You know you have influence when people start noticing your absence more than the presence of others.

Absence and presence have very primal effects upon us. Too much presence suffocates; a degree of absence spurs our interest. We are marked by the continual desire to possess what we do not have—the object projected by our fantasies. Learn to create some mystery around you, to use strategic absence to make people desire your return, to want to possess you. Dangle in front of others what they are missing most in life, what they are forbidden to have, and they will go crazy with desire. The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. Overcome this weakness in yourself by embracing your circumstances, your fate.

Absence sharpens love, presence strengthens it.

Presence is more than just being there.

The best way to be missed when you're gone,
Is to stand for something when you're here

You matter , you're important . You're loved . And your presence in this earth makes a difference whether you see it or not.

"There is a presence in what is missing." That presence is our own.

showing up in person makes the biggest difference of all

There is a presence in what is missing.” That presence is our own.

He was the sort of man the essence of whose presence is absence.

His absence is so big it's like he's there.

I always feel how necessary you are to me. But when you are absent, I become still more sensible of it and look around in vain for that satisfaction which you alone can bestow.

When you love someone, the best thing you can offer is your presence. How can you love if you are not there?

In the absence of continual external reinforcement, we must be our own monitor, and quality of presence is often the best gauge. We cannot expect to touch excellence if “going through the motions” is the norm of our lives. On the other hand, if deep, fluid presence becomes second nature, then life, art, and learning take on a richness that will continually surprise and delight. Those who excel are those who maximize each moment’s creative potential — for these masters of living, presence to the day-to-day learning process is akin to that purity of focus others dream of achieving in rare climactic moments when everything is on the line. The secret is that everything is always on the line. The more present we are at practice, the more present we will be in competition, in the boardroom, at the exam, the operating table, the big stage. If we have any hope of attaining excellence, let alone of showing what we’ve got under pressure, we have to be prepared by a lifestyle of reinforcement. Presence must be like breathing.