No One is Coming

Today I would like to simply and quickly share one of my favorite thoughts on self-improvement.

This short thought comes from Nathaniel Branden’s book The Six Pillars of Self-Esteem and it simply goes like this:

“No one is coming”.

Short. But it has been a powerful and sobering reminder for me.

Because yes, you can look for the next big thing that will fix you.

Read more blog articles. Read more personal development books. Look for people to help you.

And yes, some articles, books, products or people will give you support and insights that resonate deeply with you and that you can put into practice.

But in the end, if you are an adult then no one is coming. No one is coming to save you. You have to take responsibility for your own life and what happens in it.

Other things and people can certainly aid you quite a bit. But you are responsible.

You can go around blaming society or some people for your problems in your social life. Or finances. Or health. You can always find scapegoats to judge to feel better about yourself. You can look for people that will “fix you”.

You can do this for the rest of your life if you like. It won’t change much.

Whatever has to be done, it’s you who have to take responsibility and do it.

Yeah, things might always not go your way. You’ll fall and stumble and you will probably have bad luck from time to time.

But you still have to focus on yourself and on doing what you can do with what you have in whatever situation that may arise in your world.

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About the Author

Henrik Edberg is the creator of the Positivity Blog and has written weekly articles here since 2006. He has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Gothenburg and has been featured on Lifehacker, HuffPost and Paulo Coelho’s blog. Click here to learn more…

Comments on this entry are closed.

  • Isabel Crest

    wow this post is really good and helpful, this one will surely help your self-Esteem and believe in your self more! thank you for posting this :)

  • Well said. In the end you spend more time watching videos, attending seminars, reading books, looking for that one extra thing that’s going to help you get there. (Wherever there is for you, it’s different for everyone!) However, the only real way to get results, is to get out there, take action, see if you are getting any results, and adjust your strategy as necessary.

  • Hi, this is a great reminder & it’s something we often forget. How easy is it to read books & blogs, wishing & hoping that they will create some magic, and to forget that we actually have to DO something?
    I used this as an inspiration for mine & I’ve provided a reference at the bottom. http://www.lesleypyne.co.uk/differently-this-year
    Many thanks