200+ Quotes & Sayings By Vironika Tugaleva

Vironika Tugaleva is a Russian writer, journalist, and politician. She is an expert in political studies. She was the founder of the political party "United Russia" in Russia. Since 2016 she is the First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Read more

Vironika Tugaleva is a member of the Public Chamber of Russia, a member of the Federation Council, a deputy of the State Duma for International Affairs.

Once trust is built, distance cannot kill it. Time and...
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Once trust is built, distance cannot kill it. Time and space alone cannot destroy authentic connection. Vironika Tugaleva
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I believe that the best leadership is loud authenticity. That is what the world needs now. We don’t need more plastic, Photoshooped perfection. I don’t want people to look at me and wish they could be me. I want people to look at me and see their own potential. I want people to be more accepting of their own failures, imperfections, and struggles because they watch me accept of my own. Vironika Tugaleva
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Compassion and communication are both incredibly important in relationships, but most of us use these at the wrong time. If we communicate, it's only in times of conflict, allowing repressed emotions and unsaid worries form into their worst phrasings. If we show compassion, it's only in good times, when we're feeling good about one another and don't feel triggered or attacked. What if we changed our approach? What if we showed compassion in conflict–taking the time to listen, understand, help each other release pent-up emotions? And what if we communicated in good times–taking the time to talk about patterns we fall into, triggers we both have, and how we can work together to break our cycles? Then, we would stop helplessly dancing the same old tango of mutual misunderstanding. Then, we could work on giving one another room to feel, to love, and to grow. Vironika Tugaleva
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The biggest mistake people make when trying to be authentic is just that: they try. They see these role models of what an "authentic" person is supposed to look like or act like, and they try to emulate that. Authenticity isn't about what things appear to be. It's about allowing things to be what they are. Authenticity is about getting away from hiding, from wearing a mask, from always asking, "How should I act? What should I say? What will people think?" That includes asking, "How should an authentic person act? What would a genuine person say?" Being authentic isn't about making yourself a certain way. It's not even about finding out what you "really" enjoy as opposed to what other people enjoy, or who you "really" are as opposed to who other people are. Authenticity is allowing your likes, dislikes, personality, appearance, hobbies, and beliefs to be fluid, to change, to evolve as you learn, grow, and experience the world. At its core, authenticity is the practice of surrendering the tiresome task of keeping up appearances and taking up of the lifetime work of allowing what is already within you to come out while you remove as many internal and external obstacles as possible. And who knows what will spill out of you if you just allow it to? Who knows what is within you awaiting recognition, awaiting permission to show itself to the world? Even you don’t know–until you try. Or, rather, until you stop trying. Until you become curious. Vironika Tugaleva
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When you love people, you are curious about who they are, what they think, and how they feel. You watch them closely, wondering about their experience and what you can do to make it more enjoyable. You feel compassion for their pain and seek to make it more bearable. You are eager to learn the unique language of their existence. You want to under-stand them, inspire them, heal them. What if you could look at yourself this way? . Vironika Tugaleva
The history of your happiness is the history of your...
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The history of your happiness is the history of your feeling connected. Vironika Tugaleva
To know yourself, you must first sacrifice the illusion that...
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To know yourself, you must first sacrifice the illusion that already you do. Vironika Tugaleva
A soul mate is not found. A soul mate is...
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A soul mate is not found. A soul mate is recognized. Vironika Tugaleva
Only love that continues to flow in the face of...
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Only love that continues to flow in the face of anger, blame, and indifference can be called love. All else is simply a transaction. Vironika Tugaleva
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To love everyone unconditionally does not mean to give everyone your unconditional time. Sometimes, to love completely, we must never see someone again. This, too, is love. This is giving someone the freedom to exist and be happy, even if it must be without you. Vironika Tugaleva
If you do not respect your own wishes, no one...
