You see that’s the thing. Bad things happen to everyone. The world is tough and fucks ups will occur. So what do you do? Do you crumble? Do you use these events to justify doing things that you know you shouldn’t? Do you get your own back on the world? We live in a culture of endless blame and vengeance, which might suggest that any of these reactions are righteous or at least justified, but I propose a different idea. I propose being the change.

You don’t play the victim, you don’t look for excuses, you don’t lose your self-respect. The reason is simple. You see, self-respect is the single greatest commodity a person can own. With it, you can take on any challenge, bounce back from any fall, make everything go right. You know that you deserve the best, so go out and you get it! You don’t shy away from opportunities, you make them! You don’t run away from love, you embrace it and make more! Suddenly you stop being the effect, and start being the cause over your life; you have control!! You know who you are, you know where you’re going, and you can say this with certainty because you know that when you make a decision, you stick to it and see it through.

So how do you get self-respect?From being good comes self-respect, from self-respect comes self-confidence, from self-confidence comes self-determinism (i.e. control), and from self-determinism comes getting exactly what you want out of life. This is the only road to real happiness. I say it again, self-respect really is the only road to real happiness!

You keep your ethics, because that’s the one thing that separates you from the worst in humanity. You lead by example. You stay unequivocally true to what you know. Irrespective of whatever anybody else says or does, irrespective to how hard or easy it is, you stand unwavering, on the right path. That’s character. It doesn’t allow for excuses, justifications, reasons. There are no limits, integrity has no compromise. You have to cultivate love in your heart in order to see and feel anything worthwhile in this world. Love, truly, is without pre-requisites or prejudice, without terms and conditions, without negotiation. It’s easy to love when you keep to your ethics, because you feel like a good person worthy of love and are therefore full of it.