“The gateways to wisdom and learning are always open, and more and more I am choosing to walk through them. Barriers, blocks, obstacles, and problems are personal teachers giving me the opportunity to move out of the past and into the Totality of Possibilities.”- Louise Hay 

One of my favorite teachers is the amazing and the tireless Louise Hay. I inadvertently picked up one of her books more than a decade before called You Can Heal Your Life and I found the writing and the pictures in the book to be very interesting, soothing and different from anything that I had read before.

Over the years, I have had the pleasure to read a lot more of Louise’s work and also listen to her affirmation tapes and meditations. My life has been a much richer and a more wonderful place because of her great work on the power of the human spirit.

Just to give you a small example of the loving, simple and no excuses life that Louise lives, she transformed her own life, wrote many books and recorded great affirmations. She conceived of and began Hay House Publishing in her sixties. Hay House is one of the world’s largest self development publishers in the world and has allowed millions to rediscover their inner light and radiance.

Here are fourteen life tips that I have learnt from the amazing Louise Hay over the years:

1. Love

“Love is the great miracle cure. Loving ourselves works miracles in our lives.”― Louise Hay

One of the great unifiers in Louise’s work is the deep and experiential understanding of self-love. I learnt from Louise that deeply loving and accepting yourself opens doors that you never thought possible. 

She also reminds us that we need to allow love in and be ready for it when it knocks on the door. I have written previously about the psychology of the deflection of praise and the thermostat or range that people place themselves within when it comes to love, joy and happiness. I realized that becoming aware of your own range of self-love and what you allow in is a great gift of self-awareness.

I was reminded by her work that the more we express and live from the perspective of love, the more love comes flooding in. 

“Be ready for love when it does come. Prepare the field and be ready to nourish love. Be loving, and you will be lovable. Be open and receptive to love.” – 21 days to master affirmations, Louise Hay

2. Self-Worth

“I am willing to release the need to be unworthy. I am worthy of the very best in life, and I now lovingly allow myself to accept it”― Louise Hay

Do you feel worthy of yourself and your work? Louise constantly reminds you that you are indeed worthy of the very best and only you can accept that truth for your life.

How do you build more self-worth? 

Louise says:

“Criticism breaks down the inner spirit. Praise builds it up. Praise yourself as much as you can. Tell yourself how well you are doing with every little thing.”

Instead of being critical and dwelling in self-blame and pity, a better option is being approving of yourself. When you find little aspects of your life and being that you approve, accept and feel great about, gradually your life transforms.

This does not mean that we do not reach for more excellence and accept the status quo. It just means that we are now free to pursue and live our life without excessive judgment and blame.

“You’ve been criticizing yourself for years and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens.”― Louise Hay 

3. Thoughts And Negativity

“Every thought we think is creating our future. ”― Louise Hay

Louise always lovingly tells you to be aware and conscious of your thoughts and reminds you that the quality of your thoughts is making your future.

I realized that if you think empowering, energizing and hopeful thoughts, you have a much better shot at crafting a life of your choosing. This is because when you dwell in negative thoughts, it quickly snowballs into worry, tension and ends up wasting vast amounts of precious time and energy.

What is a simple but highly effective technique to stop negative thoughts? Say “Out” to them! Read what Louise has to say about getting rid of negative thoughts:

“I say “Out” to every negative thought that comes to my mind. No person, place, or thing has any power over me, for I am the only thinker in my mind. I create my own reality and everyone in it.”― Louise Hay 

I love the above quote from Louise! This is a deceptively simple but effective methodology to rid yourself of negative thoughts. It reminds me of the teachings of the inspiring teacher Dr. Michael Bernard Beckwith who reminds you to say “not so” to your negative thoughts. 

“The thoughts we choose to think are the tools we use to paint the canvas of our lives.” ~Louise Hay

4. The Power Of The Present Moment

The point of power is always in the present moment.”― Louise Hay

This is a simple but powerful reminder that the magic and reality of life is happening in the current moment. Living in the past or the future on a continued basis is not beneficial.

Allow the past to be an example and the future to be a hopeful expectation but choose to be present and be appreciative of the “right here and the right now!” 

5. On Limitations And Lack

“In the infinity of life where I am, All is perfect, whole and complete, I no longer choose to believe in old limitations and lack, I now choose to begin to see myself as the Universe sees me — perfect, whole, and complete.” ― Louise Hay, You Can Heal Your Life

Louise places a lot of emphasis on the fact that we are whole and complete and have a choice to make. It is our choice to believe in lack and limitation or we can choose to see the light of our being and accept that at our core we are whole and complete.

The wonderful teacher and author Wayne Dyer is a great personal friend and business colleague of Louise also calls excuses and programs of lack as  “mind memes” and in a recording of a live training asks if you can bring him a pound of your worry. In other words, limitations and excuses to a certain degree are mental constructs.

Begin to see yourself as Louise suggests—perfect, whole and complete and you have a great tool to counter excuses, lack and limitation.

6. On Abundance And Prosperity

“It is essential that we stop worrying about money and stop resenting our bills.”  – Louise Hay

I fondly remember reading and listening Louise’s healing words about the nature of abundance. She always taught me that going to the ocean with a thimble or a spoon only gets you a thimble or spoonful of water. She asks if you are approaching the abundant seas of life with a spoon or with a bucket or do you have a constant connection to the abundance?

Too many people have a scarcity mentality and approach life with the belief that “there is not enough to go around.” Worrying about our situation and finances is only going to make matters worse.

