Elizabeth Benton Quotes

External goals cannot hit internal targets.

Knowing what to do doesn’t help at all when you have a habit of justifying why today isn’t the day to do the work—convincing yourself that tomorrow holds some promise today doesn’t.

And the day came when the risk to remain closed in a bud became more painful that the risk it took to blossom. [likely not Anaïs Nin; look under "Disputed quotes" on the Wikiquote page for her]

I see a lot of people who are addicted to learning. What they need is a healthy dose of doing!

You don’t need to take notes; you need to take action.

It’s not about how much you know. It’s about what you consistently do. It’s not about taking notes; it’s about taking action.

When you realize you’ve been one of the biggest barriers to your own change and you take full responsibility, you put yourself in a place of power.

Change is a result of what you do now, not what you intend to do tomorrow.

Our patterns and stories, no matter how far back they go, can be surrendered and rewritten. We can walk away from them in any moment. Every choice can be change and every moment is a blank slate.

Self-improvement is a gift, not a curse. It’s a blessing, not a burden. It represents giving yourself something, not taking something away.

Transformation is now. Embrace this moment when you feel frustrated or uncertain and be the change right now. You don’t have to wait. What you do today matters. It makes a difference. Everything you do makes a difference.

Our patterns and stories, no matter how far back they go, can be surrendered and rewritten. We can walk away from them in any moment. Every choice can be change and every moment is a blank slate. The way things have been does not have to be the way they continue to be.

realized I was living in a misery of my own making. I was living in shackles I had put on myself. I was confined by walls I had built—walls I was continuing to build, choice by choice.

was so attached to the problem that I wasn’t giving any energy or attention to the solution.

What choices erode my happiness, confidence, or peace of mind? Breaking promises I make to myself or others Overeating Sleeping too much Not sleeping enough Not taking care of the space around me Complaining Focusing on my problems (versus focusing on my solutions) Blaming other people Isolating myself and avoiding social situations Beating myself up over the past Giving my energy to fear of the future What choices increase my happiness, inner peace, confidence, or clarity? Working out Keeping my home clean Being intentional about building relationships with people close to me Budgeting and keeping good financial records Meditation Gratitude Journaling Eating well Going to bed early Getting up early Saying “no thank you” to alcohol and indulgences

Questions to Ask What is it that you’ll have, be, experience, or feel when you reach your goal that you don’t have now? What do you want to feel that you don’t feel now? What do you want more of in your life? What do you want less of? What contributes to happiness? What contributes to unhappiness? What makes you feel calm? What arouses stress or anxiety? What are your internal goals? What are your external targets? What can you do to pursue that internal target separately instead of assuming it will come along with the achievement of the external goal? When you get to the end of your life, how would you have to live to consider it a great success? How do you define a happy life? What are the gaps between that happy life you’ve defined and the life you’re living now? What can you do today to begin to bridge the gap?

I am capable of making great choices just for today.

I decided to give more to the goal than to the limitations.

If you tell your subconscious that you can be great for a few days, but then always blow it, you’ve given it both instruction and permission to give up after a few days.

inspired by an idea from Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu: “When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.