good thots

Do it because you would, not because you think you should.

-- Alan Cohen
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The 100/0 Principle applies to those people in your life where the relationships are too important to react automatically or judgmentally. Each of us must determine the relationships to which this principle should apply. For most of us, it applies to work associates, customers, suppliers, family and friends.
• STEP 1 - Determine what you can do to make the relationship work...then do it. Demonstrate respect and kindness to the other person, whether he/she deserves it or not.
• STEP 2 - Do not expect anything in return. Zero, zip, nada.
• STEP 3 - Do not allow anything the other person says or does (no matter how annoying!) to affect you. In other words, don't take the bait.
• STEP 4 - Be persistent with your graciousness and kindness. Often we give up too soon, especially when others don't respond in kind. Remember to expect nothing in return.
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I complained to God when my foundation was shaking, only to discover that it was God who was shaking it.
-- Charles Weston
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"If you dream it, you can do it."
-Walt Disney

"The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary."
-Vince Lombardi

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."
-Mahatma Gandhi

"You can't build a reputation on what you're going to do."
-Henry Ford

"Far and away the best prize that life has to offer is the chance to work hard at work worth doing."
-Theodore Roosevelt

"The future starts today, not tomorrow."
-Pope John Paul II
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Sow a thought, reap a word. Sow a word, reap a deed. Sow a deed, reap a habit. Sow a habit, reap a character. Sow a character, reap a destiny.

-- Charles Reade
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Only those who see the invisible can do the impossible.

-- Author unknown

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The brick walls are not there to keep us out; the brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something."
~Randy Pausch
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------If you live your life the right way, the karma will take care of itself...your dreams will come to you."
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Golf is deceptively simple and endlessly complicated. It satisfies the soul and frustrates the intellect. It is at the same time rewarding and maddening - it is without a doubt the greatest game mankind has ever invented."
~Arnold Palmer
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Eternity does not start after you die; it begins when you really live.

-- Alan Cohen
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The greatest good you can do for another is not just share your riches, but reveal to them their own.

-- Benjamin Disraeli
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What makes you think you could have a future with someone when you don't have a present?

-- Alan Cohen

All of man's troubles stem from his inability to sit quietly in a room alone.

-- Pascal

When you embrace the human, you liberate the divine.

-- Alan Cohen

Success is the intentional, pre–mediated use of choice and decision. Unless you choose – with certainty – what it is you want, you accept table scraps by default!-

The DIFFERENCE between what one person and another achieves depends more on goal CHOICES than on ABILITIES.
The profound differences between successful people and others are the goals they choose to pursue. Individuals with similar talents, intelligence, and abilities will achieve different results because they select and pursue different goals.
Each decision affects WHAT YOU BECOME.

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"Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass...
it's about learning how to dance in the rain!"

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A good guru reminds you, "G.U.R.U." -- Gee, you are you.

-- Author unknown

To prefer is to be alive. To prefer without being attached is to be even more alive.

-- Alan Cohen

Perfection is not a condition to be attained. It is an attitude to be cultivated.

-- Alan Cohen

The wise man in the storm prays to God, not for safety from danger, but for deliverance from fear.

-- Emerson
Prayer is the attunement of your mind with the blessing that already exists.

-- Alan Cohen

Do not wait until all the conditions are perfect for you to begin. Beginning makes the conditions perfect.

-- Alan Cohen

It is not because life is difficult that we do not dare. Life is difficult because we do not dare.

-- Seneca



Improve Your Public Speaking
by Being Yourself
Those who find public speaking daunting — and who doesn't to some degree? — may think they need to become better actors to improve. Acting rarely helps, though. Don't try to be someone else or channel a smooth-talking alter ego. Focus on being exactly who you are. While some people may be natural public speakers, most have to work hard at it. Practice organizing your thoughts, modulating your voice, and connecting with your audience. This isn't a matter of rehearsing what you're going to say. It's practicing the skills that allow you to be flexible and capable every time you are up in the front of the room.

good thots

"No stream or gas drives anything until it is confined. No Niagara is ever turned into light and power until it is tunneled. No life ever grows great until it is focused, dedicated and disciplined."
~Harry E. Fosdick


The truth is simple. If it were complicated, everyone would understand it.

-- Source unknown

The more you recognize the immense good within you, the more you magnetize immense around you.

-- Alan Cohen


Walk to the edge.
Listen hard. Laugh. Play with abandon.
Practice wellness.
Continue to learn.
Choose with no regret.
Appreciate your friends.
Lead or follow a leader.
Do what you love.
Live as if this is all there is.


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Life Begins When You Do
by Mary Anne Radmacher
Nearly everyone postpones one grand thing or a collection of mighty hopes and dreams.

Between the quote marks of our lives are phrases like these: "When things slow down...when I finish my degree...when I get certified...as I acquire a deeper knowledge base...when I have kids...when the kids are grown...when I get well...when I marry...when I divorce...when I retire...when I get that promotion, that raise, that job, that house, that whatever the fill-in-the blank is for your specific postponing of life..."

Your Life Begins When You Do.

You may think you are postponing the longing of your soul until life aligns itself with your vision, until elements conspire to be more favorable...but as it happens, life just lolls along at the same remarkable consistent and disinterested cadence. Life is impartial. YOUR personal, subjective life (dreams, satisfactions, contentment, achievements, vision, fullness, passion, aspirations) begins when you begin.

From my teens into adulthood, I said, "I want to be an artist." One day I changed the sentence to, "I am an artist." My view changed. Life began. I looked behind me and saw that I had been accidentally living as an artist. I had been laying down a path that was only now visible to eyes that had begun to see. Beginning my life as an artist made my heart's longing and the small, tentative labors of my hands - visible and tangible. I began by opening the door and simply believing that I could live my dream. I began living that dream by seeing that I could.

Your purpose, that thing that among the many to-dos of your days, is what you must do. Embrace the truth of your purpose each minute of your precious life...for how very true it is that life begins when you do.

If you would dream it
BEGIN it.

If you have an idea
OPEN it.

If there is longing
ACKNOWLEDGE it.

If there is mission
COMMIT it.

If there is daring
DO it.

If there is love
SPEAK it.

If there is resource
USE it.

If there is abundance
SHARE it.

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You will never find time for anything. If you want time, you must make it.

-- Charles Buxton

The first power that meets us at the threshold of the soul's domain is the power of imagination.

-- Dr. Franz Hartmann


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An excerpt from
The Strangest Secret
by Earl Nightingale
George Bernard Shaw said, "People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want, and if they can't find them, make them."

Well, it's pretty apparent, isn't it? And every person who discovered this believed (for a while) that he was the first one to work it out. We become what we think about.

Now, it stands to reason that a person who is thinking about a concrete and worthwhile goal is going to reach it, because that's what he's thinking about. And we become what we think about.

