This is such an excellent distillation of what so many try to say on the subject of happiness. And to think Erasmus wrote this in 1510 (at the age of 43). Notice, all wrapped up into this English vernacular at once: (1) that happiness has a primary element; (2) that it is rooted in striving to be something (a pursuit); and (3) that you are a somebody, that you possess an identity, a real or truer self. That’s a lot to pack into the punch of 14 words.

The book Who Do You Think You Are is also available at all major e-retailers, and you can find it at bigselfschool.com/store.

Today's quote is a challenge to consider fighting for what you know is right even when you may not personally profit by standing up. Courage is always hard. So many fight against injustice and oppression and remain nameless. They are beaten, jailed, denied jobs and educational opportunities, and even though their fight for justice may not manifest for them, even though they know they won’t win, still they rise. This quote encourages us to be among those willing to take a stand for what we know is right, even if we’re in the minority.

The book Who Do You Think You Are is also available at all major e-retailers, and you can find it at bigselfschool.com/store.

Your quote for the day is a beautiful expression of following your desire out the door and into a bigger framework of considering your life. You find the larger, saner life by pursuing your desire, listening to your longing. You can also find the bigger life out there waiting for you through where you’ve been wounded. It’s not overly romanticized, either. She is telling us that there are limits. There aren’t endless doors of opportunity. They are few, and they are important because they are few. There is something at stake. There are choices for you to walk through.

Join the community of learners, searchers, and doers at bigselfschool.com.

The book Who Do You Think You Are is available at all major e-retailers, and you can find it at bigselfschool.com/store.

Who Do You Think You Are is based on a simple idea. If someone really wants to change, to grow as a person, what is the best medicine? What are the most direct routes? How do you discover who you are? How do you find the courage to share it with the world once you know? Reading is one. We read to understand. We read to learn, to find something we didn’t even know we were looking for. We read to find community. Meditating is another. Each day we bring you a quote and the book it came from. The ideas we’ll encounter contain the transformative potential you already possess within you.

Today we begin with a powerful, aphoristic quote from one of the great thinkers and philosophers of all time.

Join the community of learners, searchers, and doers at bigselfschool.com.

The book Who Do You Think You Are is available at all major e-retailers, and you can find it at bigselfschool.com/store.

Who Do You Think You Are is based on a simple idea. If someone really wants to change, to grow as a person, what is the best medicine? What are the most direct routes? How do you discover who you are? How do you find the courage to share it with the world once you know? Reading is one. We read to understand. We read to learn, to find something we didn’t even know we were looking for. We read to find community. Meditating is another. Each day we bring you a quote and the book it came from. The ideas we’ll encounter contain the transformative potential you already possess within you.

Join the community of learners, searchers, and doers at bigselfschool.com.