In honor of Tony Hsieh, I’m sharing the wise words he texted my fiancé & I. His words I’ve shared seemed to have resonated with many so I’m putting them on here so you can copy and save as well, to live by the same. An extraordinarily rare human that I feel beyond grateful that I shared time & space with. I feel so fortunate I was able to tell him that I never took it for granted.

“Alignment Recipe: 5 steps towards owning and living an authentic life, where what you say, what you do, and what you think are all aligned.

1- Figure out what your truth is (spend time reflecting when not emotional to become more self-aware).

2- Unapologetically own your truth and speak your truth. Don’t lie and don’t directly or indirectly mislead. Instead, remember it’s okay to say “I’m not ready to talk about it yet, but I will let you know when I am.”

3- Authentically and explicitly communicate your needs and wants (don’t assume what may be obvious to you is obvious to the other person), and don’t change your truth because you are worried about what the other person might think or how they might react. Be willing to have the hard conversations of what your authentic wants and needs are, and be compassionate when you are having the hard conversations. Lean into and don’t procrastinate on having these conversations.

4- Honor your commitments, and modify prior commitments explicitly if they no longer serve you.

5- As you learn, grow, and evolve, repeat the above starting with step 1.”