The Wisdom Library
Throughout my years of clinical work, I’ve always marveled when a patient tells me in retrospect that something I told them previously had an impact on their lives—it was almost as if they had an ‘aha’ moment to take in the right message at the right time and it made a difference for them. In my upcoming book, 5 Steps to Tame the Overwhelmed Mind (5STOM), I incorporate the concept of wisdom as a means to strengthen the mind when it is overwhelmed---the idea being if you were able to hear the right words at the right moment it would help you gain a measure of control within yourself. The paradox is that when you are emotionally overwhelmed, would you even be able to access the right words when you need them most? Possibly not as it’s hard to think straight or rationally when your emotions have taken over. However, I decided to at least make the task a little easier by providing snippets of wisdom on a variety of topics by a variety of people and put it in one. You can have it for free by signing up for my email newsletter!
It is true you can find many quotes on the internet but as far as I can tell, none are catalogued specifically to help a person when she feels overwhelmed. I’ve arranged the library by subject (such as Anger, Fear, Relationships, or Transform Failure into Success) and author (such as Mark Twain, Buddha or Taylor Swift). In fact, there are quotations from about 250 people from Aeschylus to Zig Ziglar over a 2500 year time period. You are free to use the library any time especially if you’re having a bad day and trying to find some source of inspiration. For example, if you just received some disappointing news about having failed at a certain task you could quickly look up the topic Transform Failure into Success what 35 people had to say on the very same topic in their own lives. That list of people includes celebrities, philosophers and historical figures such as Marcus Aurelius, Maya Angelou, Carol Burnett, Buddha, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Benjamin Franklin, Bill Gates, Sophocles, and Oprah Winfrey. What you’ll find is that the same idea is often conveyed in slightly different language and with a slightly difference emphasis for each person. The hope is that you may be able to connect to one or more of these quotes to help ground you in whatever you are experiencing. The Wisdom Library is also a supplement to the book 5STOM when you are looking for words of wisdom from a wise person that applies to whatever overwhelming situation you find yourself in. In the book, there are 4 steps that precede getting to Wisdom so suggestions from the library help reinforce the preceding steps that are all designed to establish emotional safety and finding freedom from emotional overwhelm. Even though the book has yet to be released, the WISDOM LIBRARY is up and running so feel free to check it out.
Like any upstart library, I don’t claim that it has every useful quote known to humanity but it’s a good start and it has room to grow. If you feel called to add words of wisdom that work for you please email me at info@scottmardermd.com and I will be happy to expand the list.