One piece of advice from all over the world (well almost)

It all started from a TikTok video I watched where the host would ask random people, something to the effect, “Knowing what you know now what is one piece of life advice you could share what would it be?” I thought “what a great question”, and I preceded to ask my contacts via WhatsApp and iMsg the same question. As I got more responses, I reached out to more people in a wide circle including some of the contacts that I know via LinkedIn. I was overwhelmed by amazing insights and was not sure what to do with all of this wisdom. For now, I have collected and edited them into this blog post. Maybe one day I will turn the short texts into TikTok videos. Anyway, they are people from diverse backgrounds, beliefs, and geographies, and here is what they had to share. Thank you to all for sharing.?

"Life is precious, treat every moment of time you have in such a way, do what you want to do, and be happy while you’re at it." Sandesh Rao (SF Bay Area)

"Find your superpower and do what makes you most happy, always striving to be true to who you are and the best you that you can be." Bob Quillin (Austin, TX)

"Never take advice from someone you wouldn’t exchange your life with." Luliana Szekeli (Bucharest, Romania)

"Rather than worry about what you *want* to do, just ensure you steer clear of things you do *not* want to do.?Everything that remains is a happy place." Connor Mcdonald (Perth, Australia)

"Be authentic, be open to feedback, be open to working and collaborating with folks outside your circle. And, be gentle and compassionate with yourself and others!" Liz Getman (Greater Philadelphia)

"Be patient when storms arise because eventually it will pass and the sun will shine through." Souheila AlJadda (So Cal)

"Be honest to yourself, don’t hide emotions, and above all be the truth your family believes you are." Ricardo Araujo (Portugal)

"It's an extrovert's world, to progress you need to act like an extrovert. So get out there and say something, if it has substance people will listen." Phil Wilkins (UK)

"Happiness is lowering your expectations." Bhupender Virk (Pleasanton, CA)

"Rain or shine, walk at least 10,000 steps daily. You can break it down into small chunks, park far, walk for errands within one mile, walk and talk when possible. Limit couch time to a minimum (minutes not hours)." Shakeel Masood (SF Bay Area)

"Everything starts with the self. Your relationships, your work, your communication stems from self-mastery. By that, I mean self-control and discipline, and maintaining a strong self-image." Kaila J. Lim (NY)?

"Learn the limit of what is enough and then let the rest go." George Menyhert (Loveland, OH)

"Never be afraid of change and experience new things as much as you can." Leila M'haidrat (Marrakesh-Safi, Morocco)

"Be Adventurous'. This applies whether it's business or employment or just recreational. For example, a really tough hike with lots of exposure whilst climbing up the rocks. It's easy to be afraid and say no because you're scared. It's better to be Adventurous and conquer your fears. Live like a Lion. This is even more important in business." Tariq Riaz (Brisbane, Australia)

"Speak up, even if you think someone else will end up saying what you have to say. No one will know how to assign value to you if you don't "show up." Mari Kuraishi (Jacksonville, FL)

"When you live with deliberate purpose the universe will test you to see how committed to that purpose you are. Stay true to your purpose and you will be amazed and grateful at what the universe helps you accomplish." Paul Jones (Lehi, UT)

"Always have faith in God as whatever happens to oneself whether it be a calamity or good deeds there will always be something that He is testing us to make us a better human being. Be persevering and patient and always be thankful with what God has bestowed upon us." Abdul-Halim Manaf (Selangor, Malaysia)??

"To take it easy on myself, don't stress and enjoy the journey with all the details, the ups and downs" Najat El habti (Agadir, Morocco)

"We may have plans but God has always have a better plan for us." Omar Mohamed (Mechanicsburg, PA)

"Sometimes life imposes things on us that we can’t control. If we have passion and are positive we can move forward to find a way that gives us opportunities to build our own lives and those around us, and positive thoughts can inspire us to go on." Razia Sultana (Dhaka, Bangladesh)

"Be responsible for walking your own path. Appreciate and be grateful for people's help. Be humble and listen to advice because we don't know everything. But take the responsibility. It is your path." Bruno Souza (S?o Paulo, Brazil)

"Embrace and always keep in touch with the good people that you meet in life. The not-so-good will always outweigh the good but embracing the good people around you will always benefit you and your family." Mohammed Rafiq (Edinburgh, Scotland)

