who can cut through argument, debate, and doubt to offer a solution everybody can understand.” —General Colin Powell.

“The greatest ideas are the simplest.”—William Golding

“Our life is frittered away by detail… simplify, simplify.” —David Henry Thoreau

“Joy comes to us in moments—ordinary moments. We risk missing out on joy when we get too busy chasing down the extraordinary.” —Brené Brown

“There is no greatness where there is not simplicity, goodness, and truth.” —Leo Tolstoy