Not Giving Up
by Kip Davis

I can remember a period in my life when I was unemployed and money was running short. I needed a job very badly and it seemed as if no one was hiring.

A very good friend of mine approached me one day with an offer. "I'm going to have to let this job go and I was wondering if you would like to take it over?"

"That would be great," I replied.

I went to speak with the manager and he said he could use me, but never gave me a start date. Really needing the job, I made it a point to go and check in with him every day.

I knew he would eventually get tired of me and give me a starting period. Finally one day he said, "You can start Monday morning."

Come Monday morning, I showed up for work extra early. I was ready to do my best. When I went inside I was informed that I would be buffing the floors. My friend was there to show me how to operate the buffer.

"It's real easy," he said, running the machine very smoothly.He handed it over to me and said, "Here, you give it a try." I grabbed the handles with a "no problem" attitude and gave it some gas. To my surprise, the buffer whipped around in a big circle, running over my friend's brand new pair of boots, and sending him jumping up on a check-out counter.

Several times, I tried to run it again and failed. I really had to fight that thing to make it go.

"What am I going to do?" I thought to myself. "I finally found a job and I can't do it. Am I going to have to tell them I have to quit?"

After several rough days of buffing, I finally made up my mind that I was going to do this. For about a week, I struggled with the buffer, putting all my weight and strength into it.

Eventually, I learned the trick was not to struggle with it at all, just go with the flow of it, and by the second week, I was showing off and running it with one hand.

A few months later, I thought back and wondered what would have happened if I had given up that first week. I certainly would not have had the newfound confidence or a paycheck.

Sometime after that experience, I started a new job that required the use of a buffer. I even had to train others to use it, and I always got a kick out of seeing them run it for the first time. I knew, though, if they stuck with it, they would do just fine; they just needed a little encouragement and a lot of practice.

Michael Jordan said, "Obstacles don't have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don't turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.

"LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS

Don't be dismayed by good-byes. A farewell is necessary before
you can meet again. And meeting again, after moments or
lifetimes, is certain for those who are friends.
--Richard Bach
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS

Avoid problems, and you'll never be the one who overcame them.
--Richard Bach
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION

Here is the test to find whether your mission on
Earth is finished: if you're alive, it isn't.
--Richard Bach

At 211 degrees...water is hot.
At 212 degrees...it boils.
And with boiling water, comes steam.
And steam can power a locomotive.
And, it's that one extra degree that...
Makes all the difference.

LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS

Every gift from a friend is a wish for your happiness.
--Richard Bach
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS

I don't want to do business with those who don't make
a profit, because they can't give the best service.
--Richard Bach
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION

I gave my life to become the person I am right now. Was it worth it?
--Richard Bach

The human race has only one really effective weapon, and that is laughter. The moment it arises, all your irritations and resentments slip away and the sunny spirit takes their place."

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LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS

If you love someone, set them free. If they come back
they're yours; if they don't they never were.
--Richard Bach
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS

If it's never our fault, we can't take responsibility for it. If we
can't take responsibility for it, we'll always be its victim.
--Richard Bach
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION

Listen to what you know instead of what you fear.
--Richard Bach

LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS

Love is the reason all of us are here now.
--Mr. Positive!
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS

Things turn out best for those who make
the best of the way things turn out.
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION

I never failed; I just discovered 1,000 ways in which the light bulb
would not work. And every attempt brought me closer to the knowledge
of how it would. --Thomas Edison