Conversely, the person who has no goal, who doesn't know where he's going, and whose thoughts must therefore be thoughts of confusion, anxiety, fear and worry - his life becomes one of frustration, fear, anxiety and worry. And if he thinks about nothing...he becomes nothing.

How does it work? Why do we become what we think about? Well, I'll tell you how it works, as far as we know. To do this, I want to tell you about a situation that parallels the human mind.

Suppose a farmer has some land, and it's good, fertile land. The land gives the farmer a choice; he may plant in that land whatever he chooses. The land doesn't care. It's up to the farmer to make a decision.

We're comparing the human mind with the land because the mind, like the land, doesn't care what you plant in it. It will return what you plant, but it doesn't care what you plant.

Now, let's say that the farmer has two seeds in his hand - one is a seed of corn, the other is nightshade, a deadly poison. He digs two little holes in the earth and he plants both seeds - one corn, the other nightshade. He covers up the holes, waters and takes care of the land...and what will happen? Invariably, the land will return what was planted. As it's written in the Bible,

"As ye sow, so shall ye reap."

Remember, the land doesn't care. It will return poison in just as wonderful abundance as it will corn. So up come the plants - one corn, one poison. The human mind is far more fertile, far more incredible and mysterious than the land, but it works the same way. It doesn't care what we plant...success...or failure. A concrete, worthwhile goal...or confusion, misunderstanding, fear, anxiety, and so on. But what we plant it must return to us.

You see, the human mind is the last great, unexplored continent on earth. It contains riches beyond our wildest dreams. It will return anything we want to plant.

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n excerpt from
Oil for Your Lamp
by Lisa Hammond & BJ Gallagher
Virtually every woman we know has the same problem - she knows what's good for her, but she often doesn't do it. She knows she should eat less and exercise more, but still she doesn't make healthy choices. She knows she needs to spend her time and money more effectively, but good time and money management elude her. She finds herself always putting others first, while neglecting her own needs and wants. She doesn't get enough rest or sleep and her endless to-do list hangs overhead like the sword of Damocles. As our friend Brenda Knight laments frequently, "Why am I always riding in the back of my own bus?"

We don't do the things we know are good for us because we are so busy taking care of others that we neglect ourselves. The problem isn't lack of information - we have plenty of information about the importance of sleep, healthy foods, and exercise. The problem is how we prioritize our lives.

Psychologists tell us that some people are inner-directed and some are other-directed. That is, some people focus on their own internal guidance system for making choices about how to spend their time and energy. Their own self-interest ranks very high on their list of priorities. "What's best for me?" is a key guiding principle in determining where they focus their attention and how they make day-to-day decisions.

And some people are other-directed, which means that their primary focus is external, not internal. They are primarily concerned with relationships, especially people they care about. "How can I help others?" is a key question in how they spend their time and energy. Building and nurturing relationships with loved ones, family, friends, neighbors, and coworkers is the guiding principle in their lives.

Research indicates that, in general, men tend to be more inner-directed, while women tend to be more other-directed. There are exceptions, of course, but as a group, men are focused on themselves while women are focused on other people. Men like to build things while women like to build relationships.

This difference in psychological orientation goes a long way toward helping us understand why we women often do such a poor job of taking care of ourselves. We run around filling others' lamps with oil, but forget to fill our own lamps first. Then we wonder why we're often exhausted, frazzled, stressed-out, anxious and/or depressed!

Awareness is the first step toward solving a problem. So the first section of this book is devoted to helping us acknowledge the problem and understand the reasons for it. Chapter 1 looks at how girls are socialized, growing up to be women who put others first. Chapter 2 examines the values women have adopted in the past 50 years, beginning with the feminist movement - leading us to believe that we can have it all - all at once. And Chapter 3 explores the corresponding myth that we can DO it all.

But don't be discouraged. Help is on the way - in Section II, we'll get into solutions for the problem. We'll learn the value of doing nothing, how to play again, how to become more inner-directed, and most important, how to ask for help.

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Good things are not too good to be true. They are good enough to be true.

-- Alan Cohen

good thots

Aim for service and success will follow."

~Albert Schweitzer

"Great customer service has to come from the inside out. You cannot mandate it. You can't threaten, reward, or coerce people to care. You can only awaken the desire and then give them the permission and encouragement to make it come alive in their work."

~Barbara Glan

good thots

Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.

-- Goethe

The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak."

~Hans Hofmann

"Don't lower your expectations to meet your performance. Raise your level of performance to meet your expectations. Expect the best of yourself, and then do what is necessary to make it a reality."

~Ralph Marston
The less you believe you have to do, the more you achieve what you need to do.

-- Alan Cohen

Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking."

~Marcus Aurelius

"One of the most important keys to living a happy life is to clearly identify your core values. You must decide what matters most."

~Mac Anderso

The only man I know who behaves sensibly is my tailor; he takes my measurements anew each time he sees me. The rest go on with their old measurements and expect me to fit them.

-- George Bernard Shaw

The only question in life is whether or not you are going to answer a hearty 'Yes!' to your adventure."

~Joseph Campbell

"There are two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle."

~Albert Einstein

A man's life is what his thoughts make of it."

~Marcus Aurelius

"People with goals succeed because they know where they're going. It's that simple."

~Earl Nightingale

When I'm tempted to get alarmed," he confided, "I tell myself, 'Fred, you've got to wait to worry! Until you know differently, don't worry.' And I don't. Waiting to worry helps me develop the habit of not worrying and that helps me not be tempted to worry."

good thots

You will never be the person you can be if pressure, tension and discipline are taken out of your life."

~James G. Bilkey

"The ultimate goal of the world class thinker is to ascend to the highest level of awareness in the shortest amount of time. The more aware you become, the more successful, fulfilled and happy you will be."

~Steve Siebold

As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live.

-- Goethe

good thots

You never know when a moment and a few sincere words can have an impact on a life."

~Zig Ziglar

"Think of special ways you can appreciate others that will touch their lives in a personal way. These gifts are especially meaningful when they are given for no special reason except to show that you care about them, and you appreciate their presence in your life."

~Barbara Glanz

To love yourself right now, just as you are, is to give yourself heaven.

-- Alan Cohen

TWICE AS MUCH IN HALF THE TIME
First, grab a pencil and paper. Think back to the time you started school, all the way back to kindergarten. One of the first things you learned was how to identify shapes. Next you learned to draw them. On that sheet of paper I want you to do something very simple. Draw one triangle. That was simple, wasn't it? Now, draw as many triangles as you can in twenty seconds. Stop. Count how many you were able to draw. Write down that number. Do you think there might be another way to complete this activity and draw more in less time?

Start at one side of the paper and draw connected W's all the way across the page. Now put a line across the top and the bottom. See how many you can draw in twenty seconds using this method. Wow, that creates a lot of triangles! In only a few seconds you have learned to do this activity more efficiently and effectively in a much shorter amount of time. A seemingly insignificant change can make a significant difference in what can be accomplished in a given amount of time. In fact, you most likely made up to four or five times as many triangles the second time around.

