Editor’s note: This article was first published in August 2014, shortly after Maya Angelou’s death in May 2014 at the age of 86.
Even though Maya Angelou never went to university, she managed to break every mould society had set, receiving 30 honorary degrees. Self-taught, she stood out in life as a poet, writer, singer, actress, philanthropist and teacher.
She was one of the most admired and beloved figures in the world. Her work, her talent and her efforts to make the world a better place did not go unnoticed, even though she always had to fight two stereotypes: being African American and being a woman.
She died at the age of 86, but she left us 8 life lessons that are truly inspiring.
1. If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.
Maya Angelou always preached that everyone has the control, the right and the ability to bring about changes in their life and become who they really want to be. There is always another way to do something or to change your circumstances. And if you can’t change your circumstances, you can change your attitude towards them.
2. Decide what you want to do with your life.
Think about what you want from life and think about what you can do. What achievable goals could you consider? Once you have thought it through, go out and do it. It may take you a while, and the road may be hard, but do it. If you believe in your dreams, passions and desires, and you are willing to set aside the “victim mentality”, you can make it happen.
3. Be remembered for the right reasons.
Make sure people always remember you for the right reasons, not the wrong ones. Maya Angelou always believed that there is nothing more beautiful for a person nearing the end of life’s journey than knowing that people remember them fondly. If, once you are gone, people remember you for your bad deeds, that is a wasted life.
4. We may meet many defeats, but we must never be defeated.
Persevere in the face of life’s failures and defeats. Never give up just because you have stumbled over an obstacle or someone has tripped you up several times. These things happen on life’s journey, and it is really our attitude towards setbacks that defines us as people.
“If we gave up at the first obstacle or stumble, we would never achieve anything of value in life. When you fall, pick yourself back up, dust yourself off and keep going.”
5. Be brave every day.
Courage is one of the most important skills. You have to be brave every day. You have to say NO to peer pressure and stand up for someone who is in a vulnerable position. Courage and bravery have to be cultivated and practised every day.
Our culture and the media teach us to be fearful, with crime statistics, political battles, stories of trouble in other countries, anguish, betrayal, divorce, failure…
“Courage is not the absence of fear, but facing fear bravely in spite of everything.”
6. Great achievements take time.
Things take time, and success and achievement take even longer. We are all climbing a mountain, and whatever path we choose to reach the top, the climb takes time.
We live in a society where every day we see 20-year-old boys and girls who use their bodies and pretty faces to get onto television shows and who seem to have it all without breaking a sweat. But that is not the way to do it, and it is not the life most people would like to have either.
Keep working on your dreams and goals: that business you want to start, that book you want to write, those clothes you want to design. And it does not matter whether you succeed or fail, because you already know what to do if everything falls apart: start again and build again. Maya did this very often.
7. A smart woman doesn’t want to be anyone’s enemy, but she refuses to be anyone’s victim.
You have to tell strength apart from brutality, and confidence from arrogance. Your energy and strength should not be focused on your enemies, because that is a waste of time, energy and resources.
“Don’t channel your strength into becoming someone who calls up enemies, but never let anyone walk all over you.”
As a woman, Maya Angelou always supported equality between men and women, but she was strongly opposed to extreme feminist movements, which she saw as attacks on men, attacks she considered unnecessary in the fight for equality.
8. Bitterness is like cancer: it feeds on its host. But anger is like fire: it burns everything.
Clinging to bitterness is one of the most toxic things a person can do. It is poison for your work and for your relationships.
And anger can destroy everything around you, including yourself. But that anger can be channelled into something productive, such as writing, singing or creating. You have to let go of anger or use it as a tool to achieve something positive.
“No matter what happens or how bad today may be, life goes on, and tomorrow will be a better day, because you can make it better.” – Maya Angelou
See also: 10 toxic behaviours that are ruining your life
Featured image: York College ISLGP, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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