The Self-Reliant Entrepreneur

January 16The Inside Edge

So, in those winters of the soul, / By bitter blasts and drear / O'erswept from Memory's frozen pole, / Will sunny days appear. / Reviving Hope and Faith, they show / The soul its living powers, / And how beneath the winter's snow / Lie germs of summer flowers!

John Greenleaf Whittier—“A Dream of Summer,” The Works of John Greenleaf Whittier, Vol. II (1857)

The practice of improving anything begins with improving yourself.

The ideas of inner work and interconnectedness are central to a great deal of the transcendentalist writings.

Many scholars interpreted Emerson's use of the term “self-reliance” not to define what we might call today “rugged individualism,” but to define a sense of reliance on our own internal source of spirituality that could be tended and cultivated as a lifelong pursuit.

In that interpretation, then, what you do for yourself will be reflected in how you view the world around you.

The kindness, honesty, humility, and grace you show yourself will be shown to others. And, conversely, the rage, blame, mistrust, and suffering you bear will become how others experience you.

This may seem like a lot of weight to carry around, but perhaps the solution is simple—release it.

Challenge Question

1. What great act of self-care can you carry out today?