What if you could do four or five times your sales volume by making a simple change? Or what if you could get four or five times as much done each day by making a simple change? Would that work for you?

If so, always be on the lookout for "new" ways to do "old" things, and keep your mind open to using alternative methods and plans of action. This book is filled with simple things that can make a profound difference. Are you ready to learn some new ways to manage your life and your time even better?

Then let's get started!

good thots

A can-do attitude makes the impossible, possible."

~Scott Beare

"Our dreams form our vision, our vision establishes our beliefs, and our beliefs determine the actions needed to accomplish our dreams. This chain of events allows us to take charge of our destiny."

~Scott Beare
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n excerpt from The Richest Man in Town
by V.J. Smith


I'm so glad I found you.

My friend, Aaron "Marty" Martinson, wrote those words in a note to me. On the pages that follow, you will discover that he didn't find me. I found him. And, thanks to Marty, I remembered a few things about life that I hadn't really thought about for a long time.

For years I had grand visions of writing a book about a leader who changed the course of history. I filled my personal library with biographies of presidents and statesmen. I wanted to understand what made their lives great - and what might be missing from mine.

In looking for answers I turned to books written by people who are successful in business and industry. For a while I searched for excellence, then I compared my habits to those of highly effective people. Like millions of people, I thought success equaled happiness.

The book I've written, though, is about a simple man who ran a cash register. He worked hard and was good to people. That, in turn, made him happy.

Can it be so simple? so free of complications? Marty thought so. He showed me how to be a better person, not one wealthier or more successful or more powerful.

He changed my life - forever.

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If you fall in love with potential, you learn to live with desperation.

-- Source unknown

Endings arrange themselves naturally when you are complete within yourself.

-- Alan Cohen

The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed."

~Carl Jung

"It is not what you give your friend, but what you are willing to give...that determines the quality of friendship."

~Mary Dixon
The secret of joy in work is contained in one word - excellence. To know how to do something well is to enjoy it."

~Pearl Buck

"The big secret in life is that there is no secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you are willing to work. It is called massive action. Action is the gas in the tank. Without you, the car will not run."

~Marcy Blochowiak

We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.

-- Plato

good thots

We want people to feel with us more than to act for us."

~George Eliot

"Many people have forgotten how to slow down, truly empathize and make each contact count as a genuine, sincere encounter. It's still all about people and their feelings."

~Tom Asacker

Every person in this life has something to teach me, and as soon as I accept that, I open myself to truly listening."

~Catherine Doucette

"From the moment we wake up each morning to the time we hit the pillow at night, we hear what people have to say, but are we really listening?"

~Mac Anderson

Benjamin Franklin pointed out that, "The U.S. Constitution doesn't guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up to it yourself."

A lot of us pin our happiness to external factors...if only we had more money...or a better house...or whatever your latest "want" is, but your happiness has been...and always will be... right inside yourself.
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An excerpt from The Road to Happiness
by Mac Anderson and BJ Gallagher

When I travel on business, I like to talk to the taxi drivers who take me from the airport to my hotel, or to a convention center, or to a restaurant. Taxi drivers are often immigrants with interesting personal histories and unusual cultural backgrounds. I ask them how long they've been in America, how they chose which city to live in, and what they like best about where they live. Of course, I also ask them for advice on good local restaurants and any special attractions they'd recommend to a visitor. I've had some great experiences on my travels, thanks to the advice of taxi drivers!

On one trip about ten years ago, I was making conversation with the taxi driver, asking him my usual questions about how he came to live where he lived. Then I asked him a hypothetical question: "If you could live anywhere in the world-and if money was no object-where would you live?"

Without hesitating even for a second, he replied, "I live in my heart. So it really doesn't matter where my body lives. If I am happy inside, then I live in paradise, no matter where my residence is."

I felt humbled and a little foolish for my question. Of course he was right-happiness is an inside job. He had reminded me of something I already knew, but had forgotten. If you can't find happiness inside yourself, you'll never find it in the outside world, no matter where you move. Wherever you go, there you are. You take yourself with you.

I am grateful for the wisdom of that taxi driver. And I'm grateful for all the wisdom others have shared with me about how to be happy.

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good thots

A Wealth of Love
by Mitch Axelrod

How do you measure your wealth?

I measure mine by how much love is in my life.

Love for myself, other people and all living things.
Love for my work and to serve others.
Love to choose my life, livelihood and living.
Love for my soul, role and goal.
Love for being alive.

I am blessed with a wealth of love.

I've stopped trying to be perfect.
I simply want to be myself.
I want to love myself and others unconditionally.

Love is the greatest wealth.
The more you give you get.
The more you give and get the richer you are.

Love is the greatest power.
Love requires no force.
It can stop conflict, topple regimes and end wars.

Love is the ultimate game.
When we all play our best the world will transform.

No reason to wait.
Valentine’s Day is a great day to play.

Call or write someone you love and tell them.

Don’t hold back.
Play the game of love full out.
Give 100%.

You'll be wealthier for it.

You’re a player.
You CAN change the game.

I’ll meet you on the field.

Happy Valentine's Day.

Character may be manifested in the great moments, but it is made in the small ones."

~Phillips Brooks

"Without character, even the most talented leader's contribution to his followers will be far short-reaching, shallower than its potential, and easily forgotten."

~John C. Maxwell


The more you live by external shoulds, the farther you drift from the power inherent in your own spirit.

-- Alan Cohen
As I see it, every day you do one of two things: build heath or produce disease in yourself."

~Adelle Davis

"Above all, you must maintain a positive mental attitude, looking for the good in every situation, and remain determined to be a completely positive person."

~Brian Tracy

Circumstances don't matter. Only state of being matters.

-- Bashar


Walk to the edge.
Listen hard. Laugh. Play with abandon.
Practice wellness.
Continue to learn.
Choose with no regret.
Appreciate your friends.
Lead or follow a leader.
Do what you love.
Live as if this is all there is.

good thots

Only in love are we free.

-- Alan Cohen

I have an everyday religion that works for me. Love yourself first and everything else falls into line.

-- Lucille Ball

All of life is a self-fulfilling prophecy, and you get to decide which prophecy your self will fulfill.

-- Alan Cohen

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit."

~Harry Truman

"Committing to excellence means sharing the risk required in generating maximum returns and pursuing victory together. Effective team members know that achieving peak performance requires positive attitudes and inspiring beliefs on everyone's part."

~John J. Murphy

Say Thank You, Even for Routine Things

There is far too little praise and appreciation in most work environments. Even those who are good about giving positive feedback can tend to reserve it for "above and beyond" moments. Yet, the routine work that people are expected to do every day often goes unnoticed and underappreciated. Genuine gratitude goes a long way in engaging people and binding them together. Once a week, say thank you to an employee. Don't only focus on the extra mile they may have gone, but on the ordinary things they do to make your team, unit, or company hum. Be specific: explain the behavior or task that you are grateful for and the positive impact it has on you and the company.

