The Two Kinds of Hope—and Why Only One Sets You Free

For much of life, we’re taught to anchor our hope in what happens outside of us.

We hope to get the job.

We hope to be loved the way we need.

We hope the world changes. We hope that once we achieve the dream, the pain will stop.

This kind of hope—external hope—isn’t inherently bad.

In fact, it can be a powerful force.

It gives us momentum, fuels ambition, and helps us move forward when things feel stuck.

But there’s a cost.

When all our hope is external, we become tethered to forces we can’t control.

We live in the future.

We live in conditions.

And eventually, we get tired.

Because even when the world gives us what we wanted… it’s often still not enough.

External Hope

Definition:

Hope that depends on things outside yourself changing, arriving, or being achieved.

Examples:

"I hope I get the job."

"I hope someone loves me the way I need."

"I hope the world gets better."

"I hope my pain ends when I accomplish this dream."

Nature:

Fragile: It’s tied to forces you can’t control.

Future-based: It’s always over there—in some next moment.

Conditional: It says, “I can feel peace when ___ happens.”

Exhausting: You have to keep chasing, striving, waiting.

The Good:

External hope can motivate, energize, and awaken possibility.

But when it becomes your only hope, it sets you up for despair—

because the world often doesn’t deliver.

Or it delivers… and it’s still not enough.

Internal Hope

There’s another kind of hope.

One that doesn’t depend on what happens next.

One that isn’t at the mercy of outcomes.

This is internal hope.

Definition:

Hope that lives inside you, regardless of what the outside world does.

Examples:

"I hope that I can take one deeply honest breath today."

"I hope I can be kind to myself today."

"I hope I can notice something beautiful today."

"I hope I can bear witness to my life today even if no one else does."

Nature:

Resilient: It’s rooted in your being, not your circumstances.

Present-based: It’s about this moment, not some far-off day.

Unconditional: It says, “I will live with dignity even when things are broken.”

Strengthening: Because it grows your real self, not your illusions.

The Good:

Internal hope doesn’t mean giving up on dreams.

It means your soul is no longer held hostage by whether they happen or not.

It’s quieter. Deeper. More enduring.

It doesn’t shout.

It breathes.

This Is the Shift

This is the real shift:

From hoping the world will save us—

to realizing that the deepest kind of hope comes from within us.

It’s the shift from waiting for proof, to choosing presence. From demanding guarantees, to living with integrity. From needing to “win,” to deciding to show up fully, whether or not we’re seen.

We can still have desires.

We can still pursue dreams.

But the soul is no longer chained to the outcome.

That is real freedom.

That is internal hope.

And in a world that changes by the minute—

it may be the most important thing we can learn to carry.