Confessions + 5 things I learned from Dalai Lama…
I have confessions…(Yeah I’m channeling my inner Usher to share all the things 😆)
Witches, vampires, superheroes, paranormal, & immortality excited me! Dudes, I read all the Goosebumps & vampire books I could get my hands on as a shy, nerdy, overweight, insecure little girl.
Even as an adult, Twilight & The Vampire Diaries consumed me. I wanted to be Bella & Elena.
When I was 8, I asked a librarian: “I wish we all had a choice to live as a superhero or immortal.”
I’ll never forget what she said as she pushed back her dirty glasses. She said, “You know, you can. Your thoughts have power to become things. Start taking & embracing the hard pills right now so you can savor the good pills.”
I thought, “WTF are hard pills & good pills?” (Ok, maybe I didn’t think WTF as an 8 year old but that’s exactly what my adult mind would’ve been saying🤔😄)
Reading & learning about The Dalai Lama later in life, I realized our lives provide us with a shared portion of those hard & good pills that librarian was referring to.
Hard pills: Death, life stress, debt, health problems, obesity, relationship problems, depression, bad habits, addictions, heartbreak, etc.
Good pills: Love, assets, family, friends, a home, income, good habits, health, success, knowledge, etc.
I realized when I was younger, I feared & avoided the “hard” pills instead of embracing them as experiences to learn from.
Experiences to grow from in order to become the best version of myself. They didn’t make me a failure or less worthy, but actually MORE credible & valuable because I could confidently say I had been through some shit, accepted sometimes it be that way, & STILL come out on top.
For that, here are 21 hard pills I wished I’d known before 41 + lessons learned from Dalai Lama that will help you become stronger!
21 Hard Pills I Wished I’d Known Before 41
- That if you risk all for love & it doesn’t work out, it’s not a failure because all love stories are worth experiencing. No growth of the heart is a waste. Ever.
2. That it usually takes 20+ years of working as a nobody before you acquire the wisdom & life experience required to know what’s truly extraordinary & that working diligently without concern of the rewards is what actually brings the rewards.
3. That the humbler the person & better the listener, typically the stronger the character & more successful.
4. That we get what we settle for. That your income will never exceed your self-identity & your impact will never be larger than your personal story.
5. That the way people make you feel when you interact with them tells you everything you need to know. Feeding trolls is a waste of your time.
6. That family, flowers, & walks in nature would bring me more happiness than my bank account or material items ever could.
7. That gaining health & being fit would multiply my creativity, happiness, productivity, & abundance considerably.
8. That your choice of relationship partner is one of the main sources of your success (or failure), joy (or misery), & peace (or worry). Choose wisely.
9. That I’d do my finest work in flow & that may not be chained to a desk or trading my time for money but in service, or in nature, or having fun, or in a smile or a conversation.
10. That Heaven & God & the Universe help those who help themselves & see the world as a friendly place. So do your best & let your higher power do the rest.
11. People putting you down or talking about you means you’re probably doing something right & a sign of increasing success. Keep going.
12. That the priorities I thought were important in my youth are actually things I’m least interested in as I mature.
13. That silence, stillness, & solitude form the sweetness of questions answered.
14. That small daily victories performed with disciplined consistency over extended periods of time lead to extraordinary results.
15. That when I didn’t get what I wanted were unanswered prayers because the Universe knew there was better for me.
16. That being scared shitless meant I was about to grow & discomfort is the price of accelerated progress.
17. That the best use of money is to invest in things that bring you & others joy like creating experiences & memories, not securing objects & possessions.
18. That willpower & mental fortitude are built by doing the things you need to do even when you don’t want to do them. Do more difficult shit.
19. That not every moment of your day needs to be used productively & grinding in a singular sense. Sometime productivity & grinding means self care, naps, staring at the stars, making out, making love, & doing absolutely nothing but admiring a life of unlimited beauty.
20. That respecting & loving yourself is vastly more important than others liking you.
21. That life is too short & too beautiful to play small & worry about what you look like or living other people’s timelines. All life has value. Start with your own.
5 Things I Learned From Dalai Lama
1. Nothing Stays The Same
Change is a rule of life. Nothing stays the same forever – bodies, bank accounts, relationships, health, jobs, etc. Don’t let fear stifle you. Embrace change, learn to fly, & enjoy the journey.
Dalai Lama says:
“Give the ones you love wings to fly, roots to come back, and reasons to stay.”
We are young when we leave our homes, parents, & family. Most people fuck up & make some wrong decisions along the way. But on the bright side, this hard pill reminds us that life never stays the same & it gives us the opportunity for growth.
Life is not your comfy sofa. When you take a break from people, places, & things, you analyze & appreciate their worth.
Lesson: The things that cannot fly cannot guarantee their triumphs.
2. It Takes Time To Make A Difference
Marcus Aurelius, Napolean Hill, & Seneca are the most famous philosophers. You might think they came from heaven.
Remember these people were ordinary human beings. Though they learned something: it was to realize that they could make a difference. They trusted themselves.
As Dalai Lama puts it:
“If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.”
We can do remarkable things as soon as we understand our worth & take action.
Lesson: Great things take time & the time is worth it.
3. You May Not Get Everything You Wish For
In life, you don’t get what you wish for, you get what you work for. – Unknown
I wish Aladdin were true. But nobody knows how many wishes we have left. Wishes mean nothing unless you put intentional action behind going after them. THAT’S what gets you your wish.
The Universe knows better than we do & sometimes what we think we want is not meant for us – that’s what Dalai Lama means by:
“Remember that sometimes not getting what you want is a wonderful stroke of luck.”
Lesson: Life is like a cinema, & with every act, it pulls up a curtain. The meaning of what’s behind the curtain is up to you.
4. Legends Share Freely
Wanna know somethin? The illiterate empires died. The literate empires still live today. We read about them. We read about all the greats.
Dalai Lama says:
“Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.”
Share your learnings. “To live in hearts we leave behind Is not to die.“ — Thomas Campbell
Lesson: Share what’s on your heart & leave big shoes to fill.
5. Happiness Requires Creative Awareness
As Dalai Lama says:
“Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions.”
Meaning that if you’re not happy, you are doing something wrong.
Oftentimes we lose ourselves & make life more complex than it really is.
Opt for creative things to find pleasure & purpose in life. Creative things like coloring, music, hiking, fitness, dancing, singing, etc., can help you always find what you truly savor. Purpose brings fulfillment.
Lesson: Happiness is not directly achieved; it’s a product of inner peace & awareness.
Stay FearLESS!
oxox Coach K
Hailing from Fishers, Indiana, Katie is an aficionado of health, mindset, human connection, & entrepreneurship. Motivational writer, speaker, doer of many things, she grew up on her family’s beef cattle & crop farm where agriculture was her first love. She is a Purdue University graduate well known for her storytelling of life lessons & personal transformation through her own relationships, financial struggles, Crohn’s Disease, disordered eating, body transformation, & adapting to a carnivore diet lifestyle.
Katie also has over 18 years experience as a Registered Radiologic Technologist, Nutritionist, Brand Growth & Sales Consultant. She works with people of all walks of life as a nutritionist & life coach to help them authentically optimize their lives to find health, wealth, & happy!
You can catch her via Instagram @lil_bit_of_fit & blog, Lilbitoffit.com