Imperfect action is better than perfect inaction."

~Harry Truman

"We all seek purpose in life. Most of us wonder how we can make a positive difference during our brief time on earth. But asking and doing are different things."

~Mac Anderson

THREE STEPS FOR ASKING A FAVOUR

Whether they are holding a door open or introducing you to a potential client, everyone offers favors at different times in life. But, asking someone for a big favor can be daunting. Next time you need someone's help, follow these three steps.
Set the stage. Be explicit about the nature of your request. The phrase, "I have a favor to ask," implies a contract in which you will someday try to return the favor.
Explain the reason. People like to know why they are being asked to do something. Saying "Can you cover that meeting for me?" is far less effective than "Can you cover that meeting for me because I have another meeting I can't miss?"
Give an out. No one feels good about being forced to do something. Offer an escape route by saying. "If you can't, I understand," or "I know you're busy."


The idea of your ideal self is more real than your idea of your current self.

-- Alan Cohen
holiest spot on earth is where an ancient hatred has become a present love.

-- A Course in Miracles


Some Quotes From Finding Joy
by Mac Anderson

The greatest risk in life is...never taking one.
-Unknown

By being yourself, you put something wonderful in the world that was not there before.
-Edwin Elliot

Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.
-Herman Cain

Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow where they lead.
-Louisa May Alcott

How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant with the weak...because in your life you will have been all of these.
-George Washington Carver

Every thought is a seed. If you plant crab apples, don't count on harvesting Golden Delicious.
-Bill Meyer

Selected quotes from Great Quotes from Great Leaders
Compiled by Peggy Anderson

"A man wrapped up in himself makes a very small bundle."
Benjamin Franklin
(1706 - 1790)

Imagine it. Try it. Prove it. Do it!"

~BJ Gallagher and Warren H. Schmidt

"The Land of Opportunity is an attitude. It is an openness to new ideas, a willingness to listen, an eagerness to learn, a desire to grow, and the flexibility to change."

~BJ Gallagher and Warren H. Schmidt

Often he who does too much, does too little."

~Italian Proverb

"Focus is not a 'business only' thing. Each person has only twenty-four hours per day, and how we spend those hours shows what's important in our lives. The question we must ask ourselves is...Are we focusing on what really matters?"
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~Mac Anderson
The Star Thrower
Inspired by the writing of Loren Eiseley

One day a man was walking along the beach when he noticed a figure in the distance. As he got closer, he realized the figure was that of a boy picking something up and gently throwing it into the ocean.

Approaching the boy, he asked, "What are you doing?"
The youth replied, "Throwing starfish into the ocean. The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in, they'll die."

"Son," the man said, don't you realize there are miles and miles of beach and thousands of starfish? You can't possibly make a difference!"

After listening politely, the boy bent down, picked up another starfish, and threw it into the surf.

Then, smiling at the man, he said, "I made a difference for that one."
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Pray for your desired experience rather than the thing that represents the experience.

-- Alan Cohen





"We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give."
Winston Churchill
(1874 - 1965)

"Whatever you do a thing, act as if all the world were watching."
Thomas Jefferson
(1743 - 1826)

"Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person."
Mother Teresa
(1910 - 1997)

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."
Martin Luther King, Jr.
(1929 - 1968)

"It's kind of fun to do the impossible."
Walt Disney
(1901 - 1966)

"Once you learn to quit, it becomes a habit."
Vince Lombardi
(1913 - 1970)

"Women are like teabags. We don't know our true strength until we are in hot water!"
Eleanor Roosevelt
(1882 - 1962)

"A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new."
Albert Einstein
(1879 - 1955)

"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."
Mahatma Gandhi

good thots

Wilderness is not a luxury but a necessity of the human spirit."

~Edward Abbey

"Within you there is stillness and sanctuary to which you can retreat at anytime and be yourself."

~Hermann Hesse

good thots

your attitude is a small thing that makes a big difference


It is comforting to think that we can love so powerfully that fate itself wheels and turns at the command of our souls.

-- Roger Ebert


The idea of appreciating life, even in hard times, is guaranteed to keep your attitude positive and your day bright.

good thots

When we choose not to focus on what is missing from our lives but are grateful for the abundance that's present....we experience heaven on earth."

Life's not about waiting for the storms to pass... it's about learning to dance in the rain."

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Learning to Dance in the Rain
by Mac Anderson and BJ Gallagher

The date was July 16, 2008. It was late in the afternoon and I was sitting in my hotel room in Louisville, Kentucky. I was scheduled to speak that evening for the Kentucky Association of School Administrators (KASA). I was a little "down in the dumps." I hadn't gotten to exercise lately because of my traveling schedule and recently I'd experienced some mild bouts of vertigo (that inner ear condition that can cause the room to start spinning.) You got it...speaking and "spinning" are not good partners!
My keynote presentation was scheduled for 7:00 PM, but I had been invited to show up at 6:00 to see a performance they said I'd enjoy. Little did I know that I was about to see something I would never forget.

They introduced the young musician. Welcome...Mr. Patrick Henry Hughes. He was rolled onto the stage in his wheelchair, and began to play the piano. His fingers danced across the keys as he made beautiful music.

He then began to sing as he played, and it was even more beautiful. For some reason, however, I knew that I was seeing something special. There was this aura about him that I really can't explain and the smile...his smile was magic!
About ten minutes into Patrick's performance, someone came on the stage and said..."I'd like to share a 7-minute video titled, The Patrick Henry Hughes story." And the lights went dim.

Patrick Henry Hughes was born with no eyes, and a tightening of the joints which left him crippled for life. However, as a child, he was fitted with artificial eyes and placed in a wheelchair. Before his first birthday, he discovered the piano. His mom said, "I could hit any note on the piano, and within one or two tries, he'd get it." By his second birthday, he was playing requests (You Are My Sunshine, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star). His father was ecstatic. "We might not play baseball, but we can play music together."
Today, Patrick is a junior at the University of Louisville. His father attends classes with him and he's made nearly all A's, with the exception of 3 B's He's also a part of the 214 member marching band. You read it right...the marching band! He's a blind, wheelchair-bound trumpet player; and he and his father do it together. They attend all the band practices and the half-time performance in front of thousands. His father rolls and rotates his son around the field to the cheers of Patrick's fans. In order to attend Patrick's classes and every band practice, his father works the graveyard shift at UPS. Patrick said..."My dad's my hero."
But even more than his unbelievable musical talent, it was Patrick's "attitude of gratitude" that touched my soul. On stage, between songs, he would talk to the audience about his life and about how blessed he was. He said, "God made me blind and unable to walk. BIG DEAL! He gave me the ability...the musical gifts I have...the great opportunity to meet new people."

When his performance was over, Patrick and his father were on the stage together. The crowd rose to their feet and cheered for over five minutes. It gave me giant goose bumps!