"My advice would be work hard and it will pay off at some point in your life." Selma Rizvic (Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina)

"A life advice to a younger myself would be taking more risks. As you get older is natural to avoid risks so the younger you are and failing -if that occurs- it is easier to recover. Another would be being trying to enjoy more parents. I lost my dad when I was 22, and I’m sure that when you are young you don’t spend time with parents thinking on memories." Gustavo Gonzalez Figueroa (Argentina)

Knowing what I know now - I would say “stay true to your core values and dreams, how you approach the obstacles that show up along the way is all preparation for stepping into your greatness”. Salma Wadee (Johannesburg, South Africa)

"Work hard, but don't forget to share your work experience with others, talk openly about the things that excite you! This will help you attract fellow professionals with similar interests, and open up opportunities you never thought of." Ioannis Kolaxis (Athens, Greece)

"Trust yourself! You can do it! That’s my advice and 'Good enough is good enough, you do not always have to be perfect.'" Heli Helskyaho (Helsinki, Finland)

"My lífe advice would be Do not wait opportunities come to you to get your goals. Go, look for the opportunities and catch them." Rita Nunez (Buenos Aires)

"God created us only for the purpose of worshiping Him.?Your relationship with Him is the most important one. Oftentimes we ignore the relationship with our true self, which can lead to an unfulfilling relationship with “others”. That is why the journey to finding ourselves is very important in my opinion." Dian Alyan (SF Bay Area)

"One advice I would give to people who start their career is to , work on 3c's of life. Choice, chance, change 1) Make the right choice, 2) Take chances when needed, 3) Be ready to get adaptable for change." Chitra HL (Bengaluru, India)

"To take it easy on myself, don't stress and enjoy the journey with all the details, the ups, and downs." Najat (Agadir, Morocco)

"Don’t wait to travel and visit places you've wanted to see and experience, seize the day!" Dani Weinstein (Granite Bay, CA)

"Have gratitude. Life has its ups and downs, but for every moment we have on this planet, with our loved ones is priceless. We cannot live any moment twice, so make the best of your time, live it to the fullest and make it count." Diana Amoni (El Dorado Hills, CA)

"I would say the best advice someone gave to me when I was about to finish high school: “think now what would you like to be in 5 years, what would you wish to be doing for work in 5 years, and then how do you see yourself in 10 years”, once you can visualize that, then you start step by step to try to achieve that goal." Roy Salazar (San Jose, Costa Rica)

"I would say to keep a North in your life so you can move forward. But don't make this North an unmovable objective or the epitome of life itself. The goal and beauty of life is actually the way or the path you take in order to reach this North you have set for yourself. So enjoy the happy moments and learn from the bad ones. We also travel parallel paths with others so feel happy and congratulate other people's triumphs and support them in moments of suffering and be as humble as you can. Eventually, others will help you triumph and help you get up when you fall down. Although your path is yours and yours alone, the company and presence of others next to you will make it easier and much more worth following it." Santiago Vega (Bogota, Columbia)

"I have learned and still need to practice that family, friends, and myself come first and then work." Somayeh Nikooei (SF Bay Area)

"Live every day with complete trust that whatever happens, easy or difficult, is good for you and practice unconditional gratitude." Fred Amir (SF Bay Area)

"Value every opportunity that comes your way. It may only come once so seize the opportunity and benefit by doing it without any delay." Mufti Nawaz Khan (SF Bay Area)

"Hard work, ambition, self-confidence and faith despite growing up in one of the poorest countries in the world are good qualities to have as someone is always watching and one day you’ll wake up finding yourself working for the President and two Vice Presidents of the United States. Alhamdullilah" and "Never give up on your dream or passion no matter the many turns, distractions, setbacks or lack of support or belief from others that you may encounter. Put in the work to achieve it and Inshallah you will. The road may not be easy but it’ll be worth traveling." Saibatu Mansaray Freetown, Sierra Leone)

"Quietly help, give and support especially with money to people around you and never, ever bring it up with people you helped and or mention it with anyone, not even your family. Because God is watching and has already recorded what you did." Dr. Mohammed Nadeem (SF Bay Area)

