Inspirational Words: Make a Difference Helping Others

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“Great opportunities to help others seldom come, but small ones surround us every day.” Sally Koch

In a world where there is so much poverty, hunger, illness, and pain; it sometimes seems impossible to make a difference.  Have you ever felt that way? “I am just one person,” you may think, “How can I make a difference in the world?”

You may have given money to a homeless man, just to see him begging on the same corner the next day.  Maybe you’ve signed petitions to protect animals or reduced your carbon footprint to help the environment.  Still the problems remain.  Moreover, each time one problem improves, another one takes its place.  Have you really made a difference? Is it even worth trying to make a difference?

“In helping others, we shall help ourselves, for whatever good we give out completes the circle and comes back to us.” Flora Edwards

There’s so much to do—save the whales, feed the children, house the homeless, war on drugs, save the planet, end war, fight cancer. The desire to make a difference disintegrates into feelings of powerlessness as it crashes into the seemingly unconquerable brick wall of problems.  Today’s inspirational words are meant to remind you that YOU are an important part of the solution.

When you’re doing all you can and you don’t see significant change, it may feel like a total waste of time, energy, resources and emotions. But that is never the case.

Powerlessness is a figment of the imagination.  It is only as real as you allow it to be in your mind’s eye.  An attempt to help is never meaningless, never without value. Change and effort, even on the most miniscule scale, always outshine apathy.

No matter what, never give up on helping others.  Never allow the problems and the frustrations of the world to overshadow your desire to make a difference.

“Dare to reach out your hand into the darkness, to pull another hand into the light.”  Norman B. Rice

Even the smallest and outwardly weakest among us are capable of contributing to the betterment of our world.  You may not singlehandedly eradicate an issue altogether, yet you can make a difference.  You may not see the full extent of your impact in this lifetime, still you make a difference.  The difference you make may be small, still you make a difference.

Instead of focusing on failures to bring down the brick wall of problems, just focus on one brick.  Focus on doing whatever it is that you are capable of doing—and what you feel good about doing. Every effort, every helping hand, every prayer, every loving thought makes a difference to someone or something in some way.

Maybe you can’t bring about world peace, but you can be an example of peacefulness.  Maybe you can’t wipe out the problem of illiteracy in the inner cities, but you can teach a child (or even a few children) to read.  Maybe you can’t cure HIV, but your love and respect can help someone cope with the disease.

If you can’t save a village, change the life of one person within that village.  If you can’t change a person’s life, bring a better moment to his life.  Helping others on any scale is a wonderful gift to the world, but more importantly it is a wonderful gift to yourself.  Nothing compares to the feeling of making a difference.

“Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do.” John Wooden

Don’t ever feel so discouraged by the plight of the world that you stop giving, loving, helping, doing your part.  Every problem is an opportunity to show your humanity, to do unto others as you would have them do unto you.  Every problem helps us all to grow as a whole, as a family filled with love and compassion.  Maybe that is the larger reason behind the problems in the first place—to remind us that we are all one.  We are one with each other, one with every species, one with Mother Earth, one with the entire Universe.

My friends, I wish you the inspiration to do what you can do today.  On tomorrow, there will still be starving children, domestic violence, animal cruelty, global warming, poverty, drug addiction.  But if someone is always reaching out to help others, someone is always making a difference. That is exactly what the world needs—today, tomorrow, and throughout eternity.

Every cause isn’t for everyone; yet every cause is for someone.  Step up to the plate.  Stand up fearlessly and acknowledge that you have the power to make a difference in this world.

“What we have done for ourselves alone dies with us; what we have done for others and the world remains and is immortal.”  Albert Pike

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How To Use What Others Have To Help Them Grow

You have a gift you’re probably not aware of.

Even if your own life isn’t perfect (and whose is?) you have the ability to help others overcome their obstacles.

We all know people who struggle with issues of self worth, are making efforts to change, or who allow life to beat them into submission. Though change has to come from within, you can help light their fire, and more importantly, give them the support they need to face their challenges.

Helping friends and family is just a friendly thing to do. Helping co-workers recognize their greatness can be a bit trickier (as you don’t want to cross lines of professionalism), but if done right, can turn a mediocre (but talented) worker into a stellar team leader.

Everyone has issues, but you have an advantage your issue-afflicted-friend doesn’t. You’re able to see her problems objectively, through another lens, not filtered by years of negative experiences and emotions. In short, you’re not weighed down by her baggage, and can, in many instances, see the right moves to make.

While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to helping others, here’s some suggestions you can use to help your friends change their lives for the better.

Accentuate the positive. Everyone has something they do well, some talent, or perhaps a feature which they should be proud of. If your friend is feeling worthless, remind her of what makes her so awesome.

Recognize the negative. While you want to focus on the positive, don’t do so at the expense of lying to your friend. We all need an honest person in our lives who isn’t afraid to tell us what we need to hear – even if we’re not yet ready to hear it. Recognize and acknowledge the actions your friend has taken which has led to their situation and help them take action in whatever way you can.