My life was ready to meet Patrick Henry Hughes. I needed a hero, and I found one for the ages. If I live to be a hundred, I'll never forget that night, that smile, that music, but most importantly, that wonderful "attitude of gratitude."
I returned to Chicago and shared Patrick's story with my wife, my friends, and our team at Simple Truths. About two weeks later, I received a letter from a friend. He said, "Mac, I don't know who said it, but I think you'll love this quote."

"Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass...
it's about learning how to dance in the rain!"

I thought...that's it! We all face adversity in our life. However, it's not the adversity, but how we react to it that will determine the joy and happiness in our life. During tough times, do we spend too much time feeling sorry for ourselves, or, can we, with gratitude...learn how to dance in the rain?

It almost sounds too simple to feel important, but one word...gratitude, can change your attitude, thus, your life, forever. Sarah Breathnack said it best...

"When we choose not to focus on what is missing from our lives but are grateful for the abundance that's present....we experience heaven on earth."

good thots

You can't depend on your judgment when your imagination is out of focus."

~Mark Twain

"Even those experiences that we deem calamitous can carry the seeds of a greater blessing. It is often in retrospect, however, that the benefit reveals itself. And whether or not it reveals itself and how quickly is does so, is dependent upon only one thing: our own individual perspective."

~Kate Nowak

Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."

~Margaret Mead

"Leading with a clear and compelling vision helps align team members with a sense of direction and focus. It gives the team something to aim at, something to make happen, something to manifest into positive results."

~John J. Murphy

Each one has to find its peace from within. And peace, to be real, must be unaffected by outside circumstances."

~Mahatma Gandhi

"Give yourself the time you need to find your dynamic balance and rhythm before your body decides for you. Remember, you want your life to be a marathon not a hundred-yard-dash, so pace yourself."

Peter Drucker, the legendary management consultant and author says this about teamwork:

"The leaders who work most effectively, it seems to me, never say "I." And that's not because they have trained themselves not to say "I." They don't think "I." They think "we;" they think "team." They understand their job to be to make the team function. They accept responsibility and don't sidestep it, but "we" gets the credit...This is what creates trust, what enables you to get the task done."
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an Excerpt From
Pulling Together
by John Murphy

At the center of every high performance team is a common purpose-a mission that rises above and beyond each of the individual team members. To be successful, the team's interests and needs come first. This requires "we-opic" vision (What's in it for we?), a challenging step up from the common "me-opic" mindset.

Effective team players understand that personal issues and personality differences are secondary to team demands. This does not mean abandoning who you are or giving up your individuality. On the contrary, it means sharing your unique strengths and differences to move the team forward. It is this "we-opic" focus and vision-this cooperation of collective capability-that empowers a team and generates synergy, the power of teamwork.

Cooperation means working together for mutual gain-sharing responsibility for success and failure and covering for one another on a moment's notice. It does not mean competing with one another at the team's expense, withholding important data or information to "one-up" your peers, or submitting to group think by going along, so as not to make waves. These are rule breakers that are direct contradictions to the team-first mindset.

High performance teams recognize that it takes a joint effort to synergize, generating power above and beyond the collected individuals. It is with this spirit of cooperation that effective teams learn to capitalize on individual strengths and offset individual weaknesses, using diversity as an advantage.

Effective teams also understand the importance of establishing cooperative systems, structures, metrics, incentives and rewards. We get what we inspect, not what we expect. Think about it. Do you have team job descriptions, team performance reviews and team reward systems? Do you recognize people by pitting them against standards of excellence, or one another? What are you doing to cultivate a team-first, cooperative environment in this competitive, "me-opic" world?

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Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are.

-- Chinese Proverb

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Ten Steps to True Happiness

A team of experts believe that they have found the essential ingredients to make a
person's life happier. Based on best knowledge and research, the team came up with
a 10-point plan for happiness listed below.

The 10 steps to happiness

1. Plant something and nurture it.
2. Count your blessings - at least five - at the end of each day.

3. Take time to talk - have an hour-long conversation with a loved one each week.

4. Phone a friend whom you have not spoken to for a while and arrange to meet up.

5. Give yourself a treat every day and take the time to really enjoy it.

6. Have a good laugh at least once a day.

7. Get physical - exercise for half an hour three times a week.

8. Smile at and/or say hello to a stranger at least once each day.

9. Cut your TV viewing by half.

10. Spread some kindness - do a good turn for someone every day.
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Life will bring you pain all by itself. Your responsibility is to create joy."

~Milton Erickson

"When it comes to life, the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude."

~G.K. Chesterton

Ease will take you to success faster and more efficiently than struggle.

-- Alan Cohen
The best way to discover what you believe is to hear what you say and then realize how you feel about it.

-- Source unknown

Acting as if your life is good is closer to the truth than acting as if it is not.

-- Alan Cohen

always arrive late at the office, but I make up for it by leaving early."

~Charles Lamb

"Every day I get up and look through the Forbes list of the richest people in America. If I'm not there, I go to work."

~Robert Orben

good thots

ife is either a daring adventure or nothing at all."

~Helen Keller

"Your life has the potential to be a wondrous journey, filled with exciting moments and astonishing experiences. It can be a thrilling ride if you are open to exploring all that is available to you. Adventure is the result of your willingness to live life with a spirit of enthusiasm."

~Chérie Carter-Scott

Give life even a small crack of faith, and the universe will rush to show you what you can have.

-- Alan Cohen

good thots

It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit."

~Harry S. Truman

"You can't live a perfect day without doing something for someone who will never be able to repay you."

~John Wooden

LOVE/RELATIONSHIPS:

A baby is born with a need to be loved - and never outgrows it.
--Frank Howard Clark.

LEADERSHIP/SUCCESS:

Defeat is not the worst of failures. Not to have tried
is the true failure. --George E. Woodberry

MOTIVATION/INSPIRATION:

Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of the overcoming of it.
--Helen Keller

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I wish you enough!"
By Bob Perks

I never really thought that I'd spend as much time in airports as I do. I don't know why. I always wanted to be famous and that would mean lots of travel. But I'm not famous, yet I do see more than my share of airports.

I love them and I hate them. I love them because of the people I get to watch. But they are also the same reason why I hate airports. It all comes down to "hello" and "goodbye." I must have mentioned this a few times while writing my stories for you.

I have great difficulties with saying goodbye. Even as I write this I am experiencing that pounding sensation in my heart. If I am watching such a scene in a movie I am affected so much that I need to sit up and take a few deep breaths.

So when faced with a challenge in my life I have been known to go to our local airport and watch people say goodbye. I figure nothing that is happening to me at the time could be as bad as having to say goodbye.

Watching people cling to each other, crying, and holding each other in that last embrace makes me appreciate what I have even more. Seeing them finally pull apart, extending their arms until the tips of their fingers are the last to let go, is an image that stays forefront in my mind throughout the day.

On one of my recent business trips, when I arrived at the counter to check in, the woman said, "How are you today?" I replied, "I am missing my wife already and I haven't even said goodbye."