"Have faith in the future, if you fight to be better and prepare yourself diligently, then someday your efforts and dreams will materialize. One just needs some things resiliency, faith, and preparation. Also if you don't like something in your life, work hard on that and you'll see the difference. I have given these two pieces of advice to the person in the mirror." Byron Motta (Guadalajara, Mexico)

"Do something meaningful each day, think good thoughts for others, keep company with good people, eat nourishing food, exercise every day, sleep at least seven hours, be kind to others, keep an open mind, ignore the haters, don’t compromise your values, take more risks, show your love to people who care about you, decide what’s important to you in life." Nasir Moinuddin (SF Bay Area)

"Have ZERO expectations from others and God willing you will live a happy and content life." Naeem Raza?(SF Bay Area)

"A small action that's regular can have an enormous effect over a long period of time.?Each step may be small but no Mountain is too high if you just keep going." Mujtaba Ghouse (SF Bay Area)

"Life is short to worry about stupid things and we have to live in proper way (study, think, love, have fun, create, help, grow, teach, have family and children, appreciate your parents, be a law-abiding person (I mean religion, constitution, society rules), make mistakes and learn, stay humble." Rustam Khodjaev (Dushanbe, Tajikistan)

"To let go of all fears and honor the gift of life." Banafsheh Sheikholeslami (SF Bay Area)

"Don’t be afraid to ask/push for what you need/want. Everything works out, eventually. Focus on the now, because the past is over and you have no way of knowing the future." Jen Nicholson (SF Bay Area)

"Learn to be humble. Why? No one knows everything and if you need to help others you should be humble and learn from everyone because success comes from helping others." Ntwali Ngabire Fiston (Kigali City, Rwanda)

"We may have plans but God has always has a better plan for us." Omar Mohamed (Mechanicsburg, PA)

"Hmm advice I would give my younger self.. to trust my intuition, always." Jenniel Simbulan (SF Bay Area)

"Treat people the way you want to be treated. I've heard so many times that you should NOT do to others what you wouldn't like that others do to you. But that is so simple to be done, even a stone, a tree, a chair can do it. I mean that, because there is no action, in that case, you simply retract yourself on doing something; but the other way around is to make something for the others, the way you would like others to do with you. That requires an action, that requires courage, that requires to have the will of doing so. When you get used to doing that, then even the tough situations are going to happen differently for you. You will learn how making good things to others, will fill you with joy. Your days will have less stress; your discussions are going to be shorter; your work will be lighter.I strongly recommend you to put in action and see the results." Rolando Carrasco (Mexico City, Mexico)

"Don’t dwell on past errors.?Learn from them and move on." Athar Siddiqui (SF Bay Area)

"Don't take things too seriously. Life is far bigger than the small worldviews we get ourselves into." Brenton Stockwell (Chico, CA)

"Spend as much time with family, and take them to different countries and places so they can appreciate the grandeur of God and see how different and yet how similar the people are across this great world." Razi Mohiuddin (SF Bay Area)

"Right now I am set on learning to say no, which I've always had trouble with because I guess I did not learn that it was ok to say it. say no without feeling remorse, without having to explain yourself. put yourself first and then the others. don't overshare, don't trust anyone. I suppose some of these have their roots in the early years but we were not the type of people that were taught to care about ourselves, it's like this did not exist." Ana-Maria Dumitra (Bucharest, Romania)

"I realized that truth makes my life better and easier. Can't say it has been like that all my life but is something I started to apply many years ago and is something I recommend. Truth frees you, right?" Alexis Lopez (Columbia)

"My advice is do not miss your Salat (prayers)." Jitu Choudhary (SF Bay Area)

"For many men -- myself definitely included -- a big part of our "community" is the people we work with. We spend so much time with these folks and then when we step out of the work-life... the community suddenly shrinks, we need to focus on building new communities." Scott Clawson (SF Bay Area)

"The life wisdom I am realizing is the impermanence of everything. As the Quran says, permanence is God’s only. Impermanence puts everything in perspective." Zaydoon Jawadi (SF Bay Area)

"Humanity is my canvas and I draw my paintings with a brush of LOVE for whoever comes across my way and beyond." Zulki Khan (SF Bay Area)

"Always have a dream and set goals to achieve it." Khalid Raza?(SF Bay Area)