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If you do not respect your own wishes, no one else will. You will simply attract people who disrespect you as much as you do. Vironika Tugaleva
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In some ways, we will always be different. In other ways, we will always be the same. There is always room to disagree and blame, just as there is always room to take a new perspective and empathize. Understanding is a choice. Vironika Tugaleva
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I wanted, for so long, for someone to understand me better than I understood myself, to take control of me, to save me, to make it all better. I thought that the hardest part of a loving, mutually healing relationship would be showing my vulnerable, raw spots to a person, even though I'd been hurt so many times before. This has not been the hardest part. The actual hardest part has been realizing that no one, no matter how compassionate and kind they are, will say the perfect things always. Myself included. The hardest part has been learning to communicate what I need, to hear what others need, to tell others how to tell me what they need. Intimacy takes communication. A lot of it. We all have triggers. I don't know your triggers, and you don't know mine. No matter how much I love or trust you, you cannot possibly know exactly the words I need to hear, the words I don't want to hear, and the way I like to be touched. And how strange that we expect these things of each other. How strange (and self-sabotaging) that we refuse to get into relationships and friendships with people unless they treat us in just that perfect way. We've been raised to want fairy tales. We've been raised to wait for flawless saviors to rescue us. But the savior isn't flawless and the savior is not coming. The savior is you. The savior is still learning. The savior is never done learning. The savior is a human being. Forget perfect. Forget flawless. And start speaking your truth. Start speaking what you want and how you want it. And start asking and listening, really listening, to what the people around you say. Maybe, then, we will stop abandoning and hurting each other. Maybe, then, there's hope for us. Vironika Tugaleva
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When you love people, you are curious about who they are, what they think, and how they feel. You watch them closely, wondering about their experience and what you can do to make it more enjoyable. You feel compassion for their pain and seek to make it more bearable. You are eager to learn the unique language of their existence. You want to understand them, inspire them, heal them. What if you could look at yourself this way? . Vironika Tugaleva
The important thing is for me to feel love towards...
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The important thing is for me to feel love towards my fellow human beings–and sometimes, that has to be at a distance. Vironika Tugaleva
Self-love is essential. Until you can learn how to feel...
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Self-love is essential. Until you can learn how to feel loved in an empty room, you will not feel loved for very long in any other room. Vironika Tugaleva
There is no quick fix-all procedure to heal your insecurities....
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There is no quick fix-all procedure to heal your insecurities. Like any relationship, the relationship with yourself must be built and re-built one kind, loving conversation at a time. Vironika Tugaleva
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Sometimes love doesn't look like what we think it should look like. Sometimes it's paradoxical. Sometimes we have to step outside our comfort zone. Sometimes we have to be more honest than we thought we'd ever have to be or more supportive than we are taught is appropriate. When we traverse those boundaries, that's when we really understand what this whole love thing is all about. We become more than just human. We become part of the giant, beautiful ever-changing reality of life. By loving without limits, we become wise, strong, and beautiful. We become more of what we already are. Vironika Tugaleva
Have the courage to love yourself like you always wished...
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Have the courage to love yourself like you always wished someone would. Vironika Tugaleva
Sometimes, to love people, I must completely avoid them. Sometimes,...
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Sometimes, to love people, I must completely avoid them. Sometimes, to be strong, I must completely fall apart. Sometimes, to create, I must completely destroy. Vironika Tugaleva
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Loving yourself isn't just about celebrating your accomplishments and nurturing your talents. Those things are nice, sure. But that's not how we know others love us. We know others love us when they see us with our face on the ground, crying and weak, feeling like we've got nothing to offer the world–and they smile, and they reach out, and they love us anyway. Loving yourself is what you do when you fail, when you don't know, when you screw up, when you forget, when you lose everything. Loving yourself is what you do when you can't approve of what you've done. Loving yourself is what you do when you're not sure if it's going to get better. Loving yourself is what you must do in those moments when you can't like yourself. Real love is when you reach out for no good reason at all, except to love. Vironika Tugaleva
If we learn to be responsible for our own emotions,...
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If we learn to be responsible for our own emotions, thoughts, and needs, then we can see other people for who they are as opposed to what they can do for us. Vironika Tugaleva
Fear echoes your self-defined limitations, not your actual ones. To...
