Peace of mind can only come when we change what we think; when we get to the end of the week and mark it even; when we get to the end of the day and balance the books with our friends and family; when we realize that give and take sometimes means giving more and taking less. And when you're okay with that, you're finally okay with everything.

If you ever hope to get to where you really want to be, ignore the well-intentioned "honks" of your friends and family who try to tell you what you should or shouldn't do or how you should or shouldn't feel. Only you know the direction you want to go, and only you know when it's safe to cross.

It's awfully easy to be insignificant. It's safe. If we never reach out to anyone, then no one talks about us, no one hurts us, no one takes advantage of us. We stay in our little world and tend to our own things. We believe we have little to offer the world, so we don't try. We're content to let others be the heroes.

I was always proud of you, even when you didn’t think you deserved it. I never wanted perfection. I just wanted you to be happy, and we’re all happiest when we’re exceeding past that point where we thought we couldn’t go.

In the scramble of living each day, I had given up dreams; and even sadder, I hadn’t even realized it — not until that moment. I finished the interview and walked to my car as the question played again and again in my mind: “What’s my dream?”

Days and days I felt like I was rowing a rickety boat across an ocean of sticky muck. And, no matter how hard I pulled, it kept sucking me in. Deep down I knew if anything was going to change, I had to get out of the boat. You have to get out of your boat.