The Secret to Life in One Sentence or Less
A life lived in love will never be dull. – Leo Buscaglia
The secret to life can’t be found in a book, a song or on a mountain top. The secret to life is found in each one of us. It’s a simple understanding of what brings happiness, purpose and love. Our personal secrets are waiting to be exposed and willing be to be shared.
In the book The Five Secrets You Must Discover Before You Die, author John Izzo interviewed over 200 individuals in order to discover the stories of these people and to learn the secrets of life. The people interviewed ranged in age from 59 – 105, each of whom were identified by friends and acquaintances as “the one person they knew who had found happiness and meaning.”
I often return to the book to re-read their stories and to continue learning how to take their advice to heart. The following sentences from these interviews resonate with me the most because they are complete with the kind of philosophy, inspiration and wisdom that is both practical and undeniable.
These nuggets of truth are both comforting and helpful when Life gives you a surprise pop-quiz and you find yourself looking for some answers:
- Find your passion and pursue it. – Lea Williams, author and educator, 58
- There are ten-minute funeral lines and ten-hour funeral lines. Live your life so that when you die people will want to stay and tell stories about the kind of life you lived and how you touched them. – Ken Krambeer, town barber, 64
- Love someone deeply and be loved by someone deeply; be passionate about yourself and your curiosity and exploration and really GO FOR IT. – William Hawfiled, 64
- Always see the good in people, and you won’t get hurt because everybody has so much goodness in them. Don’t envy other people, because you have different gifts and blessings. – Eileen Lindesay, 78
- In order to find a more purposeful life you must let go of what society and people think of you and look inside yourself through some discipline – prayer, meditation, to find out what matters most to you and pursue it. James Autry, poet and author, 73
- Banish the word “boredom” from your vocabulary, and wherever you are, make the most of that moment because you won’t get it back. – Max Wyman
- Remember you are part of something larger than yourself. – Antony Holland, 86
- Find something you love doing and make it your career. – Paul Hersey, 76
- Learn to step out of the boot more. – Don, 78
- Live everyday for what it is, don’t worry about what will happen, the next day will take care of itself, what will be will be, learn to accept and wait for the next day to happen. – Ester, 89
- Never dwell on the negative in your life, bad things happen all the time, even in bad situations look for the good and you will find it. – Rufus Riggs, 63
- Live your passion and be of service to others. – Laura Lowe, 61
- Get an education, find out who you are, where you came from and where you want to go, and don’t forget who you are. – Ralph Dick, native chief, 66
- You need to learn who you are inside, figure out what your feelings are, understand that; the key to self-knowledge. If you know who you are, then you are grounded throughout life. If everything is a mystery to you, then you are going to be in trouble. – Mark Sherkow, 60
- Don’t draw the curtain too soon; there is always an encore or fourth act. – Joci James, 79
- Know thy self and have the courage to follow that. – Clive Martin, 65
- Be kind to yourself and to others; you can’t go wrong that way. – Mary, 87
- Choose to have a happy life. If you want to focus on what is wrong, then so be it. Or you can focus on the lily in front yard that opened today and you get to see it today, it’s what you focus on that counts. – Tony, 66
- Follow your heart and become the person you want to be in the world. – Bob Peart, biologist and activist, 59
- Have the disciple to listen to your heart, and then have the courage to follow. – Ron Polack, healer of energies, 72
- Find your path and be true to it. – William Bridges, author, 73
- Stay busy; never be bored; always find five more things to do. -Lucy, nurse, 101
- Love what you and do what you love. – Darlene Burcham, 62
- Dive in with both feet, roll up your sleeves and get messy, dare to live, dare to love, dare to connect. – Carolyn Mann, 67
- Love yourself and the rest will follow. – Jeannie Runnalls, 57
- Don’t be ruled by fear. – Felisa Cheng, 65
- Do good if you can to every person you meet, but always do no harm. – Bansi Gandhi, 63
- Don’t sweat the small stuff. – John Smith, 82
What is your secret to life in one sentence or less? Please share in Comments below.
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Comments
23 Responses to “The Secret to Life in One Sentence or Less”
What do you think?
“Grow the good in your life and celebrate the blossoms with a heart overflowing with love and gratitude..share those blossoms generously…”
I will definitely read this book..love the wisdom you’ve shared here!
Joy, there is indeed sound wisdom found in these quotes. I hope you enjoy the book too.
Oh how I love that…in my life I have a motto…live with fear or live with love…
My choice is a life with love…
Always do what you love…
That’s the secret of life for me…a life filled with love…
Thank you Alex for sharing…
Life bless you always…
Danielle
Be generous in every way possible. You can’t out give God or the Universe!
Alex,
What fabulous quotes. I love that they’re all from ordinary folks too – no famous/celebs, etc. It makes them even more meaningful.
I see a bit of a theme running through them too: Do what you love and be of service, and love your life and the people in your life completely and deeply.
What wisdom you’ve gathered here!
@ Danielle: I love your secret – it’s better way better than fear.
@ Tess: Amen and thanks for your incredible generosity.
@ Angela: Simple, but powerful ideas to be sure.
My secret to life is be whom I am created to be. I can’t be somebody else, right?
A fabulous list with words of wisdom.
Thanks for sharing, Alex.
I love these words:
Love someone deeply and be loved by someone deeply; be passionate about yourself and your curiosity and exploration and really GO FOR IT. – William Hawfiled, 64
It’s so easy to say that but so difficult to put into action. We put up so many defenses and build up so many armors around our heart to protect us from love. To protect us from the hurt that comes with it.
Can anybody sincerely say that I’m not afraid of love and I’m ready to bear the consequences?
@Alex: Keep being you!
@ Rumio: Love can be a slippery-slope. It does take trust and a deep breath at time.
The secret to life is the one thing that we can hardly do – loving. Love is easier said than done, and to do love is a great secret in terms of reality. Love gives life, and will give eternal life. So my secret to life is true loving.
Love is awesome! Thanks for sharing Ret!
[...] This post is inspired by a comment (by Ret) to the following post by Alex Blackwell: The Secret to Life in One Sentence or Less [...]
The secret to life…
…is to make it look easy…
even when it’s not.
Your comment is spot on Matthew. – Alex
Transcend yourself through passionate creativity.
“Fake it till you make” or in otherwise instead of searching for happiness, pretend your happy, smile, play, do fun things, find activities that bring you joy, and laugh a lot, and after your down pretending …..you might find that you’re truly happy…..if not pretend some more till it works. fake it till u make it
That’s a great additional secret Charlotte. Thank you for contributing.
For me, it’s about maintaining a positive attitude through difficult times Tabitha.
Love this posting…. so much insight being shared! Clearly a common theme is being demonstrated. My secret? Follow your passion, live well, breathe, and find the joy in each and every day.
I love your secret Jacqui. There is joy to take in everyday when we pause long enough to look for it. Thanks for the reminder.
love, kindness and service to others,
nuff said
martyn
Martyn, Yep – nuff said.
Make your moment count whether loving or cleaning, dreaming or working. Be the best you you can be. Make it your challenge and your passion to live your life by this standard
Agree Mariano, there is no other moment than the present one!