She then looked at my ticket and began to ask, "How long will you...Oh, my God. You will only be gone three days!" We all laughed. My problem was I still had to say goodbye.

But I learn from goodbye moments, too.

Recently I overheard a father and daughter in their last moments together. They had announced her departure and standing near the security gate, they hugged and he said, "I love you. I wish you enough."

She in turn said, "Daddy, our life together has been more than enough. Your love is all I ever needed. I wish you enough, too, Daddy." They kissed and she left. He walked over toward the window where I was seated. Standing there I could see he wanted and needed to cry.

I tried not to intrude on his privacy, but he welcomed me in by asking, "Did you ever say goodbye to someone knowing it would be forever?"

"Yes, I have," I replied. Saying that brought back memories I had of expressing my love and appreciation for all my Dad had done for me. Recognizing that his days were limited, I took the time to tell him face to face how much he meant to me.

So I knew what this man experiencing.

"Forgive me for asking, but why is this a forever goodbye?" I asked.

"I am old and she lives much too far away. I have challenges ahead and the reality is, the next trip back would be for my funeral," he said.

"When you were saying goodbye I heard you say, "I wish you enough." May I ask what that means?" He began to smile.

"That's a wish that has been handed down from other generations. My parents used to say it to everyone."

He paused for a moment and looking up as if trying to remember it in detail, he smiled even more.

"When we said 'I wish you enough,' we were wanting the other person to have a life filled with just enough good things to sustain them," he continued and then turning toward me he shared the following as if he were reciting it from memory.

I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright.

I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more.

I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive.

I wish you enough pain so that the smallest joys in life appear much bigger.

I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.

I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.

I wish enough "Hello's" to get you through the final "Goodbye."

He then began to sob and walked away.

My friends, I wish you enough!

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An Excerpt from
Attitude is Everything
by Vicki Hitzges

I used to worry. A lot. The more I fretted, the more proficient I became at it. Anxiety begets anxiety. I even worried that I worried too much! Ulcers might develop. My health could fail. My finances could deplete to pay the hospital bills.

A comedian once said, "I tried to drown my worries with gin, but my worries are equipped with flotation devices." While not a drinker, I certainly could identify! My worries could swim, jump and pole vault!

To get some perspective, I visited a well known, Dallas businessman, Fred Smith. Fred mentored such luminaries as motivational whiz Zig Ziglar, business guru Ken Blanchard and leadership expert John Maxwell. Fred listened as I poured out my concerns and then said, "Vicki, you need to learn to wait to worry."

As the words sank in, I asked Fred if he ever spent time fretting. (I was quite certain he wouldn't admit it if he did. He was pretty full of testosterone-even at age 90.) To my surprise, he confessed that in years gone by he had been a top-notch worrier!

"I decided that I would wait to worry!" he explained. "I decided that I'd wait until I actually had a reason to worry-something that was happening, not just something that might happen-before I worried.

"When I'm tempted to get alarmed," he confided, "I tell myself, 'Fred, you've got to wait to worry! Until you know differently, don't worry.' And I don't. Waiting to worry helps me develop the habit of not worrying and that helps me not be tempted to worry."

Fred possessed a quick mind and a gift for gab. As such, he became a captivating public speaker. "I frequently ask audiences what they were worried about this time last year. I get a lot of laughs," he said, "because most people can't remember. Then I ask if they have a current worry - you see nods from everybody. Then I remind them that the average worrier is 92% inefficient - only 8% of what we worry about ever comes true."

Charles Spurgeon said it best. "Anxiety does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow, but only empties today of its strength."

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An Excerpt from
Leading With Passion
by John Murphy

Light a match in a dark room and watch as the light instantly overcomes the darkness. Observe the power and grace of that single, solitary flame dancing with life. Now light several candles or kindle a fire and experience the added warmth and comfort extending from that first, vulnerable flame through others. This is the heart and soul of leadership - the essence of inspiring others. It is about courageously casting off fear, doubt and limiting beliefs and giving people a sense of hope, optimism and accomplishment. It is about bringing light into a world of uncertainty and inspiring others to do the same. This is what we call passion, the fire within.

Passion is a heartfelt energy that flows through us, not from us. It fills our hearts when we allow it to and it inspires others when we share it. It is like sunlight flowing through a doorway that we have just opened. It was always there. It just needed to be accepted and embraced. Under the right conditions, this "flow" appears effortless, easy and graceful. It is doing what it is meant to do. It is reminding us that we are meant to be purposeful. We are meant to be positive. We are meant to be passionate. We feel this when we listen to and accept our calling in life. We feel it as inspiration when we open the door of resistance and let it in.

Inspiration springs forth when we allow ourselves to be "in-spirit," aligned with our true essence. Stop and think about it: When you feel truly passionate and inspired about someone or something, what frame of mind are you in? What are you willing to do? What kind of effort are you willing to put forth? How fearful are you? Chances are, you feel motivated to do whatever it takes, without fear or doubt, to turn your vision into reality. You grow in confidence. You believe you can do it. You are committed from the heart and soul.

The purpose of this book is to clarify and offer ten key factors for leading with passion and inspiring peak performance. These "essentials" serve to guide and remind leaders how they can "open the door" and facilitate flow. By practicing these essentials, you will tap the extraordinary potential in yourself and others and realize results you may never have dreamed possible. Look to any inspiring leader and you will see these key factors in action. Observe the best of the best and you will witness the power of passionate leadership. Make no mistake - leading with passion inspires world change. It is the only thing that ever really has.

Use this book - and these essentials - to:

Clarify purpose, context and meaning
Create a compelling vision to focus intention and attention
Gain commitment from the heart, not just agreement from the head
Set priorities and focus efforts on what matters most
Recognize and accept the power of grace
Foster more creativity and innovation
Demonstrate integrity and build trust
Lead by passionate example
Generate growth in yourself and others
Awaken the Spirit in work

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Values are not just words; values are what we live by. They're about the causes that we champion and the people we fight for."

~John Kerry

"Core values go beyond our behaviors and our wants. Without being intentional about our values, we live backwards. We often let our behaviors define our values. Values should define our behaviors."

~John G. Blumberg
Love is a frequency. Stay tuned.

-- Alan Cohen


First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do."

~Epictetus

"Good, solid, proven knowledge and experience inspire confidence and action. You must surround yourself with good people who possess solid experience."

~Gary Ryan Blair

When you remember your purpose, you have a beacon to illuminate your path, and all that you do derives meaning and power from your intention.

-- Alan Cohen


When I tune into my beautiful self, I get happiness. Everything in the universe belongs to me.

-- Dick Gregory

We confide in our strength, without boasting of it; we respect that of others, without fearing it."

~Thomas Jefferson

"Respect begins with a higher awareness of yourself, your teammates, your opponents, your coaches and your sport as you become the kind of player that everyone wants on their team. Respect is important in all aspects of life, and it is essential in sports."

