{"id":3043,"date":"2012-08-15T07:00:39","date_gmt":"2012-08-15T07:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.planetofsuccess.com\/blog\/?p=3043"},"modified":"2020-02-03T16:28:36","modified_gmt":"2020-02-03T16:28:36","slug":"11-wise-lessons","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.planetofsuccess.com\/blog\/11-wise-lessons\/","title":{"rendered":"11 Wise Lessons – Essential Wisdom for Life"},"content":{"rendered":"

These are the words of wisdom I wish I knew when I was younger. Feel free to skip the introduction by clicking on this interlink: 11 Wise Lessons<\/a>. What\u2019s the difference between intelligence and wisdom? Personally, I associate intelligence not only with the utilization of knowledge to find solutions to tricky problems but also with the capacity for abstract thought or the comprehension of complex issues. Wisdom, on the other hand, appears to be entirely different than everything intelligence stands for. It is much more intuitive, rather than based on pure logic as intelligence mostly is. <\/span>I\u2019m a fairly young person, so why do I think I have any important pearls of wisdom or wise lessons about life to share at all? \u201cIs he that self-opinionated?<\/em>\u201d one might think. During my life, I had the very honorable experience of getting in touch with a huge variety of people, from all different kinds of backgrounds. <\/span><\/p>\n

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I\u2019ve talked to the elderly and the young had discussions with people that were about to die as well as those who lost a beloved one. But many – if not most<\/em> – of the wisdom and lessons I would like to share with you came from my personal experience, for instance from the time when my life was hanging by a thread – the time I had hit rock bottom.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Wisdom\"
Lessons that life teaches us<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I am, however, not perfect and all-knowing, which is why I would like to invite you to share your wisdom<\/strong> in the comment section below. Everyone has important wisdom for life to share, don\u2019t be shy and tell us about your wise lessons! I will integrate your statement into this article when time permits.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Wise<\/a>
Solomon Ibn Gabriol<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

The first step in the acquisition of wisdom is silence, the second listening, the third memory, the fourth practice, the fifth teaching others.<\/span><\/em>
\nSolomon Ibn Gabriol<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Before we get to the interesting part of this article, I think it might be helpful to define what wisdom really is.<\/span><\/p>\n

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Wikipedia<\/strong> describes Wisdom<\/a> as \u201ca deep understanding <\/em>[ \u2026 ] resulting in the ability to apply perceptions, judgments and actions in keeping with this understanding. It often requires control of one\u2019s emotional reactions so that universal principles, reason and knowledge prevail to determine one\u2019s actions. Wisdom is also the comprehension of what is true or right coupled with optimum judgment as to action.<\/em>“<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Wisdom<\/strong><\/span> is difficult to teach. The intelligent can learn, comprehend, understand and meet rational decisions based on logic. A wise person knows out of experience. It is the inner knowing what to do in a given situation. In some cases, the decision that is met appears to be irrational, but more often than not it turns out to be the right thing to do. The wise person knows from within, supported by the insights gained from a reflective disposition.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wisdom of Life<\/span><\/h2>\n

<\/a>11 Wise Lessons about life …
\n<\/span><\/h3>\n

… and the essential wisdom to be prepared for life. Doesn\u2019t it all revolve around the question: What is important to you in life?<\/em> Maybe you have already a definite answer to the question \u2013 in which case I would like to congratulate you. But if not, I hope the important virtues of wisdom and the many lessons in life that I\u2019m sharing with you will inspire you when deciding what is important to you. I\u2019m also including quotes of wisdom<\/strong> or wisdom sayings<\/strong> to each of the following essential lessons of life:<\/span><\/p>\n

#1 There\u2019s a lesson to be learned in everything you experience<\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n
\"Wisdom<\/a>
Edward Young<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

On every thorn, delightful wisdom grows.<\/span><\/em>
\nIn every rill a sweet instruction flows.<\/span><\/em>
\nEdward Young<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Everything you undergo teaches you a lesson. The question is: Do you have the courage to discover what lesson was taught? Are you brave enough to make use of the wisdom you gained?<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Life can be really tough, especially in times of coping with setbacks and failures. But I know from experience: everything that happens teaches a lesson \u2013 whether you like the lection or not<\/em>. Often, it took me months to let go of the (ego-based) grief, self-pity, and anger about what had happened. But once that work was done it gave way to a reflective approach to discovering the valuable insights and wisdom that were taught.<\/span><\/p>\n