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Fear echoes your self-defined limitations, not your actual ones. To change your self-image, you must face what scares you. Vironika Tugaleva
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Yes, it’s okay to be afraid. It’s okay to hesitate before plunging from your comfort zone. It’s okay to have scars, pimples, insecurities, moles, cellulite, tremors, debts, redness, regrets, loneliness and uncertainty. It’s okay to have no idea what you’re doing. It’s okay to struggle with some things, while enjoying others. It’s okay to find joy in the beauty in life, even after a great loss. It’s okay to change. It’s okay to move on. And it’s okay to fear changing and moving on. Wherever you are, and whatever you are experiencing, is okay. You didn’t invent the universe and you didn’t invent the human condition. You don’t need permission to live whatever you’re living, even if it looks and feels different from anyone else’s life around you. And it’s okay to feel like you need that permission anyway. . Vironika Tugaleva
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Letting go of who you're supposed to be and discovering who you really are is a journey of many experiences, but certainty is not one of them. No matter how long you wait, it'll never feel safe enough. Plunge in anyway. Vironika Tugaleva
Inspiration is a spark. It is nothing unless we use...
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Inspiration is a spark. It is nothing unless we use it to build a fire. Vironika Tugaleva
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Before label yourself and before you decide that there is something irreparably wrong with your thoughts or emotions, ask yourself: “Do I have a caring, unconditionally loving best friend in myself?” If the answer is “No, ” then you will not find the solution to your suffering until you address this serious, life-threatening absence of self-compassion. Self-love is not a dinner mint. Self-love matters. Self-love saves lives. . Vironika Tugaleva
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Don't let your fear of criticism suffocate your leadership potential. Once you begin to speak your truth, you will discover the people who have been waiting for someone exactly like you. Until you speak up, all you need is the faith that they exist. And I promise you: they do. Vironika Tugaleva
Sometimes to love people, I must completely avoid them. Sometimes,...
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Sometimes to love people, I must completely avoid them. Sometimes, to be strong, I must completely fall apart. Sometimes, to create, I must completely destroy. Vironika Tugaleva
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People will react to you as a result of their own mindset, rather than as a reflection of your worth. Most people use others as mirrors for their own darkness. If you have been hurt by such people, perhaps you can use these experiences to become a different kind of person–one who reflects the light within others instead of using them as mirrors. Maybe your experiences of pain can lead you to being a great leader, someone who lights up the world. Your most painful struggle is ripe with opportunity. Vironika Tugaleva
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The most profound personal growth does not happen while reading a book or meditating on a mat. It happens in the throes of conflict–when you are angry, afraid, frustrated. It happens when you are doing the same old thing and you suddenly realize that you have a choice. Vironika Tugaleva
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You want to fix yourself, change yourself, become someone better. But what about who you already are? You want to craft a mask to wear–something to cover your face. But you already have a face. You are already something. Your task, as a human being, is not self-augmentation, but self-discovery. Look at yourself with curiosity. Let yourself explore your interests. Delve into your talents. Face your fears. Accept your faults, and give yourself unconditional love. By learning to explore yourself, you will naturally become the best version of yourself. Of course, you invent your life, but you do not invent your passions. Some things, you must create, and others you must discover. Learn to be curious about yourself. Then, you will be on the right path. Vironika Tugaleva
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A butterfly does not wonder how it can stop being a caterpillar. It simply feels some feeling from within that tells it: isolate yourself in this cocoon and grow within it. It trusts that feeling. When it comes out, it is radiant and beautiful. All the little bug did was follow its nature. You are no different. Vironika Tugaleva
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We all see very clearly in others tendencies which we, ourselves, have overcome. The older and wiser we grow, the more we can see the arrogance of youth. The more authentic we become, the more we can see the lies of insecurity. The more vulnerable we allow ourselves to be, the more we see the dangerous symptoms of unexpressed emotions. There is no finish line to learning. There is no point where we're done growing, and all we will ever do is look down upon others who are behind us. No one is ever at the top. We are all growing at our own rates, and no matter how terrible or how enlightened we fancy ourselves to be today, the future will be sure to give us a different perspective. There is really no use in comparing yourself to others. There will always be someone ahead and someone behind, and there will be dozens (if not hundreds) of different scales and gradients to be behind and ahead on. To be number one is never final. It is and always will be a momentary, fleeting instant. But to be a growing version of yourself? That, you can be. You can be that every single day. Vironika Tugaleva
Change is not something you do. Change is something you...
