6 Popular Inspirational Quotes We Need To Rewrite
How I Would Make These Inspirational Quotes More Adaptive and Accurate
The inspirational quotes online can get quite bizarre. They range from helpful, to inaccurate, and just plain shaming or untrue. I know first hand how hard it is to fit a lot of nuance into a tiny screen or caption. It’s also next to impossible to impact everyone with an inspirational quote. There will always be people who can’t relate or apply it to their own lives.
We are bombarded with short inspirational quotes and messages constantly. We soak in every ounce of content our brains will allow us to and apply these self-help quotes to our life, consciously and unconsciously.
Unfortunately, many of these inspirational quotes are limiting and they often don’t take the whole picture into consideration. When we hear boundary setting phrases like, “no is a complete sentence,” we often try to apply that in areas of our life where it doesn’t fit. When these little inspirational quotes don’t work or leave us feeling worse, we may think there’s something wrong with us.
Here’s what usually happens to people when they read these inspirational quotes:
They feel like everyone believes them and shame erupts when they can’t make them fit.
They think these concepts are easy and simple to understand or apply to your life. Shame or guilt sets in when they’re not.
They can’t understand why these inspirational quotes are so popular, but don’t feel right to them.
These are a few inspirational quotes and messages that I see everywhere. They make sense for some people in some situations. Honestly, most of them have never fit me, which is why I have translated them into (well, much longer) and more appropriate sayings for my life and maybe yours too. Check them out and see how they feel v. the original inspirational quotes.
6 Inspirational Quotes And How I Would Rewrite Them
My sayings are so long they probably won’t make it on to Pinterest, but I like them better...
Inspirational Quote: “Your attitude is everything.”
Updated Version: Your attitude is important. But, there are a lot of other things that may impact your life or the outcome of this situation.
Inspirational Quote: “No days off!”
Updated Version: Um, how about some days off so I don’t work myself into a breakdown? I’ll work hard when I can and rest when I need to.
Inspirational Quote: “No one will love you until you love yourself.”
Updated Version: I may not pick the best people to have in my life when I don’t love myself. People can and will love me and see my value even when I don’t see it myself.
Inspirational Quote: “You don’t owe anyone anything.”
Updated Version: I would like to honor any commitments I made to the best of my ability and give people kindness, rexpect, love and empathy whenever I can. I don’t owe people an explanation for who I am or my choices when they are committed to misunderstanding me or disliking me.
Inspirational Quote: “No is a complete sentence.”
Updated Version: No is a complete sentence in a lot of situations. But for people I love or respect, I’ll provide an explanation. It helps me build real relationships and deal with conflict in a healthy way.
Inspirational Quote: “Never apologize for being you.”
Updated Version: Sometimes being “me” involves not being the best version of myself. I will apologize when the version of me I am presenting to the world doesn’t align with who I want to be.
What To Do When You See These Inspirational Quotes
If you see inspirational quotes on the internet or on social media and it doesn’t fit what you’re going through or doesn’t capture your full situation, that is normal. Everything you read is written from the perspective of the author. They are writing based on their own beliefs, experiences, and values. Sometimes a saying that is meant for everyone only captures the feelings of a select few. You have the right to discard or ignore any self-help advice or “inspiration” that you’re being fed. It’s totally ok to say, “that’s not for me.” You are the only person who gets to decide what applies to you and what doesn’t. Maybe even some of these new sayings I wrote don’t work for you; that’s ok!
What are some other inspirational quotes or self help sayings that you’ve seen floating around?
How have these self-help or inspirational quotes impacted you?
If you’re looking for some more adaptive and less shaming self-help or inspirational quotes, I write about toxic positivity and topics like this all the time on my Instagram and Twitter. Check it out and let me know what you think.