Remember that this process takes a lot of time. Wise lessons<\/strong> might not immediately catch your attention, but they will come as very profound realizations once you are ready to comprehend them. With the insight that time provides, you will be able to accept the situation and be courageous enough to let go of anger and bitterness. Only then, with an impartial point of view, profound but wise lessons can be drawn from the things that happened to you, hence increasing your knowledge about the important wisdom about life.<\/span><\/p>\n

#2 Happiness comes from within<\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n
\"Lincoln<\/a>
Abraham Lincoln<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

People are just about as happy as they make up their minds to be.<\/span><\/em>
\nAbraham Lincoln<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

No one is in charge of your happiness but you. No one has the responsibility to make you happy. It is a very common misconception to believe things that lie outside of ourselves can make us happy. If you ask an unhappy person what it would take to make them happier, they will most likely enumerate the many (material) things that lie beyond their grasp. What they do not realize is the profound wisdom that true happiness comes from within. People think abundance can make them happy. We associate the possession of luxurious cars, big mansions and the many other tangibles this materialistic world has to offer with happiness.<\/span><\/p>\n

But the reality is: If you aren\u2019t able to appreciate what you already have, you will never be able to be truly and profoundly happy for a longer period of time, even if all your material wishes came true. It is the wisdom that comes from personal experience that has shown many people that one will never be fully satisfied by the accumulation of fancy tangibles.<\/span><\/p>\n

If you make your happiness dependent on external influences, you set up a barrier that prevents you from discovering the happiness that lies within you. In such a case, you would be trying to fill an emptiness within you that cannot be filled with things from the outside.<\/span><\/p>\n

#3 Anger is self-destructive<\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n
\"Buddha\"<\/a>
Buddha wisdom<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.<\/span><\/em>
\nBuddha<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Anger is destructive in nature. It makes people forget all the good qualities that characterize them as human beings. Anger turns people into instinct driven animals that are blinded by their aggression. And in this state of being it so happens that we tend to do evil things we painfully regret later. Retrospectively I would say that by holding on to anger, I harmed myself the most. The very wise lesson stated by Buddha brings it to the point: Your anger and hatred will hurt you the most, which is quite an important wisdom for life, I think.<\/span><\/p>\n

#4 Forgiveness will set you free, but revenge not<\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n
\"wise<\/a>
Thomas Szasz<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

The stupid neither forgive nor forget; the na\u00efve forgive and forget; the wise forgive but do not forget.<\/span><\/em>
\nThomas Szasz<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Forgiveness is the characteristic of the strong. It really takes a lot of strength to forgive and to let go of the hurt. The alternative to forgiving is vengeance, but it will not help you to reduce the pain<\/strong>. Revenge – to me<\/em> – is simply not the right way to let go of the emotional baggage I carry around when someone hurt me. In the end, the realization prevails that there\u2019s no difference between you and the person that hurt you if you opt for revenge. The process of forgiving is essential to be able to let go of the hurt. Forgiveness can set you free. It can help you in releasing the built-up resentment and the emotional baggage you carry around. Life is too short to waste your time with hatred.<\/span><\/p>\n

#5 Regret is more painful than failure<\/span><\/span><\/h4>\n
\"Whittier<\/a>
John Whittier<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, \u2018It might have been\u2019<\/span><\/em>
\nJohn Greenleaf Whittier<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Throughout our lives, we are mostly worried about things that won\u2019t happen anyway. We are afraid of failure<\/a> when in reality the regret about not having tried can be by far<\/strong> more painful than failure in itself. The question you have to ask yourself is whether you prefer to laugh at all the awkward failures you\u2019ve experienced or to regret all the missed opportunities you rejected out of fear of failure. To me, failure is an inevitable aspect of my life. A \u201cchallenge<\/em>\u201d if you so want that I will have to face every once in a while. With it comes the realization and wisdom that the only fool-proof way to avoid any kind of failure is to not try at all. The attempt to avoid failure at any cost – by not trying<\/em> – is an irreversible mistake, which I regard as the worst failure of all.<\/span><\/p>\n

The most common regrets of the dying:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n