THE TALISMAN LETTERS part II

6.Choose Your Influences Well

We do not move through our days alone or apart from the world around us.

And so we must always be aware of the things and the people we allow into

our lives. It’s a mark of wisdom to choose to spend time in those places that

inspire and energize you and associate with those people who elevate and

uplift you. Whether in our work or within our personal lives, these most

positive friends and peers will inspire us to be our greatest selves and to lead

our largest lives.

7. Life’s Simplest Pleasures Are Life’s Greatest Joys.

Most people don’t discover what’s most important in life until they are too old

to do anything about it. They spend many of their best years pursuing things

that matter little in the end. While society invites us to fill our lives with

material objects, the best part of us knows that the more basic pleasures are

the ones that enrich and sustain us. No matter how easy or hard our current

conditions, we all have a wealth of simple blessings around us—waiting to be

counted. As we do, our happiness grows. Our gratitude expands. And each

day becomes a breath- taking gift.

8. The Purpose of Life Is to Love

How well you live comes down to how much you love. The heart is wiser

than the head. Honor it. Trust it. Follow it.

9. Stand for Something Bigger than Yourself

There are no extra people alive today. Every single one of us is here for a

reason, a special purpose—a mission. Yes, build a beautiful life for yourself

and those you love. Yes, be happy and have a lot of fun. And yes, become

successful, on your own terms rather than on those suggested to you by

society. But— above all else—be significant. Make your life matter—be of

use. And be of service to as many people as possible. This is how each of us

can shift from the realm of the ordinary into the heights of the extraordinary.

And walk among the best who have ever lived.