?"Work Hard Play Hard."?Feras Alhlou (SF Bay Area)

"I would share that the key is to believe that God wants you to succeed." Zahra Aljabri (L.A., CA)

"Never let money be the thing that prevents you from doing something extraordinary." Dr. James Gardner (L.A., CA)

"I believe things happen for a reason (maybe my way of making sense of things that don't).?My kids just roll their eyes though when I say that:)" Annie Hayflick (Portland, OR)

"Stop letting the fear of being different or “weird” separate you from the things you love. Those are gifts that make you unique and wonderful and we’re given to you specifically to share with those around you. Embrace it, and don’t let anyone tear you down or tell you otherwise. Nothing/no one is worth sacrificing your happiness for." Breanna Pereira (SF Bay Area)

"Be you” 100% each and every day." Stella Ikhnana (Chicago, IL)

"Helping others to the best of your ability under Islamic guidelines." Jalil Shaikh (SF Bay Area)

"Invest while you are young, instead of buying stuff you don’t really need." Nicole Mossinger (SF Bay Area)

"Prioritize your peace over everyone and everything." Faris Ibrahim (Washington DC)

"Communication is key:) always make sure that you have healthy and open communication with people in your life, better ask something twice or follow up to make sure everyone is on the same page and happy." Alina Yurenko (Ukraine)

"Don’t procrastinate, take risks, and jump in." Zeeshan Mokarim?(SF Bay Area)

"You should never underestimate yourself, look at the successful folks you see around you, they aren’t smarter than you, in fact, most of them aren’t very good at what they do but they make it appear so. You can achieve almost anything, even if you don’t believe it, just jump into it and study, and eventually, you will see how good you are and confidence and opportunities will follow." Hassan Ajan (Denmark)

"My advice to my younger self & all future youth is:

“Islam is the path to happiness and success in this world and the hereafter and the more we learn and live these beautiful teachings, the more we will experience happiness and success”. Motie Omari (SF Bay Area)

"I think that we always have to know that what we are doing is part of God's bigger plan - so we may not know at the time what the meaning is but we always just have to keep our eye on the bigger purpose. My dad has a great quote that I always borrow " As you go through life brother, whatever be your goal - keep your eye on the doughnut and not upon the hole" - it always makes me realize that there is a greater purpose ;) My job has its ups and downs and sometimes I think it is too much for me - but I will keep trying to learn and do until I figure it out - because people are depending on me ;)" Diana Gray (Carmel, IN)

"One piece of advice that I would share with share myself and share with others that are potentially starting off is not to allow your own limiting beliefs to prevent you from becoming the success that you're meant to be.?Because I do believe that we are all meant to succeed. We're all put here for a reason and to succeed in that reason. And sometimes, not only our limiting beliefs, but the limiting beliefs of others can influence us and affect us and that can stop us from bringing success into our life." Orly Wahba (NY, NY)

"Say yes more often (meaning participating more with others rather than allowing my introverted self to run the show the majority of the time), look for the enjoyment/love/learning in every situation (meaning staying open, loving, and positive), and remember to appreciate the many blessings we have been gifted with in this life (meaning expressing my gratitude in a tangible way)." Lynn Wenzel (Seattle, WA)

Don't let your friends influence your decisions or actions, do what your heart tells you with some thought, protect yourself and educate yourself as education is key to success. Never let anyone tell you that you can't because no matter what if you really want it with the right research, study, passion, enthusiasm, and courage you can achieve whatever you want. Remember if someone has your true intentions in mind they will never discourage you to achieve more and if they have bad intentions they will give you an excuse not to progress. Most of all trust in yourself and be wiery of the intentions of others no matter how close you think they are. But keep close to those who encourage you to achieve more as they are your real family. Don't discriminate against someone who is different and put yourself in their position - kindness only attracts kindness and you will make a world of difference helping those who are discriminated against. Show kindness in the face of aggression as kindness has the power to transform conflict. Show appreciation, and trust most of the people who brought you up in this world and who love you most (your parents). Jamila Abbasi (Jerusalem)

"Life is about relationships. Our relationships with God, family, friends, and those we come into contact with. Keep those in check." Javed Mohammed (SF Bay Area)