Pearls of Wisdom from Will Smith’s Memoir
Most of the media coverage I have seen pop up in my news feed about Will Smith’s memoir, Will, has focused on out-of-context personal details about his marriage and relationships with his family. Unfortunately, these have greatly missed the mark on the book’s overall purpose, which unveiled many life lessons we can all benefit from in his quest for inner peace. Instead, here are some pearls of wisdom that are at the heart of his story:
“I was trying to fill an internal emotional hole with external, material achievements. Ultimately, this kind of obsession is insatiable. The more you get, the more you want, all the time never quite scratching the itch. You end up with a mind consumed by what it doesn’t have and what it didn’t get, and in a spiraling inability to enjoy what it has.”
“There is nothing that you will receive from the material world that will create inner peace or fulfillment. The truth is (inner peace) is generated through output. It’s not something you get, it’s something you cultivate through giving.”
“Change can be scary, but it’s utterly unavoidable. In fact, impermanence is the only thing you can truly rely on. If you are unwilling or unable to pivot and adapt to the incessant, fluctuating tides of life, you will not enjoy being here….the capacity to adjust and improve is arguably the single most critical human ability.”
“Purpose has a way of contextualizing life’s unavoidable sufferings and making them meaningful and worthwhile.”
“…if I stopped talking and thinking so much, I could see and sense the universal tides and I could align my energies to them and achieve twice as much with half as much effort.”
“The Great River is going to do 99 percent of the work — your 1 percent is to study it, understand it, respect its power, and creatively dance within its currents and its laws. Act when the universe is open, and rest when she’s closed.”
“Let go and let God work”
“The universe is not logical, it’s magical.”
“Things are always impossible, right up until they’re not!” (Quoting Quincy Jones)
“We’re all waiting until we have deep knowledge, wisdom, and a sense of certainty before we venture forth. But we’ve got it backward — venturing forth is how we gain the knowledge.”
“YOU and NOW are a unique occurrence, of which you are the most reliable measure of all the possibilities.”