~Dan Green
The best and most beautiful things in life cannot be seen or even touched...they must be felt with the heart."

~Helen Keller

"By being yourself, you put something wonderful in the world that was not there before."

~Edwin Elliot

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An Excerpt from
Oil for Your Lamp
by Lisa Hammond & BJ Gallagher

Virtually every woman we know has the same problem - she knows what's good for her, but she often doesn't do it. She knows she should eat less and exercise more, but still she doesn't make healthy choices. She knows she needs to spend her time and money more effectively, but good time and money management elude her. She finds herself always putting others first, while neglecting her own needs and wants. She doesn't get enough rest or sleep and her endless to-do list hangs overhead like the sword of Damocles. As our friend Brenda Knight laments frequently, "Why am I always riding in the back of my own bus?"

We don't do the things we know are good for us because we are so busy taking care of others that we neglect ourselves. The problem isn't lack of information - we have plenty of information about the importance of sleep, healthy foods, and exercise. The problem is how we prioritize our lives.

Psychologists tell us that some people are inner-directed and some are other-directed. That is, some people focus on their own internal guidance system for making choices about how to spend their time and energy. Their own self-interest ranks very high on their list of priorities. "What's best for me?" is a key guiding principle in determining where they focus their attention and how they make day-to-day decisions.

And some people are other-directed, which means that their primary focus is external, not internal. They are primarily concerned with relationships, especially people they care about. "How can I help others?" is a key question in how they spend their time and energy. Building and nurturing relationships with loved ones, family, friends, neighbors, and coworkers is the guiding principle in their lives.

Research indicates that, in general, men tend to be more inner-directed, while women tend to be more other-directed. There are exceptions, of course, but as a group, men are focused on themselves while women are focused on other people. Men like to build things while women like to build relationships.

This difference in psychological orientation goes a long way toward helping us understand why we women often do such a poor job of taking care of ourselves. We run around filling others' lamps with oil, but forget to fill our own lamps first. Then we wonder why we're often exhausted, frazzled, stressed-out, anxious and/or depressed!

Awareness is the first step toward solving a problem. So the first section of this book is devoted to helping us acknowledge the problem and understand the reasons for it. Chapter 1 looks at how girls are socialized, growing up to be women who put others first. Chapter 2 examines the values women have adopted in the past 50 years, beginning with the feminist movement - leading us to believe that we can have it all - all at once. And Chapter 3 explores the corresponding myth that we can DO it all.

But don't be discouraged. Help is on the way - in Section II, we'll get into solutions for the problem. We'll learn the value of doing nothing, how to play again, how to become more inner-directed, and most important, how to ask for help.

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The best way to prepare for life is to begin to live."

~Elbert Hubbard

"You may not be able to control the events that occur during the day, especially those events that are unexpected and challenging. But, you definitely have a choice whether you are going to allow these events to ruin your day, and how you are going to face these challenges."

~Barry Gottlieb

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An Excerpt from
The Road to Happiness
by Mac Anderson and BJ Gallagher

When I travel on business, I like to talk to the taxi drivers who take me from the airport to my hotel, or to a convention center, or to a restaurant. Taxi drivers are often immigrants with interesting personal histories and unusual cultural backgrounds. I ask them how long they've been in America, how they chose which city to live in, and what they like best about where they live. Of course, I also ask them for advice on good local restaurants and any special attractions they'd recommend to a visitor. I've had some great experiences on my travels, thanks to the advice of taxi drivers!

On one trip about ten years ago, I was making conversation with the taxi driver, asking him my usual questions about how he came to live where he lived. Then I asked him a hypothetical question: "If you could live anywhere in the world-and if money was no object-where would you live?"

Without hesitating even for a second, he replied, "I live in my heart. So it really doesn't matter where my body lives. If I am happy inside, then I live in paradise, no matter where my residence is."

I felt humbled and a little foolish for my question. Of course he was right-happiness is an inside job. He had reminded me of something I already knew, but had forgotten. If you can't find happiness inside yourself, you'll never find it in the outside world, no matter where you move. Wherever you go, there you are. You take yourself with you.

I am grateful for the wisdom of that taxi driver. And I'm grateful for all the wisdom others have shared with me about how to be happy.

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Try not to become a person of success, but rather try to become a person of value."

~Albert Einstein

"Never forget, organizational values start and end with you, the leader. Whether your example is good or bad, expect most employees to follow your lead."

~Mac Anderson
The doors we open and close each day decide the lives we live."

~Flora Whittemore

"Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work."

~Steve Jobs

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An Excerpt from
The Power of Discipline
By Brian Tracy

Why are some people more successful than others? Why do some people make more money, live happier lives and accomplish much more in the same number of years than the great majority?

I started out in life with few advantages. I did not graduate from high school. I worked at menial jobs. I had limited education, limited skills and a limited future.

And then I began asking, "Why are some people more successful than others?" This question changed my life.

Over the years, I have read thousands of books and articles on the subjects of success and achievement. It seems that the reasons for these accomplishments have been discussed and written about for more than two thousand years, in every conceivable way. One quality that most philosophers, teachers and experts agree on is the importance of self-discipline. As Al Tomsik summarized it years ago, "Success is tons of discipline."

Some years ago, I attended a conference in Washington. It was the lunch break and I was eating at a nearby food fair. The area was crowded and I sat down at the last open table by myself, even though it was a table for four.

A few minutes later, an older gentleman and a younger woman who was his assistant came along carrying trays of food, obviously looking for a place to sit.

With plenty of room at my table, I immediately arose and invited the older gentleman to join me. He was hesitant, but I insisted. Finally, thanking me as he sat down, we began to chat over lunch.

It turned out that his name was Kop Kopmeyer. As it happened, I immediately knew who he was. He was a legend in the field of success and achievement. Kop Kopmeyer had written four large books, each of which contained 250 success principles that he had derived from more than fifty years of research and study. I had read all four books from cover to cover, more than once.

After we had chatted for awhile, I asked him the question that many people in this situation would ask, "Of all the one thousand success principles that you have discovered, which do you think is the most important?"

He smiled at me with a twinkle in his eye, as if he had been asked this question many times, and replied, without hesitating, "The most important success principle of all was stated by Thomas Huxley many years ago. He said, 'Do what you should do, when you should do it, whether you feel like it or not.'"

He went on to say, "There are 999 other success principles that I have found in my reading and experience, but without self-discipline, none of them work."

Self-discipline is the key to personal greatness. It is the magic quality that opens all doors for you, and makes everything else possible. With self-discipline, the average person can rise as far and as fast as his talents and intelligence can take him. But without self-discipline, a person with every blessing of background, education and opportunity will seldom rise above mediocrity.

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In any situation, there is a next level of relaxation you can go to. Take a breath, go there, and you will see clearly what to do.

-- Author unknown

You are in integrity when the life you live is an authentic expression of who you are.

-- Alan Cohen
"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are."