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Change is not something you do. Change is something you allow. Vironika Tugaleva
It will take as long as it takes. Your work...
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It will take as long as it takes. Your work is to take the time and make the space. Everything else is beyond your influence. Vironika Tugaleva
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It is only by seeing beauty in everything that we can see it in any one single thing, day after day. Don't run into the arms of obsession, for that quickly fades. Long lasting love comes from an open, loving heart. Vironika Tugaleva
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Leave your hair natural. Let your beard grow out. Leave the makeup in the bag. Wear comfortable clothes. Stop worrying so much about your looks and start looking around you. You have missed so much beauty trying to become beautiful. You have missed your own worth trying to become worthy. Let the mask break open. Let it lie on the floor. Let yourself be seen. Let yourself see. Vironika Tugaleva
Eyes which feast on the beauty of the world will...
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Eyes which feast on the beauty of the world will always look beautiful to others. That which receives beauty exudes it as well. Vironika Tugaleva
Each person you admire is simply a reminder of your...
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Each person you admire is simply a reminder of your own latent excellence, your own unacknowledged beauty. Vironika Tugaleva
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I believe that the best leadership is loud authenticity. That is what the world needs now. We don’t need more plastic, Photoshopped perfection. I don’t want people to look at me and wish they could be me. I want people to be more accepting of their own failures, imperfections, and struggles because they are inspired by how I accept my own. Vironika Tugaleva
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The more you've struggled, the more inspiring your story will be when you come out the other side. Do not give up. Today's struggle brings tomorrow's wisdom. Vironika Tugaleva
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Only when we face the impossible, and experience the unbearable, do we find out who we truly are. Vironika Tugaleva
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There is no greater suffering than constantly measuring yourself and coming up short, except perhaps the realization that your suffering is hurting others. But where do we learn these things? Because, really, they are learned. We don't come crying out of the womb because of our birth weight or because we have no money in this brand new world. We learn to measure and we learn to attach our self-worth to those measurements. These patterns we're stuck in aren't just painful for us, they're also distracting us. Every day, the gap between rich and poor grows while the people of developed societies do nothing, because we are too busy worrying about looking good. We're distracted, but not because we've chosen to be. Being distracted by our illusory inadequacy keeps us from changing the world. And believe me, we all have the power to change the world. If we only make the time. If we only free some head space. If you can't learn to love yourself for yourself (and how could you with such a paradoxical motivation?).. then do it for us. Do it for the world. We need you. We need your mind. We need your attention. We need your thoughts. Change your focus, and you will (not can, but will) change the world. You already matter. You just have to realize it for yourself. Vironika Tugaleva
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To liberate yourself from your own self-judgment is to liberate others from it as well. To love yourself is an act of love for the world. Vironika Tugaleva
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There is a difference between working hard to create a life that truly serves you and working hard to create a life that you’ve been told you should want. Vironika Tugaleva
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Life is not a sport. Life is not math. There is no final end goal and there is no right answer. Just because your truth does not match someone else's truth does not make either of you wrong. Life is not a zero sum game. If I am right, that does not make you wrong. If you are right, that does not make me wrong either. A jar of vinegar can sit in a cupboard beside a box of baking soda peacefully, and we can allow those who disagree with us to exist alongside us without reacting to them. There is nothing to prove. There is enough room in the world for all of us. . Vironika Tugaleva
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There are few things more powerful than people united. What they unite over is not what matters.... The most important aspect is remembering our existing connection, and, through that, allowing ourselves to feel at peace. Vironika Tugaleva
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Temporary, but excruciating, pain is the price of healing. Vironika Tugaleva
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When I'm triggered, I think, "This will last forever" or "What if this lasts forever?" I get thoughts about how I should give up, run away, hide, protect myself. These thoughts, I cannot change. What I can change is how I respond to them. Will I unconditionally believe these ideas, or will I accept them as side effects of the temporary experience of pain? Will I act on each thought that arises in the burning fire, or will I hold myself gently and say, "It'll be okay. I know it hurts. I love you"? My power lies in these choices. Vironika Tugaleva
