Make something every day

People who like themselves tend to create things, even if it’s just a few paragraphs of writing or a sketch on the back of a receipt. Creating puts you in a position of agency rather than consumption. It has you contributing. You can scroll for two hours and feel hollow, or you can make something - even something ugly - in twenty minutes and feel like a human again.

Serve people well

What you say about yourself is forgotten. What you do for others compounds. Serve people well, and their word about you will travel further than yours ever could.

Tip for tap

There is plenty of unintentional harm in our world. We’ve all been bruised or derailed by someone who had no ill intent. We often respond with intentional harm to make a point and to teach a lesson. The alternative is clarity. Shared understanding instead of intentional pain. Tap is going to keep coming. It’s the tip that’s up to us.

The sidelines are safe, but sterile

The loser has more in common with the winner than with the person sitting on the sidelines. The winner and the loser each dared to try. Both risked embarrassment. Both were willing to face uncertainty. Both were stubborn enough to continue. Success is endurance in disguise. It belongs to the person who can absorb the losses without absorbing the identity of "loser." It's the courage to start and to stick with it that is the real separator. Results tend to find the person who stays in the game. The sidelines are safe, but sterile. Nothing grows there.

Stop seeking approval

When your happiness depends on other people’s thoughts and actions, you’re in a precarious position. You feel good when they’re pleased, and you crumble when they’re not. Seeking validation signals insecurity. People sense it, and it loses you respect. Focus instead on being useful and genuine. When you stop trying to impress and start bringing real value, admiration becomes a by-product rather than a goal.

Stop being so nice

Fake niceness is a form of manipulation. You’re pleasant because you want something in return, usually approval or safety from conflict. People can sense this, even if they can’t name it. It doesn’t feel authentic because it isn’t. Be kind when you mean it. Drop the forced smile when you don’t. Authenticity, even when it’s a little uncomfortable, commands more respect than any performance.

Expose some of your flaws

Most people are terrified of looking imperfect. They hide their mistakes and pretend they’ve got it all figured out. When you’re willing to admit a past failure or share something that makes you a little uncomfortable, people lean in. They see a human being, not a cardboard cut-out. Vulnerability, done right, builds trust and connection.