Appreciate and Give Thanks

 
Give Honest and Sincere Appreciation.
- Dale Carnegie

Appreciation is a wonderful thing.
It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.
- Voltaire

Beginning today, treat everyone you meet
as if they were going to be dead by midnight.
Extend to them all the care,
kindness and understanding you can muster,
and do with no thought of any reward.
Your life will never be the same again.
- Og Mandino

There is more hunger for love and appreciation
in this world than for bread.
- Mother Teresa

Appreciate and give thanks for all the people who make your life possible.
Think of food: think not only of the supermarket cashier, but also the unseen workers, those in distribution and packing centers, truck drivers, the migrant farmworkers picking your lettuce and strawberries, and so many more.
Think of the doctors, nurses and so many health workers. Think of trash collectors, firefighters, the police, those who support your car or your rapid transit, your electric service, your internet and mobile service, and SO many others without whom your life would be unlivable.

Consider the contrast between the warmth of expressing sincere appreciation and the sinkhole of needing approval. Let others know how grateful you are for their kindness (when it is true), but never depend upon others to validate your own worth.

At the beginning of a relationship
we are attracted to the other person because
we think they are sexy, smart, funny -
whatever it is that we find appealing.
But very quickly, the focus of the relationship
turns to whether we feel appreciated.
If we don't feel appreciated, we don't feel loved.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Show Your Honest Appreciation - Today

Caring - Kindness - Compassion - Appreciation

Don't allow the need for other people's approval to control your life
          

Appreciating All the Good People

It does no harm just once in a while to acknowledge that
the whole country isn't in flames,
that there are people in the country besides politicians, entertainers, and criminals.
- Charles Kuralt

It is wonderful how much time good people spend fighting the devil.
If they would only expend the same
amount of energy loving their fellow men,
the devil would die in his own tracks of ennui.
- Helen Keller

I keep my ideals, because in spite of everything,
I still believe that people are really good at heart.
- Anne Frank

There are a lot of people who are doing wonderful things,
quietly, with no motive of greed, or hostility toward other people,
or delusions of superiority.
- Charles Kuralt

The best thing to hold onto in life is each other.
- Audrey Hepburn

America's present need is not heroics but healing;
not nostrums but normalcy; not revolution but restoration.
- Warren G. Harding

Appreciate good people, wherever they are.
Appreciate friends, family, and community.
Appreciate those who serve you.
Appreciated those you serve.
Give thanks for all the good people you interact with daily.

Photo shows people in Austin waiting for the bats to fly out from under the bridge at sunset.

Further reading: Life Really Is Good

Appreciate Yourself

Bounty of the Earth
      

You Must Approve of Yourself

Do not look for approval except for the consciousness of doing your best.
- Andrew Carnegie

If you find yourself unwilling to take actions that others disapprove of,
you have lost control of your own life and have given your destiny to others.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

The snow goose need not bathe to make itself white.
Neither need you do anything but be yourself.
- Lao Tzu

A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.
- Mark Twain

One of the natural, but unfortunate, human characteristics is the sense of a need for approval.
It is wonderful to show your appreciation of others and to thank them whenever possible.
It is also pleasing when others show appreciation and thank you.
But making any significant life choices based on whether or not others approve
sets one on a course of emotional destruction.
...
Make your important choices in life based on your values and your long-term objectives
rather than on a need for approval.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: How To Not Care What Others Think

Thinking for Yourself

Dealing With Rejection

Blaze Your Own Trail

Stand Tall and Proud
     

Good People

It does no harm just once in a while to acknowledge that
the whole country isn't in flames,
that there are people in the country besides politicians, entertainers, and criminals.
- Charles Kuralt

I keep my ideals, because in spite of everything,
I still believe that people are really good at heart.
- Anne Frank

The best thing to hold onto in life is each other.
- Audrey Hepburn

It is wonderful how much time good people spend fighting the devil.
If they would only expend the same
amount of energy loving their fellow men,
the devil would die in his own tracks of ennui.
- Helen Keller

America's present need is not heroics but healing;
not nostrums but normalcy; not revolution but restoration.
- Warren G. Harding

There are a lot of people who are doing wonderful things,
quietly, with no motive of greed, or hostility toward other people,
or delusions of superiority.
- Charles Kuralt

Appreciate good people, wherever they are.
Appreciate friends, family, and community.
Appreciate those who serve you.
Appreciated those you serve.
Give thanks that most people really are good people,
despite the best efforts of TV news to tell you otherwise.

Photo shows people in Austin waiting for the bats to fly out from under the bridge at sunset.