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Every bit of pain can be a blessing if we choose to listen to its message. Vironika Tugaleva
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Emotional pain cannot kill you, but running from it can. Allow. Embrace. Let yourself feel. Let yourself heal. Vironika Tugaleva
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Your pain is trying to tell you something. It is not an accident, a curse, or an inconvenience. Pain is a form of self-communication. Vironika Tugaleva
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When we get hurt, our bodies immediately start trying to heal that hurt. This works for emotions as well. If we were scarred socially, by an incident of rejection or bullying, we immediately start trying to heal. Like pus comes out of wounds, emotions flow from psychological wounds. And what do we really need at that moment? When we are out of that dangerous situation that scarred us, and we become triggered by some little thing - what do we need? Do we need someone to look at us and say, "Wow, you're really sensitive, aren't you?" or "Hey, man, I didn't mean it like that."? Do we need someone to justify their actions or tell us to take it easy, because the situation didn't really require such a reaction? And, from ourselves, do we really need four pounds of judgment with liberal helpings of shame? Do we need to run away, to suppress, to hate our "over-sensitivity" to situations that seem innocuous to others? No. We do not need all of these versions of rejection of a natural healing process. You would not feel shame over a wound doing what it must do to heal, nor would you shame another. So why do we do this to our heart wounds? Why do we do it to ourselves? To others? Next time some harmless situation triggers you or someone around you into an intense emotion - realize it's an attempt at emotional healing. Realize the danger is no longer there, but don't suppress the healing of old dangers and old pains. Allow the pain. Don't react, but don't repress. Embrace the pain. Embrace the pain of others. Like this, we have some chance at healing the endless cycles of generational repression and suppression that are rolling around in our society. Fall open. Break open. Sit with others' openness. Let love be your medicine. Vironika Tugaleva
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To be hurt is, sometimes, a lucky thing–a fortunate interruption along a road that otherwise may have ended in blindly hurting others. When we heal from being hurt by a person, we realize the importance of not hurting people. Perhaps it is not the most fun way to learn this lesson, but it is a method of life's teachings nonetheless. Vironika Tugaleva
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A happy person is not without sorrow or grief. Happiness is the acceptance of pain, not the lack of it. Vironika Tugaleva
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Happiness isn’t about pretending there’s no pain. It’s about accepting the pain as a part of healing and doing your best to nurse your own wounds with love and patience. Vironika Tugaleva
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You work so hard to fix yourself, but maybe what you need isn't another tactic, another book, another expert, another five-step plan. Maybe, you don't need to be fixed. Maybe, what's really holding you back is the idea that you need to be fixed. Maybe you just need to let yourself play instead of always making yourself do homework. Vironika Tugaleva
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At the end of the day, your relationships with the people in your life will be greater assets than any material things. Take time. Be present. You'll thank yourself for it later. Vironika Tugaleva
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The most profound personal growth does not happen while reading a book or meditating. It happens in the throes of conflict, when you are angry, afraid, frustrated. It happens when you are doing the same old thing and you suddenly realize that you have a choice. Vironika Tugaleva
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No one sees your strength, do they? No one sees the silent battle you fight against your overprotective mind that’s trying to keep you safe from harm by keeping you safe from risk, safe from connection, safe from honesty. Maybe others don’t see, but you see it sometimes, don’t you? In the mirror, in those eyes, begging for someone to notice. You have noticed. It is real. You are strong. You are fighting for something incredible. Don’t let anyone convince you otherwise–especially not your thoughts. . Vironika Tugaleva
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When you have any sort of intense emotional reaction, you have a choice: look for proof that you should feel it even deeper or look for the thought process that is triggering the emotion. One takes you on a downwards spiral, while the other upwards. One breeds toxic patterns, the other awareness. The choice is yours. Vironika Tugaleva
