Quotes from Revolution from Within: A Book of Self Esteem by Gloria Steinem
True Self
The point of the journey is not just the healing. It’s also recovering the truest, spontaneous, joyful, and creative core of ourselves.
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The idea of intrinsic worth is so dangerous to authoritarian systems that it is condemned as self-indulgent, selfish, egocentric, godless, counter-revolutionary and any other epithet that puts the individual in the wrong.
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There seems to be a law of intentionality: change is undertaken to please others do that but no more; changes undertaken to please ourselves, do that and no less.
For the answer, we can turn inward and listen to an always honest inner voice.
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We hurt both ourselves and other people when we become who they want us to be instead of who we really are.
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Self-Trust
There is always one true inner voice. Trust it.
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If our dreams weren’t already within us we could not even dream.
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Creativity
Imagining anything is the first step toward creating it. Believing in a true self is what allows a true self to be born. I’ve noticed that most art in the world does not have a capital ‘A.’ But it is a way of turning everyday objects into personal expressions.
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The art of life is not controlling what happens to us but using what happens to us.
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The more regularly you create, the more you will notice an image often repeated in varying ways. That is your true self-made visible.
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Any of our human capacities, if unused out of fear or shame, leaves a small hole in the fabric of our self-esteem.
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Belief
We need to face one fact squarely: what the future could hold, and what each of us could become, is limited mainly by what we believe.
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The idea that our brains are ever subject to improving, diversifying, and sharpening, if we will only believe in them enough to stimulate them, is good news for everyone.
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Body Wisdom
If feelings of unworthiness are rooted in our bodies, self-esteem needs to start there.
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Growth
As for who we will be, the answer is: we don’t know; we are on the edge of history. But we do know that growth comes from saying yes to the unknown.