Further reading: Life Really Is Good

Bounty of the Earth

Appreciate Yourself
    

Approve of Yourself

Do not look for approval except for the consciousness of doing your best.
- Andrew Carnegie

A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.
- Mark Twain

The snow goose need not bathe to make itself white.
Neither need you do anything but be yourself.
- Lao Tzu

If you find yourself unwilling to take actions that others disapprove of,
you have lost control of your own life and have given your destiny to others.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

One of the natural, but unfortunate, human characteristics is the sense of a need for approval.
It is wonderful to show your appreciation of others and to thank them whenever possible.
It is also pleasing when others show appreciation and thank you.
But making any significant life choices based on whether or not others approve
sets one on a course of emotional destruction.

Make your important choices in life based on your values and your long-term objectives
rather than on a need for approval.

Further reading: Thinking for Yourself

Blaze Your Own Trail

Dealing With Rejection

Stand Tall and Proud

How To Not Care What Others Think

Stand Tall and Proud

Be more concerned with your character than your reputation.
- John Wooden

Stand Tall, Stand Proud.
Know that you are unique and magnificent.
You do not need the approval of others.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Self-confidence is the first requisite to great undertakings.
- Samuel Johnson

What lies behind us and what lies before us
are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

That you may retain your self-respect, it is better
to displease the people by doing what you know is right,
than to temporarily please them by doing what you know is wrong.
- William J. H. Boetcker

All the Daily Inspirations ever sent (over 2000 in the past 5 years) are always available to view at www.jlhuie.com

Further reading: Gain Self Confidence

Ego versus Self Respect

Be Your Own Self

Feel Better About Yourself

Value Honor, Not Ego

Value Your Own Approval

Only Your Own Approval

Many people allow their need for other people's approval to control their lives.
They spend their lives worrying about what others think of them.
- Rick Warren

Do not look for approval except for the consciousness of doing your best.
- Andrew Carnegie

A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.
- Mark Twain

To go against the dominant thinking of your friends,
of most of the people you see every day,
is perhaps the most difficult act of heroism you can perform.
- Theodore H. White

If you find yourself unwilling to take actions that others disapprove of,
you have lost control of your own life and have given your destiny to others.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

further reading: Dealing With Rejection

How To Not Care What Others Think

Aesop's Fables: The Miller, His Son, and the Ass 

How to Build Self Esteem

You are Important

Self Esteem

Self Respect

Rejection

I take rejection as someone blowing a bugle in my ear
to wake me up and get going, rather than retreat.
- Sylvester Stallone

A rejection is nothing more than a necessary step in the pursuit of success.
- Bo Bennett

Many people allow their need
for other people's approval to control their lives.
They spend their lives worrying about what others think of them.
- Rick Warren

Don't take rejection personally.
Don't let someone else's bad day spoil your day.
As long as you never reject yourself, you'll be fine.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: How to Deal with Rejection

How To Not Care What Others Think

Need For Approval

Quotes about Approval

Don't Take Anything Personally

Self Esteem

Opinions

Rejection

Confidence

Show Your Appreciation

 
Give Honest and Sincere Appreciation.
- Dale Carnegie

At the beginning of a relationship
we are attracted to the other person because
we think they are sexy, smart, funny -
whatever it is that we find appealing.
But very quickly, the focus of the relationship
turns to whether we feel appreciated.
If we don't feel appreciated, we don't feel loved.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Appreciation is a wonderful thing.
It makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well.
- Voltaire

There is more hunger for love and appreciation
in this world than for bread.
- Mother Teresa

Beginning today, treat everyone you meet
as if they were going to be dead by midnight.
Extend to them all the care,
kindness and understanding you can muster,
and do with no thought of any reward.
Your life will never be the same again.
- Og Mandino

Consider the contrast between the warmth of expressing sincere appreciation and the sinkhole of needing approval. Let others know how grateful you are for their kindness (when it is true), but never depend upon others to validate your own worth.

Further reading: Show Your Honest Appreciation - Today

Don't allow the need for other people's approval to control your life

Caring - Kindness - Compassion - Appreciation

Appreciation Quotes

Need For Approval Quotes

Quotes about Kindness

Self Esteem Quotes

Relationship Quotes

Dale Carnegie Quotes

Believe in Yourself

Whatever your work and whatever its worth,
No matter how strong or clever,
Some one will sneer if you pause to hear,
And scoff at your best endeavor.
For the target art has a broad expanse,
And wherever you chance to hit it,
Though close be your aim to the bull’s-eye fame,
There are those who will never admit it.
- Ella Wheeler Wilcox

Many people allow their need
for other people's approval to control their lives.
They spend their lives worrying about what others think of them.
- Rick Warren

Be more concerned with your character than your reputation.
- John Wooden

Do not look for approval
except for the consciousness of doing your best.
- Andrew Carnegie

Further reading: How To Not Care What Others Think

Need For Approval

How to Deal with Rejection

Self Confidence

How to Be Yourself

Approval Quotes

Reputation Quotes

Quotes about Character

Quotes about Honor

Need for Approval

Many people allow their need for other people's approval to control their lives.
They spend their lives worrying about what others think of them.
- Rick Warren

Do not look for approval except for the consciousness of doing your best.
- Andrew Carnegie

To go against the dominant thinking of your friends,
of most of the people you see every day,
is perhaps the most difficult act of heroism you can perform.
- Theodore H. White

One of the natural, but unfortunate, human characteristics is the sense of a need for approval. It is wonderful to show your appreciation of others and to thank them whenever possible. It is also pleasing when others show appreciation and thank you. But making any significant life choices based on whether or not others approve, sets one on a course of emotional destruction.