If you want to embrace Louise’s philosophy, then choose abundance and give up resentment and worry to action and allowing. 

“I am willing to open up to the abundance and prosperity that is available everywhere.” ~Louise Hay

7. On Creativity

“Your unique creative talents and abilities are flowing through you and are being expressed in deeply satisfying ways. Your creativity is always in demand.”― Louise Hay

I love this quote from Louise! You are a completely unique creative being and your creativity is special! Many of us have forgotten this and have begun to believe that we are not creative and believe that creativity is the realm of the few and far between.

Remember that your unique blend of creativity has never been expressed before and regardless of what your beliefs and others are saying, your creativity is still in demand.

Have you expressed your unique creativity today?

8. The Magic Of Being Grateful

 “I have noticed that the Universe loves Gratitude. The more Grateful you are, the more goodies you get”― Louise Hay

Louise is always very big on the power of gratitude and she has compiled a book from the teachings and stories of many teachers called Gratitude-A way of life and I own a hard copy.

I always loved the emphasis that Louise places on being grateful and she was advocating gratitude long before it became a buzzword or came to be widely accepted as a great method of self-excellence. Of course, science and positive psychology have confirmed the power of gratitude in living a life that is meaningful and happy. 

Gratitude is like a muscle. As you choose to see little things to feel gratitude about in your life and in the lives of others, your levels of well being and feeling great increase.

What are you grateful about today? One of the blogs that I love reading is written by Michelle Dobbins and is called Daily Alchemy. Michelle has a wonderful practice of writing a Monday Rave or a list of things that are going right in her life and that she can express and feel gratitude and appreciation for. Check it out here. 

“The more grateful you are, the more you get to be grateful about. It’s that simple.” ~Louise Hay

9. On Getting Started

“Be willing to take the first step, no matter how small it is. Concentrate on the fact that you are willing to learn. Absolute miracles will happen.” — Louise Hay

The above quote on taking the first step resonates with me on so many levels! When you take the first step and go into the daring unknown, things just begin to happen and unfold.

Louise also reminds us that we need to have an open mind about learning and have what prominent researcher Carol Dweck’s research has shown for so long—an open mindset to learning.

I think that Louise’s formula for miracles is a timeless and potent one:

Take the first step or take action + Have a beginners mind or be willing to learn = Great Stuff!

10. The Power Of The Inner Light

“We are far more than our bodies and personalities. The inner spirit is always beautiful and lovable, no matter how our outer appearances may change.” — Louise Hay.

With the media and external world telling us how our bodies should look like and how “perfect” our lives should become, this is a great reminder of compassion. I recently read a post on the wonderful blog Tiny Buddha on this very topic. Read it here. The post resonated with me and I left a couple of comments for the author, Barrie Davenport of Live Bold and Bloom! 

If we follow Louise’s timeless advise, it is always a great idea to remind ourselves that we are far greater than the externals and that there is an inner spirit and light that shines through, no matter how things change. 

11. On Being Happy

“Make joy and happiness the center of your world.” ~Louise Hay  

Louise’s healing words are simple and effective and I attempt to make then my philosophy on a continual basis.

My affirmation based on Louise’s teachings:

“May I center myself in joy and the profound happiness that is available to access at any time.”

May you, dear readers also choose make happiness the center of your world amidst the chaos, the uncertainty and worries of modern living.

This sentiment by Louise is also reflected by His Holiness the 14^th Dalai Lama who has repeatedly mentioned in his heartful teachings that it is a universal need to feel and be happy. 

“Remember the things that gave you joy as a child. Incorporate them into your life now. Find a way to have fun with everything you do. Let yourself express the joy of living. Smile. Laugh. Rejoice, and the Universe rejoices with you!” ~Louise Hay

12. On Forgiveness

“When we forgive and let go, not only does a huge weight drop off your shoulders, but the doorway to your own self-love opens.” — Louise Hay. 

I agree with Louise that not being able to forgive and let go is like carrying a huge load on our shoulders.

When we choose to let go of some of the minor annoyances and come to peace with them, we do not dwell in them and thus opening the doors to more self-realization and happiness.

13. Change The Way You Look At Things

“To create a wonderful day sometimes takes just a slight change in the way you look at it. Be willing to let go of an old, negative way that you look at something, and look at it in a new, positive way.” ~Louise Hay 

When you make a small change of perspective and look at the old way with a feeling of empathy, understanding and novelty, it shifts. When I changed the stories that I was building around why I could not do something or how I was a victim or how someone else should understand better, I experienced a great sense of relief and rest.

Now I challenge myself to look with different perspectives and attempt not to get too fixated on “one right way.”

14. The Big Picture And We are All Doing The Best That We Can

“No matter where you are in life, no matter what you’ve contributed to creating, no matter what’s happening, you are always doing the best you can with the understanding and awareness and knowledge that you have. And when you know more, you will do differently, as I did” — Louise Hay, The Power is Within You 

Louise always reminds you that in the bigger picture, everything is working out for the higher good and your current life is the culmination of all the gathered awareness and knowledge. The idea that “you are doing the best can with what you have” is an enduring and an endearing concept and instantly brings relief and frees a person from excessive guilt and shame. 

When you free yourself from the clutches of doubt and shame, you allow yourself to be vulnerable to learn more and do differently with your life.

I have only the deepest gratitude for the teachings and the tireless work of the amazing teacher Louise Hay.

Now over to you! Please let me know in the comments below if this post resonated with you and what your personal experiences have been with the wonderful teachings of Louise Hay!

 Photo Credit: Aurelio Asiain via Compfight