~Theodore Roosevelt

"The most valuable tasks you can do each day are often the hardest and most complex. But the payoff and rewards for completing these tasks efficiently can be tremendous."

~Brian Tracy

f only you could love enough, you would be the happiest
and most powerful being in the universe."
~Emmet Fox

It's the little things that make the big things possible. Only close attention to the fine details of any operations makes the operation first class."

~J. Willard Marriott

"A service culture doesn't happen by accident. The company is always a reflection of the person at the helm. Their attitude, their values, and their commitment to service excellence will drive the actions of others in the organization. Always has...always will."

~Mac Anderson

good thots

I have found that if you love life...life will love you back."

~Arthur Rubenstein

"Set clear intentions, live with integrity and in right relationship with your values, stand in your purpose and have the courage to say 'yes' to what is true for you and 'no, thank you' to what is not."

~Marcia Wieder

What you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others."

~Pericles

"By the choices we make, by the attitudes we exhibit, we are influencing lives every day in positive or negative ways."

~Mac Anderson
We are protagonists and the authors of our own drama. It is up to us; there is no one left to blame. Neither the system nor our leaders, nor our parents. We can't go out and hang the first amoeba.

-- Rebecca McClen Novick

Benjamin Franklin pointed out that, "The U.S. Constitution doesn't guarantee happiness, only the pursuit of it. You have to catch up to it yourself."

An excerpt from
The Road to Happiness
by Mac Anderson and BJ Gallagher

When I travel on business, I like to talk to the taxi drivers who take me from the airport to my hotel, or to a convention center, or to a restaurant. Taxi drivers are often immigrants with interesting personal histories and unusual cultural backgrounds. I ask them how long they've been in America, how they chose which city to live in, and what they like best about where they live. Of course, I also ask them for advice on good local restaurants and any special attractions they'd recommend to a visitor. I've had some great experiences on my travels, thanks to the advice of taxi drivers!

On one trip about ten years ago, I was making conversation with the taxi driver, asking him my usual questions about how he came to live where he lived. Then I asked him a hypothetical question: "If you could live anywhere in the world-and if money was no object-where would you live?"

Without hesitating even for a second, he replied, "I live in my heart. So it really doesn't matter where my body lives. If I am happy inside, then I live in paradise, no matter where my residence is."

I felt humbled and a little foolish for my question. Of course he was right-happiness is an inside job. He had reminded me of something I already knew, but had forgotten. If you can't find happiness inside yourself, you'll never find it in the outside world, no matter where you move. Wherever you go, there you are. You take yourself with you.

I am grateful for the wisdom of that taxi driver. And I'm grateful for all the wisdom others have shared with me about how to be happy.

good thots

Dream as if you'll live forever. Live as if you'll die tomorrow."

~James Dean

"Having visual images of your dreams, goals and heart's desire helps manifest them in your life."

~BJ Gallagher

The universe does not require you to stress for good things.

-- Alan Cohen
Curiosity empowers; be more interested than afraid.

-- Patricia Alexander
A lot of people have gone farther than they thought they could because someone else thought they could."

~Zig Ziglar

"Find people who will challenge you, believe in you and inspire you to improve. No matter what's going on in your life, another person can help you shoot higher, laugh louder and look forward to tomorrow much more than if you go it alone."

~Vicki Hitzges

Every minus is half of a plus waiting for a stroke of vertical awareness.

-- Alan Cohen

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What gives a man or woman the right to lead?

It certainly isn't gained by election or appointment. Having position, title, rank, or degrees doesn't qualify anyone to lead other people. And the ability doesn't come automatically from age or experience, either.

No, it would be accurate to say that no one can be given the right to lead. The right to lead can only be earned. And that takes time.

The key to becoming an effective leader is not to focus on making other people follow, but on making yourself the kind of person they want to follow. You must become someone others can trust to take them where they want to go.

As you prepare yourself to become a better leader, use the following guidelines to help you grow:

Let go of your ego.
The truly great leaders are not in leadership for personal gain. They lead in order to serve other people. Perhaps that is why Lawrence D. Bell remarked, "Show me a man who cannot bother to do little things, and I'll show you a man who cannot be trusted to do big things."

Become a good follower first.
Rare is the effective leader who didn't learn to become a good follower first. That is why a leadership institution such as the United State Military Academy teaches its officers to become effective followers first - and why West Point has produced more leaders than the Harvard Business School.

Build positive relationships.
Leadership is influence, nothing more, nothing less. That means it is by nature relational. Today's generation of leaders seem particularly aware of this because title and position mean so little to them. They know intuitively that people go along with people they get along with.

Work with excellence.
No one respects and follows mediocrity. Leaders who earn the right to lead give their all to what they do. They bring into play not only their skills and talents, but also great passion and hard work. They perform on the highest level of which they are capable.

Rely on discipline, not emotion.
Leadership is often easy during the good times. It's when everything seems to be against you - when you're out of energy, and you don't want to lead - that you earn your place as a leader. During every season of life, leaders face crucial moments when they must choose between gearing up or giving up. To make it through those times, rely on the rock of discipline, not the shifting sand of emotion.

Make adding value your goal.
When you look at the leaders whose names are revered long after they have finished leading, you find that they were men and women who helped people to live better lives and reach their potential. That is the highest calling of leadership - and its highest value.

Give your power away.
One of the ironies of leadership is that you become a better leader by sharing whatever power you have, not by saving it all for yourself. You're meant to be a river, not a reservoir. If you use your power to empower others, your leadership will extend far beyond your grasp.

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If you can't pray a door open, don't pry it open.

-- Lyell Rader

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An excerpt from
If Life is a Game...These are the Rules
by Chérie Carter-Scott, Ph.D

Life has often been compared to a game. We are never told the rules, unfortunately, nor given any instructions about how to play. We simply begin at "go" and make our way around the board, hoping we play it right. We don't exactly know the objective of playing, nor what it means to actually win.

That is what Ten Rules for Being Human is all about. These are the guidelines to playing the game we call life, but they are also much more than that. These Rules will provide you with a basic spiritual primer for what it means to be a human. They are universal truths that everyone inherently knows but has forgotten somewhere along the way. They form the foundation of how we can live a fulfilling, meaningful life.

Each Rule presents its own challenge, which in turn provides certain lessons we all need to learn. Every person on the planet has his or her own set of lessons to learn that are separate and unique from everyone else's, and these lessons, as you will see in Rule Four, will reappear until they are mastered.

The Ten Rules for Being Human are not magic, nor do they promise ten easy steps to serenity. They offer no quick fix for emotional or spiritual ailments, and they are not fast track secrets to enlightenment. Their only purpose is to give you a road map to follow as you travel your path of spiritual growth.

These Rules are not mandates, but rather guidelines as to how to play the game. There is nothing you absolutely must do. I hope this book will help you to become more aware of them. By learning the valuable lessons and wisdom they offer, your journey on the Earth might just a bit easier.

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