Make your important choices in life based on your values and your long-term objectives rather than on a need for approval.

Further reading: How To Not Care What Others Think

Need For Approval

How to Deal with Rejection

How to Build Self Esteem

Quotes about Not Caring What People Think

Quotes About Not Giving Up

Quotes about Strong Women

You are important

Trust yourself, then you will know how to live.
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

The snow goose need not bathe to make itself white.
Neither need you do anything but be yourself.
- Lao Tzu

No one can give you better advice than yourself.
- Cicero

Stand Tall, Stand Proud.
Know that you are unique and magnificent.
You do not need the approval of others.
- jlh

You are important. You are the star - the only star - of your own life show. Everyone else is a bit player in the great drama of your life. Be of service to humanity, but never be anyone's doormat.

Read more... How To Not Care What People Think

Further reading: How to Build Self Esteem

How to Feel Better About Yourself

How to Be Yourself

Quotes about Not Caring What People Think

Quotes about Not Caring

Many people allow their need for other people's approval to control their lives. Rick Warren

Many people allow their need for other people's approval to control their lives. They spend their lives worrying about what others think of them.
- Rick Warren

Do not look for approval except for the consciousness of doing your best.
- Andrew Carnegie

One of the natural, but unfortunate, human characteristics is the sense of a need for approval. It is wonderful to show your appreciation of others and to thank them whenever possible. It is also pleasing when others show appreciation and thank you. But making any significant life choices based on whether or not others approve sets one on a course of emotional destruction.

Make your important choices in life based on your values and your long-term objectives rather than on a need for approval.

Further reading: Stand Tall, Stand Proud.

Need For Approval

Need For Approval

A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval.
- Mark Twain

Do not look for approval except for the consciousness of doing your best.
- Andrew Carnegie

While it is natural to feel some degree of need for the approval of others, be careful. If you find yourself unwilling to take actions that others disapprove of, you have lost control of your own life and have given your destiny to others. An excessive need-for-approval is a sign of low self-esteem, and in severe cases, a condition termed Co-dependency.

Take charge of your life! You are responsible to yourself - not to others.


Further reading: Aesop's Fables: The Miller, His Son, and the Ass

7 Secrets of Happy Couples

You do not need anyone's permission to be your true self - jlh

What is Honor? Is there a place for Honor today?

Joseph Campbell: The world is perfect. It's a mess. It has always been a mess. We are not going to change it.

The world is perfect. It's a mess. It has always been a mess. We are not going to change it. Our job is to straighten out our own lives. – Joseph Campbell

Minding other people's business doesn't create happiness for them or for me. In the words of the old saying, "Live and let live." Between living my own life and my commitment to sow a few seeds of joy in the world, my life is quite full, thank you. Read my Monastery Housekeeping story about minding other people's business.

---

After the original post, I received the following question:

Thank you for the inspiration! Did the quote by Joseph Campbell mean to say that the world is NOT perfect instead of saying that the world IS perfect? Just checking……

My response to the kind subscriber: Thank you for your kind words, and thank you for the question. The quote is accurate. I cannot know what was in Joseph Campbell's mind, but my interpretation is that the world is "perfect" because it exists exactly the way it does. If one believes in a benevolent and omnipotent God, the world is perfect because God created it exactly the way He did. If one is a humanist, the world is perfect simply because it is futile to wish for it be different - and such wishing causes suffering. Here is another quote that says perhaps the same thing in different words:

The world is perfect. As you question your mind, this becomes more and more obvious. Mind changes, and as a result, the world changes. A clear mind heals everything that needs to be healed. It can never be fooled into believing that there is one speck out of order. - Byron Katie

Today is your day to dance lightly with life. It really is. 

- jonathan lockwood huie

You do not need anyone's permission to be your true self - jlh

You do not need anyone's permission to be your true self.
- jonathan lockwood huie

NO ONE has been granted the authority to tell me how my life should be lived. I answer only to myself and to Spirit - whatever that means to me.

Please accept this photo as representing all self-proclaimed authorities. It is not my intention to single out any particular religion, gender or race.

Stand Tall, Stand Proud.

Stand Tall, Stand Proud. Know that you are unique and magnificent. You do not need the approval of others.
- jlh

Some people think that Great Blue Herons are beautiful; some think they are ugly; many just couldn't care less. Do you think their opinions matter to this magnificent bird?