Give compliments. People love to be complimented. It’s when we don’t get compliments, when we feel like nobody cares, that resentment starts to build and seeps into our lives, creating friction where it might not otherwise be. You can grease a lot of rusty wheels by simply paying compliments to others in your life. I know this seems a bit self-serving, but as long as you are sincere in your compliments and not kissing butt, there’s nothing wrong with a bit of win-win?

Ask for help. If there’s something your friend does better than you, ask her for some help. Sometimes, helping others allows us to see our better qualities and reinforces positive feelings. Given a chance to do what we do well, helps us to grow our confidence.

Use past success to build future success. Sometimes people just need a reminder of their past achievements to shake them out of their current doldrums. Depending on the situation, you can drop a subtle clue to trigger their memories of a past success, or directly mention these successes. Perhaps you can examine what your friend did differently in the past. Perhaps there’s another issue at play – something she hadn’t even considered which is holding her back. Talking things out can help get her back on the road to success.

Helping others can be a tricky proposition. Sometimes people don’t want to be helped. Other times, you may be overstepping your boundaries by offering assistance. And sometimes people simply aren’t ready to change. Tread carefully when offering your services. But if you are respectful and your heart is in the right place, you may be just the support your friend needs to better their life!

David Wright is a professional ghostwriter and cartoonist who blogs about fatherhood at Blogger Dad.

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Being True to Yourself and Others

By Krystal Kuehn -

Can love be real without sincerity? Most would agree that sincerity is what makes love what it is. Genuine love is true. And it is true love that we all want. We want to know we are sincerely loved for who we are. We want to know that it is with sincere motives that those who love us say and do the things they say and do for us. We want to know a love that enables us to trust without fear of being unloved and rejected. We want a love that remains loyal and faithful to us no matter what happens. We want to be loved sincerely. And that is how others want to be loved by us as well.

Sincerity is most evident when we are honest and truthful with others. It requires us to be our true selves rather than manipulate others into believing we are someone we’re really not. No one likes to be lied to or deceived. Lies and deception destroy trust. Betrayal of trust is probably the worst relationship pain we can experience. Without trust, relationships do not have a strong and solid foundation upon which to be built. Without trust we may question and doubt that we are truly loved. It is only when there is trust that we feel safe enough to open up our hearts to others and grow more sincere in our love.

Sincerity communicates love. When we are sincere we:

* Can be counted on to be honest and trustworthy

* Remain faithful and keep our word-making only promises that we can keep

* Are dependable and consistent in our words and actions

* Mean what we say and do not mislead with lies

* Are motivated by love that is genuine

* Can be our real selves and not be phony

* Will not deceive others for our own selfish means

* Do not flatter others to get our way

* Do not take advantage of others’ ignorance or innocence

* Have integrity and exemplify good morals

Love that is sincere is the real thing. It remains faithful in the face of betrayal. It is trustworthy regardless of others’ dishonesty. Its motives are pure and not corrupted by self-centeredness. Sincerity is a profession of love that is true.

REFLECTION:

What does it mean to be loved sincerely or genuinely?

Do I believe I am sincerely loved? By whom? How do I know?

Can love be true without honesty? Why or why not?

What motivates me most to say and do the things I say and do for others?

In what ways am I not my true self and give a false impression of who I am?

Can others trust me to mean what I say when I compliment them or share my thoughts and feelings?

Think about people you would describe as sincere. Does their sincerity enable you to trust them more? Why or why not?

EMPOWERING THOUGHTS & AFFIRMATIONS:

A relationship built on anything but trust and sincerity is like a house built on shifting sand.

I can be true to myself and others.

I choose to keep my promises or not make them if I cannot keep them.

I choose to be real because people who really like me will like me for who I am.

I choose to faithful and not compromise my values.

I choose to be honest in my compliments and avoid flattery and insincerity.

Character is much easier kept than recovered. ~Thomas Paine

It’s impossible to be who you’re not, so why not just be who you are? ~unknown

This above all: to thine own self be true. ~Shakespeare, Hamlet

Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else. ~Judy Garland

It takes courage to grow up and become who you really are. ~e.e. cummings

The most exhausting thing in life is being insincere. ~Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Only the person who has faith in himself is able to be faithful to others. ~Erich Fromm

Taken from The 10 Keys to Happy & Loving Relationships Part 11 (Love is Sincere) by Krystal Kuehn, BeHappy4Life

Copyright © 2006, 2010 Krystal Kuehn. All Rights Reserved.

Krystal Kuehn, MA, LPC, LLP, NCC is a psychotherapist, author, teacher & musician. She is the co-founder of New Day Counseling, a family couples counseling and children therapy center and BeHappy4Life, an award-winning, self-help and inspirational site where you can find hundreds of free resources, insights & inspiration.

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