I've been reading Cari French's books for years. Her novels are my go-to when I want to escape into a world of drama and intrigue, but what I didn't realize is that she's also teaching me how to live a good life.
Whether it's through the characters in her books or through her own personal experiences, Cari French has a way of making me feel like we're friends—and best friends at that! So here are some life lessons I've learned from this incredible writer:
Fearless
Fear is a natural human emotion, but it can also be an obstacle for achieving your goals and dreams. Cari French writes: “Fear keeps you from moving forward, or it keeps you from taking the first step…but fear only exists if we let it exist.”
Fear can be used as a motivator to achieve your goals; however, when you allow yourself to dwell in negative thoughts about what might happen rather than focusing on all of the possibilities that could arise, fear will begin to weigh down on your shoulders until they are too heavy to carry any longer (or at least until I'm able to finish this sentence).
Fear is not something that should be ignored or pushed aside; however, it should not define who you are either. The key is learning how to harness its power while avoiding letting it guide every decision that comes along with life's journey even when those decisions involve going outside of one's comfort zone!
Don't take yourself too seriously.
I'm going to let you in on a little secret: Cari French is not perfect. She's made mistakes like we all do, and she admits this freely.
But it's not just her honesty about her flaws that I love; it's also the way she embraces them as part of who she is and doesn't apologize for them or hide from them at all.
See, our mistakes are what make us human—they're how we learn and grow, both individually and as a society as a whole. And by being open about hers (and ours), Cari French reminds us that perfection isn't necessary—in fact, it might even be counterproductive!
Embrace your uniqueness.
You have a lot to offer the world, and you don't need to be afraid to stand out. Your uniqueness is what makes you special and sets you apart from everyone else.
It's okay not to try being like someone else; in fact, it's better than okay! You shouldn't try to be like your heroes or people who are admired by others just because they seem like great role models or people with a lot of cool qualities that you wish were yours too.
Instead of trying so hard, embrace yourself for who you are now and trust me, when I say "now," I'm talking about today and this moment in time as well as your whole life up until now... no matter how long ago it was.
Love yourself!
The most important lesson I learned from Cari French (and one that I struggle with every day) is to love yourself. As a child and teenager, I was never good enough for my parents. Even when I tried to please them and make them happy, it was never enough. They always found something wrong with me or what I did.
As an adult, it's easy to get caught up in the same pattern of behavior that your parents showed you as a kid—especially if those are the only role models you have for relationships: If someone doesn't like me or my work/activities/etc., then there must be something wrong with me! Or even worse: if someone likes my work/activities/etc., then they must be blind! But this kind of mindset doesn't help anyone—not even yourself!
The key is learning how to love yourself unconditionally—even when you don't deserve it (which is most likely 99% of the time). This means no matter how many mistakes you make along the way, loving yourself will allow room for growth and change while not holding yourself back from trying new things because they might fail at first glance; which brings us right back around again…
Always say yes!
One of the first lessons I learned from Cari French was to say yes. Always say yes! You never know what will happen, and it's better to be open than closed off. You can always say no later, but you can't say yes later.
You might meet someone new or learn something new or have fun in ways that you would never have known if you'd said no at first. In fact, one of my favorite memories is being asked out by a guy who had approached me at the bar after he saw me dancing with another girl; she thought that we made a great couple and convinced him to ask me out! We've been married for seven years now!
Family is everything.
Family is everything. Family is the reason we are here on this earth, and it's important to remember that family is always there for you in your time of need.
Don't waste time being bored.
If you’re bored, don’t waste time being bored. Make the choice to do something instead of sitting around and doing nothing.
Boredom has a way of sneaking up on us when we least expect it, so it’s important to always be prepared with a plan B.
You never know when your plans will get foiled because of an unexpected event or location change or even just because life happens. The more options you have for ways to occupy yourself, the better off you are going to be when boredom strikes unexpectedly (and inevitably).
Be proud of your work.
The most important lesson I learned from Cari French was to be proud of my work and not afraid to show it. I used to be a perfectionist, and wouldn't let anyone see anything unless I was sure it was perfect.
But Cari teaches that this is just another way of hiding from the world and being scared of criticism, so she encouraged me to take risks in my writing and show people what I had written early on, even if it wasn't perfect yet.
That helped me learn a lot about how others reacted when they saw my work early on in the process, which helped me improve my writing over time as well.
There's also no shame in asking for help! If you're stuck on something or trying something new with your work (like using Twitter), don't hesitate to ask someone else for advice or feedback they might see something that you didn't even realize could happen.
You might also discover something new together through collaboration; both sides can benefit from having their ideas challenged by other perspectives once in awhile!
Put yourself out there.
Life is all about taking risks, trying new things, and being willing to fail. You’ll never know what will happen if you don’t try. And if you do it right if you put yourself out there you might just find that the more life experiences and adventures you have, the happier you are!
Take care of the people around you.
In order to be a good person, you have to take care of the people around you. This is a really important lesson because it helps you find your place in the world and appreciate what you have.
You will also find that by taking care of others, they will take care of you when times get tough.
A lot of this comes through being a good friend, family member or employee - but it goes beyond that as well. We need to be kind to our neighbors, participate in community events and help those who need us most: children and seniors! All these things are part of being a good human being and contributing to society at large
Cari French knows how to live a good life
Cari French is a great writer, and she obviously knows how to live a good life. I think it's important for us all to learn from her example.
A good life is one filled with experiences, but also one in which you can find happiness in your daily routine. It's okay if you have an ordinary job or don't make a lot of money—or even if your job is nothing special as long as you're doing what makes you happy.
Conclusion
Cari French is a great example of how to live a good life. She's the kind of person who stands up for what she believes in, even if it means losing some friends along the way. She takes care of her family and her friends and is always looking out for others first before herself.
In my opinion, the biggest takeaway from Cari's story is that we should all be more like her! That doesn't mean we have to move across the world or quit our jobs though - just try taking care of yourself so you don't have regrets later down the road (because let's face it: regret sucks).
