Also by M. J. Ryan
365 Health and Happiness Boosters
A Grateful Heart
Attitudes of Gratitude
Attitudes of Gratitude in Love
How to Survive Change...You Didn't Ask for
The Fabric of the Future
The Giving Heart
The Happiness Makeover
The Power of Patience
As the editor of Conari Press
Christian Acts of Kindness
Kids' Random Acts of Kindness
More Random Acts of Kindness
Random Acts of Kindness
Random Acts of Kindness Then and Now
The Community of Kindness
The Practice of Kindness
This edition first published in 2015 by Conari Press
an imprint of Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC
With offices at:
665 Third Street, Suite 400
San Francisco, CA 94107
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Copyright © 2004 by M. J. Ryan
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from Red Wheel/Weiser, LLC. Reviewers may quote brief passages. Originally published in 2004 by Broadway Books, a division of Random House, Inc., ISBN: 0-7679-1490-2.
ISBN: 978-1-57324-605-7
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data available upon request
Cover design by Jim Warner
Text design by Frame25 Productions
Typeset in Requiem Text
Cover photograph © Netfalls – Remy Musser / Shutterstock
Printed in the United States of America
EBM
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To the truth, beauty, and wisdom in each of us,
And in particular to Dawna Markova,
who taught me how to support the cultivation of these qualities.
Trust yourself, then you will know how to live.
—Goethe
Contents
2. The Gifts of Trusting Yourself
We Don't Have to Worry So Much
We Can Let Go of Shoulds, Musts, and Oughts
Creativity and Success Flourish
The Bonds of Perfectionism Are Loosened
We Live More Happily with Life's Messiness
We're Released from the “Rules”
We're More Optimistic and Trusting of Life
We Experience Love in Its Magnitude and Majesty
We Experience Our Connection to the Divine
3. The Attitudes of Self-Trust
I'm Me—and That's a Good Thing!
I Can Handle What Life Dishes Out
We Learn Through Trial and Error
What Do You Want to Say Yes To?
I'll Cross That Bridge When I Come to It
Fear's the Sign You're at a Growing Edge