Holly Riordan

Don’t lie to yourself about how you have too much history with this person. Or about how you tried to leave before and lost your courage, so there’s no point in trying again. You can do this. You can get out of this situation.

You’re always the temporary one, the short-term one, the one who is only in love for a little while. 

I’ve taken steps back and taken steps forward. I’ve grown better in some way and have grown worse in others. I’ve matured. I’ve crumbled. I’ve grown. I’ve changed.

You need to make decisions as a team. You need to talk through your options to make sure each step you take together is a step forward.

You end up spending most of your time sleeping, even when you aren’t really tired, because you don’t know what to do with yourself otherwise.

You have to practice self-control. You have to hold yourself back from reaching out to them because you don’t want to put yourself through another round of heartache.

There is no right or wrong way to live your life. It’s all about what makes you happy or unhappy. 

There are people who are going to be angry with you — but that doesn’t mean you made the wrong decision. Don’t let them guilt trip you into changing your mind. Don’t let them make you feel bad about a decision you had to make for the sake of your own happiness. 

They never notice when you change something small about your appearance. It doesn’t matter whether you cut your hair, style it differently, or dye it a completely different color because they don’t pay enough attention to you to notice. 

Sometimes, the person you couldn’t imagine living life without is going to walk away without a glance back. Sometimes, you’re going to experience a hard switch from talking every single day to never speaking again. 

It’s not fair that I’m stuck in this position — wondering whether I should let you back into my life and risk getting hurt again, or whether I should and risk living with the guilt of keeping you at a distance.

If you’re worried you’re going to check your phone when you should be working, change your home screen to a quote about working hard.

If they feel like they haven’t really done anything wrong, then what’s stopping them from repeating the bad behavior in the future? If they think they’re living a perfectly fine, moral life, then they’re going to continue acting the way they’ve been acting. They won’t see a reason to change.

It sucks when people assume you’re too strong and independent to get hurt by a casual hookup — or when they simply don’t care whether you get hurt. 

It’s entirely possible to achieve success in your career and success in your relationship. You don’t have to choose one over the other — at least, not when you’re with the right person. 

You have to continue putting in the effort, even when it feels like it’s getting you nowhere.

Don’t hold yourself back because you feel like you’re already behind, like you already lost your chance at happiness, like there’s no hope for you.

You can’t lower your standards, just because you’re a little lonely.