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In my isolation, I dreamt of power. My daydreams and fantasies were all about how I could win, how I could be number one, how I could have my cake and eat it too. When those dreams were fulfilled, I felt nothing. The love-sized hole within me grew larger and larger as I died by my own hand, by my own mind. During my transformation, I found what I needed to fill the hole. I found peace, joy, and connection. To power, I waved goodbye. I thought that being a loving, spiritual being meant sacrificing that triumph-hungry drive within. For much too long, I ignored these urges, believing them to be the opposite of love while I cycled in and out of love awareness. The day that my love mindset became a permanent state of mind was the day I realized that love is not the opposite of power. Love is power. Love is the strongest power there is. Vironika Tugaleva
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To spend your time trying to make your body flawless is to waste your time. Even if it appears to match some externalized ideals of perfection for a moment, your physical self will wrinkle and age. Work on your mind. Work on your legacy. Vironika Tugaleva
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We speak about losing our minds as if it is a bad thing. I say, lose your mind. Do it purposefully. Find out who you really are beyond your thoughts and beliefs. Lose your mind, find your soul. Vironika Tugaleva
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There is no transcending our minds, only using them optimally. Vironika Tugaleva
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The self-judging person will always judge others. The rubric we develop for ourselves, the measuring stick we put against our own mind and body, generalizes to every other human being. Vironika Tugaleva
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Love is more abundant than we could possibly imagine. Just like there is more air than we could possibly breathe in, there is more love than we could possibly perceive. Vironika Tugaleva
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The next stage of evolution is the evolution of perception, the evolution of the mind. Vironika Tugaleva
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This is what a real teacher does: she opens the gates of our minds to the possibilities of the soul. Vironika Tugaleva
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The mind, just like the body, becomes exactly what it is fed. While the body is nourished by food, the mind is nourished by thoughts. Vironika Tugaleva
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Many so-called disorders of the mind are simply disorders of thought. Vironika Tugaleva
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In our thoughts, we hold the key to our feelings. In our minds, we hold the key to love. Vironika Tugaleva
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There are few things more powerful than people united. Vironika Tugaleva
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We crave magic because we are magic. We crave power because we are pure power. Vironika Tugaleva
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Sometimes, breaking down is the bravest thing you can do. Vironika Tugaleva
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The most effective and permanent way to silence fears is to face them. Vironika Tugaleva
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They say, "Look before you leap." So look. But do not look for too long. Do not look into the void of uncertainty trying to predict each and every possible outcome, to evaluate every possible mistake, to prevent each possible failure. Look for the opportunity to leap, and leap faster than your fear can grab you. Leap before you talk yourself out of it, before you convince yourself to set up a temporary camp that turns into a permanent delay on your journey into your own heart. Vironika Tugaleva
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It is not the path that you have trouble finding. You knew your path since your first daydream. It's courage you're searching for - courage to trust yourself and stop searching for a travel partner who knows better than you where to go. And courage is only built in action. Vironika Tugaleva
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Do not settle for labels that presume you will never heal. Believe in yourself. Find a tribe who understands and believes in you too. Don't ever give up. Vironika Tugaleva
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Don't let what you thought you were yesterday keep you from becoming what you're meant to be today. Vironika Tugaleva
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I know of no better or quicker way to step into my greatness than to step out of what's familiar. Vironika Tugaleva
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Courage is your natural setting. You do not need to become courageous, but rather peel back the layers of self-protective, limiting beliefs that keep you small. Vironika Tugaleva
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At the end of the day, we all crawl, exhausted, to some doorstep. Some crawl to the doorstep of their new home, the one they have sought for miles without giving up their goal, exhausted by their determination. And others crawl to the doorstep of their prison, the one they have sought to escape, but gave up, exhausted by their determination. And we all enter our new home with a sigh of relief and put our feet up. Some rejoice. Others grow bitter. And yet, we are tired just the same. . Vironika Tugaleva
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It’s not enough to wish, dream, hope. Even children know this. We must set sail into the sea of uncertainty. We must meet fear face-to-face. We must take our dreams as maps for a greater journey. Dreams, to come true, need a good story. So go live one. Vironika Tugaleva
