Excerpt from:
Goals...The 10 Rules for Achieving Success,
by Gary Ryan Blair
On everyone's short list of things to do during their lifetime are the accomplishment of worthy goals and the fulfillment of one's purpose.
Achieving a goal is like opening a combination lock. You need the correct numbers in the correct right, left, right sequence. There are thousands of possible combinations; and if you are aware of the settings but not the sequence, your efforts will prove futile.
The Ten Rules of Goal Setting is the combination that opens the lock of success. Each rule is one piece of the combination; each seamlessly integrates with the other nine; each one counts!
This book provides the goal setting information you need in a straightforward and systematic manner. You will be hard pressed to find a goal that does not require each of these ten rules.
Not all goals are equal, but all goals contain the same foundational elements. When it comes to setting goals, we often don't know what we don't know. And, what you don't know can - and most likely will - hurt you by limiting or compromising your success. Each rule calls for and requires know-how of multiple disciplines. No one is born with all the talents to achieve a goal - you learn as you go on the fly!
If I could carve ten rules for achieving a goal into the walls of your mind, they would be the ones contained in this book. The ten rules work because they are simple, and they are simple because they work.
Success, of course, is individual. Your definition of "the good life" may be very different from mine. Yet the underlying steps toward that end are the same. That similarity helps you to understand what success really is.
Success is the ability, first, to recognize opportunity; second, to form plans and strategies that leverage opportunity; and, third, to develop the necessary skills needed to execute those strategies. The ten rules, like anything else in life, operate best if they are self-enforced!
Success is beautiful because of how it looks to you, how it works, how it feels and how it represents the fulfillment of goals pursued. Grow accustomed to prosperity and confident in the process of achieving a goal. Embrace these ten rules of goal setting and give witness to a powerful transition in your life.
And finally, my goal for this book is to simply...help you reach yours.
(Gary Ryan Blair)
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Excerpt from: Goals...The 110 Rules for Achieving Success, by Gary Ryan Blair
Excerpt from:
Goals...The 10 Rules for Achieving Success,
by Gary Ryan Blair
On everyone's short list of things to do during their lifetime are the accomplishment of worthy goals and the fulfillment of one's purpose.
Achieving a goal is like opening a combination lock. You need the correct numbers in the correct right, left, right sequence. There are thousands of possible combinations; and if you are aware of the settings but not the sequence, your efforts will prove futile.
The Ten Rules of Goal Setting is the combination that opens the lock of success. Each rule is one piece of the combination; each seamlessly integrates with the other nine; each one counts!
This book provides the goal setting information you need in a straightforward and systematic manner. You will be hard pressed to find a goal that does not require each of these ten rules.
Not all goals are equal, but all goals contain the same foundational elements. When it comes to setting goals, we often don't know what we don't know. And, what you don't know can - and most likely will - hurt you by limiting or compromising your success. Each rule calls for and requires know-how of multiple disciplines. No one is born with all the talents to achieve a goal - you learn as you go on the fly!
If I could carve ten rules for achieving a goal into the walls of your mind, they would be the ones contained in this book. The ten rules work because they are simple, and they are simple because they work.
Success, of course, is individual. Your definition of "the good life" may be very different from mine. Yet the underlying steps toward that end are the same. That similarity helps you to understand what success really is.
Success is the ability, first, to recognize opportunity; second, to form plans and strategies that leverage opportunity; and, third, to develop the necessary skills needed to execute those strategies. The ten rules, like anything else in life, operate best if they are self-enforced!
Success is beautiful because of how it looks to you, how it works, how it feels and how it represents the fulfillment of goals pursued. Grow accustomed to prosperity and confident in the process of achieving a goal. Embrace these ten rules of goal setting and give witness to a powerful transition in your life.
And finally, my goal for this book is to simply...help you reach yours.
(Gary Ryan Blair)
Goals...The 10 Rules for Achieving Success,
by Gary Ryan Blair
On everyone's short list of things to do during their lifetime are the accomplishment of worthy goals and the fulfillment of one's purpose.
Achieving a goal is like opening a combination lock. You need the correct numbers in the correct right, left, right sequence. There are thousands of possible combinations; and if you are aware of the settings but not the sequence, your efforts will prove futile.
The Ten Rules of Goal Setting is the combination that opens the lock of success. Each rule is one piece of the combination; each seamlessly integrates with the other nine; each one counts!
This book provides the goal setting information you need in a straightforward and systematic manner. You will be hard pressed to find a goal that does not require each of these ten rules.
Not all goals are equal, but all goals contain the same foundational elements. When it comes to setting goals, we often don't know what we don't know. And, what you don't know can - and most likely will - hurt you by limiting or compromising your success. Each rule calls for and requires know-how of multiple disciplines. No one is born with all the talents to achieve a goal - you learn as you go on the fly!
