We are ordinary people who earn a little money and live ordinary lives. There are too many things in a day that simply don’t need to be taken to heart.
Just do what is in front of you. When it’s time to work, work properly and do what needs to be done. When it’s time to rest, rest well and settle both body and mind. If someone praises you, don’t let it go to your head. If someone criticizes you, don’t let it throw you off balance. Kind words or harsh ones—let them pass through your ears and not enter your heart. Hear them, and leave them there. There’s no need to turn them over and over, and certainly no need to torment yourself with them.
When you are out in the world, always remember this: in other people’s lives, you are usually dispensable. Their glances, judgments, and idle talk rarely have much to do with you, and they are rarely worth receiving with your heart.
We spend our whole lives not to please other people’s eyes, but to settle our own hearts. Put your strength where it belongs. Live a little more solidly, a little more calmly. That matters more than anything else.