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Of course you have passions and talents. Of course you have some purpose in the world. Your emotions are guiding you towards it. Each time you discover something that you like or something that you hate, you discover yourself. Everyone can do this. If you didn't like some things more than others, you'd be living in a sewer eating grass. More often than not, it's those things you think are too weird, too personal, or too imperfect that you must share. The world does not await your perfection. It awaits your courage and your honesty. Let yourself be seen. . Vironika Tugaleva
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Amazing relationships aren't about making one perfect choice in your choice of partner. They're about the infinite amount of choices you make in each conflict, each conversation, and each moment to open yourself and to stay open, even when it's hard. Vironika Tugaleva
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In your heart, you have a song that will change the world, once you give yourself permission to sing. Vironika Tugaleva
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In truth, people know very little about each other. I only know as much about you as I know about myself. Vironika Tugaleva
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In today's world, it is tempting to follow suit and artificially numb the emotions you don't want while inducing the ones that you do want. The problem is that pushing pleasure into your veins will not get you out of quicksand, nor will blocking pain bring you relief. The solutions do not lie in the world of emotions, but rather in the world of thoughts. Vironika Tugaleva
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Just like your body naturally responds positively to some foods, your mind naturally responds positively to some thoughts. Vironika Tugaleva
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Love is the essential ingredient. Without it, sex is meaningless, approval is bribery, and success is short-lived. Vironika Tugaleva
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The human being is so complicated in some ways, and yet so simple in others. Sometimes, we need complex medication regimens. Yet, sometimes, we just need a good cry. Vironika Tugaleva
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These times are hard, but I won't walk away jaded, darker, different. I feel. I cry to heal. If you saw me in those moments, maybe you'd think I was a mess. But I don't call it a mess. I call it strength. Real strength isn't about building walls. Real strength is about staying open, no matter what. It's about taking life–with all the pleasures that fade and all the pain that sticks around for too long–and not shutting down, not closing down, not building up those walls. Resilience isn't hard, impenetrable, iron. Resilience is flexible, soft, warm. Stay strong. The real kind of strong. Don't let your automatic mind reflexes make you jump away from pain and towards pleasure. Make choices. See clearly. And never, ever, stop feeling. Don't go numb. The world, even with all its horror, is too beautiful to miss. . Vironika Tugaleva
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You do not need any more strength. You only need to realize how strong you already are. Vironika Tugaleva
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You do not need any more strength. You need only to realize how strong you already are. Vironika Tugaleva
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There’s all this pressure in our society to be beautiful, to be strong, to be sexy. So we spend our time and money on trying to become these things. We put on the high heels, the suits, the makeup, the mask. Then, we feel more awkward than confident, so we drink away our anxieties. That doesn’t make us look any sexier — it just makes us stop caring about how we look. Everyone is beautiful. Everyone is sexy. Everyone is strong. It’s lunacy. We’re all running around trying to become something that we already are. You know what’s really sexy? A person who’s 100% comfortable with themselves. And you know what’s really funny? It is just as time consuming and difficult to learn to accept yourself as it is to pretend to be someone else. The only difference is — with self acceptance, one day, it’s not hard anymore. One day, you feel like your sexiest, strongest self just rolling out of bed in the morning. You’re either going to spend the little time you have in your life on trying to know yourself or trying to hide yourself. The choice is yours. You can’t do both. And you know what’s really amazing about choosing self-love? You’ll be setting an example for all the people around you and all the kids of the coming generation. You’ll be part of a revolution to take back the precious moments of our lives out of the hands of shame-inducing advertisers and back into the hands and hearts of real people like you, like me, like all of us. I know you’ve dreamt about changing the world. So this is your chance. Learn to love yourself, accept yourself, and unleash your strongest, sexiest self. It’s in there. You just have to believe it. Vironika Tugaleva
98
There's nothing more beautiful than authenticity. There's nothing stronger than vulnerability. There's no better time than now. Vironika Tugaleva
99
We can only discover our true strength through struggle. Don’t give up. Find out what you’re made of. Vironika Tugaleva
100
You matter. You're not broken. You're stronger than you think. Vironika Tugaleva