Quotes & Questions

“In an age of speed, I began to think, nothing could be more invigorating than going slow.” — Pico Iyer

Reflection: Choose one activity you usually rush through—like drinking your morning beverage or dropping your kids off—and commit to doing it with a little more attention. Notice what you feel when you give this simple moment your full, unhurried presence.

“We need to do a better job of putting ourselves higher on our own ‘to do’ list.” — Michelle Obama

Reflection: What small action could you take this week to acknowledge your needs—not as an afterthought, but as a priority?

“Most of what we say and do is not essential. If you can eliminate it, you'll have more time, and more tranquillity. Ask yourself at every moment, 'Is this necessary?” — Marcus Aurelius

Reflection: Look at your to-do list and identify one thing you could eliminate that isn't truly essential. How might creating that space change the quality of your day or your state of mind?

“When we are tired, we are not able to see clearly. Rest is essential to our clarity, joy and compassion.” — Thich Nhat Hanh

Reflection: The next time you find yourself in stress, notice what you're feeling and where you’re experiencing it in the body. What might shift if you paused and turned toward what’s calling for a moment of self-care?

“Try to be a rainbow in someone's cloud.” — Maya Angelou

Reflection: Who in your life might be experiencing their own storm right now and what one small act of color could you offer them today?

 “I don’t think of compassion as a virtue—it’s a commitment. It’s not something we have or don’t have. It’s something we practice.” — Brené Brown

Reflection: Where in my life can I turn compassion from a feeling into a daily practice?

“Awareness is the greatest agent for change.”— Eckhart Tolle

Reflection: In what situation can greater awareness (a pause to observe without reacting) help me better understand someone or something?

“The only thing that endures over time is love and the only thing we can do with love is give it away.” — Krista Tippet

Reflection: The next time you offer your love, pause and notice: How does it feel in your body—and how does it shape the connection between you and the other person?

“We have to consciously study how to be tender with each other until it becomes a habit.” — Audre Lorde

Reflection: Reflect on an experience where you could have chosen patience over irritation—how might things have unfolded differently if tenderness had been your starting point?

“Before I can tell my life what I want to do with it, I must listen to my life telling me who I am.” — Parker J. Palmer

Reflection: Before you rush to shape your day with goals, ambitions or plans, pause. Notice what the present moment is revealing—about who you are, not just where you’re going.

“Your story is what you have, what you will always have. It is something to own.” — Michelle Obama

Reflection: What part of your story feels ready to be seen or reclaimed—and what might it mean to own it with understanding, instead of judgment or shame?

“The wound is the place where the Light enters you.” —Rumi

Reflection: Reflect on an experience that still feels raw or unresolved. Allow yourself to meet it—not to change it, but to soften around it with greater awareness.

“Growth is painful. Change is painful. But nothing is as painful as staying stuck somewhere you don’t belong.” — Mandy Hale

Reflection: Think of a relationship, decision or experience where you feel stuck or out of alignment. What one small step could you take to move toward clarity, healing or greater ease?

“Sometimes letting things go is an act of far greater power than defending or hanging on.” — Eckhart Tolle

Reflection: Is there something I’ve been clinging to—an idea, expectation or situation? What might it feel like to loosen my grip, even slightly?

“By accepting life's limits and inevitabilities and working with them rather than fighting them, we become free.” — Arianna Huffington

Reflection: Consider an area where you've been exhausting yourself by swimming against the current. What would "going with the flow" look like?

“Make the best use of what is in your power, and take the rest as it happens. Some things are up to us and some things are not up to us.” — Epictetus, Greek Stoic philosopher

Reflection: What was one situation today where you clearly recognized what was in your control and what wasn't?

“You are not behind in life. You are not missing out. You are exactly where you are meant to be. Seasons change and so do we.” — Morgan Harper Nichols

Reflection: If I could speak kindly to the part of me struggling with change, what would I say?

“The most powerful relationship you will ever have is the relationship with yourself.” – Maya Angelou

Reflection: How are you nurturing your relationship with yourself?

“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” – Viktor Frankl

Reflection: In what situation today did I need to adapt myself rather than trying to control external circumstances?

“Peace in your mind, peace in the world.” – Dipa Ma

Reflection: Reflect on a recent moment of inner peace. What did you notice about yourself during that experience?

“The most precious gift we can offer others is our presence.” – Thich Nhat Hanh

Reflection: When did I offer someone my full presence today and how did it impact our connection?

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead

Reflection: What issue matters deeply enough to you that you would consider gathering others to address it together?

“Sometimes, when we cannot see where we are going, it helps to remember where we have been.” – Clarissa Pinkola Estés

Reflection: What one thing from your past reminds you that you are stronger than you think?

“Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need to know.” – Pema Chödrön

Reflection: What experience or emotion might I be resisting—and what could it be trying to teach me?

“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.” – James Baldwin

Reflection: What challenging life situation are you willing to look directly at now and why?

“Vulnerability is not winning or losing; it's having the courage to show up and be seen when we have no control over the outcome.” – Brene Brown

Reflection: When did being brave enough to be yourself—even when you couldn't control what happened next—make a difference in your life?

“Being human is not about being any one particular way; it is about being as life creates you—with your own particular strengths and weaknesses, gifts and challenges, quirks and oddities.” – Kristin Neff

Reflection: What is one unique trait—whether a strength, quirk or challenge—that makes you who you are?

“Grief is in two parts. The first is loss. The second is the remaking of life.” – Anne Roiphe

Reflection: Describe one small way you've begun to weave something new into your daily life after experiencing a significant loss.

“Uncertainty is the fertile ground of pure creativity and freedom.” – Deepak Chopra

Reflection: Recall a time when uncertainty led you to a creative breakthrough or an unexpected opportunity for growth. What did you learn?

“When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” – Viktor E. Frankl

Reflection: Reflect on a time when an unchangeable situation led you to discover new capabilities within yourself. What surprised you?

“We must be willing to let go of the life we planned so as to have the life that is waiting for us.” – Joseph Campbell

Reflection: Describe an experience where letting go of a plan or expectation led to something unexpected but meaningful in your life.

“To bear trials with a calm mind robs misfortune of its strength and burden.” – Seneca, Roman Stoic philosopher

Reflection: Think of a recent challenge or trial you faced. How might approaching it with a calm mind have changed your experience or lightened its burden?

"You may encounter many defeats, but you must not be defeated. In fact, it may be necessary to encounter the defeats, so you can know who you are, what you can rise from, how you can still come out of it." – Maya Angelou 

Reflection: Reflect on a time when you faced defeat or a significant challenge. What did you learn about yourself through that experience and how did it shape who you are today?

"The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any." – Alice Walker

Reflection: Think about a time when you doubted your own power—how might things have been different if you had trusted in your ability to make a difference?

The oak fought the wind and was broken, the willow bent when it must and survived." – Robert Jordan

Reflection: Reflect on a moment of difficulty—did you resist like the oak or adapt like the willow, and how did that shape your perspective moving forward?