If I could carve ten rules for achieving a goal into the walls of your mind, they would be the ones contained in this book. The ten rules work because they are simple, and they are simple because they work.
Success, of course, is individual. Your definition of "the good life" may be very different from mine. Yet the underlying steps toward that end are the same. That similarity helps you to understand what success really is.
Success is the ability, first, to recognize opportunity; second, to form plans and strategies that leverage opportunity; and, third, to develop the necessary skills needed to execute those strategies. The ten rules, like anything else in life, operate best if they are self-enforced!
Success is beautiful because of how it looks to you, how it works, how it feels and how it represents the fulfillment of goals pursued. Grow accustomed to prosperity and confident in the process of achieving a goal. Embrace these ten rules of goal setting and give witness to a powerful transition in your life.
And finally, my goal for this book is to simply...help you reach yours.
(Gary Ryan Blair)
Friday, December 25, 2009
Finding Happiness... by Elayna Fernandez
Finding Happiness... by Elayna Fernandez
When I was about 12, I went to typing school so I could get my first "office" job. We had really old type writers, a strict instructor, and a tough handbook.
The handbook had the most amazing quotes we had to type over and over and over. It had anything from Plato to Abraham Lincoln. Quotes about motivation, character, ethics and positive thinking.
I started sort of a "quote book" to write the favorite quotes I learned, draw and paste pictures I liked.
One of the quotes that made quite an impact on me was:
“Happiness is like a butterfly: the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder…”– Thoreau
And so I turned my attention to other things. I was very focused on things that I believed in. That was my happiness at the time.
I have known no greater happiness than being a mom. I think the happiest time of my life was expecting my girls. I loved being pregnant! Births are indeed painful the way I decided to do it, but they turned out to be a magical experience. Raising my girls has been indeed the icing on the happiness cake.
Oprah once said "The happiness you feel is in direct proportion to the love you give."
I have met the "coolest", nicest, most wonderful moms and they all have one thing in common: they are happy. Yes, they we are often exhausted, but there a big smile on our faces, there is warmth in our hearts and there is pride and joy in our soul.
I have never been happier than I am now. It is so rewarding to stop "chasing" happiness. The butterfly is on my shoulder as long as I am calm, feel peace and enjoy sharing my love - with my children, with all children, with all beings.
Motherhood is a great opportunity to find happiness by giving constant unconditional love. May we all remember Mary's joy this Christmas. In many ways, my children remind me of the Savior. I believe they sure help save my life every day.
Merry Christmas!
When I was about 12, I went to typing school so I could get my first "office" job. We had really old type writers, a strict instructor, and a tough handbook.
The handbook had the most amazing quotes we had to type over and over and over. It had anything from Plato to Abraham Lincoln. Quotes about motivation, character, ethics and positive thinking.
I started sort of a "quote book" to write the favorite quotes I learned, draw and paste pictures I liked.
One of the quotes that made quite an impact on me was:
“Happiness is like a butterfly: the more you chase it, the more it will elude you, but if you turn your attention to other things, it will come and sit softly on your shoulder…”– Thoreau
And so I turned my attention to other things. I was very focused on things that I believed in. That was my happiness at the time.
I have known no greater happiness than being a mom. I think the happiest time of my life was expecting my girls. I loved being pregnant! Births are indeed painful the way I decided to do it, but they turned out to be a magical experience. Raising my girls has been indeed the icing on the happiness cake.
Oprah once said "The happiness you feel is in direct proportion to the love you give."
I have met the "coolest", nicest, most wonderful moms and they all have one thing in common: they are happy. Yes, they we are often exhausted, but there a big smile on our faces, there is warmth in our hearts and there is pride and joy in our soul.
I have never been happier than I am now. It is so rewarding to stop "chasing" happiness. The butterfly is on my shoulder as long as I am calm, feel peace and enjoy sharing my love - with my children, with all children, with all beings.
Motherhood is a great opportunity to find happiness by giving constant unconditional love. May we all remember Mary's joy this Christmas. In many ways, my children remind me of the Savior. I believe they sure help save my life every day.
Merry Christmas!
Thursday, December 24, 2009
An Excerpt from DASH OF HOPE
An Excerpt from Dash of Hope
by Linda Ellis
My poem, The Dash, is based on that little line on a tombstone, between the dates of birth and death. Ultimately, that dash is a symbol which represents every day we've spent alive on earth. Therefore, how you spend your "dash" is all that really matters. Following is an amazing story about someone whose dash truly made a difference.
Recently I heard about a little girl named Hope Stout. After learning more about her life, I couldn't help but feel it was not by coincidence, nor happenstance, that she had been named "Hope." It had to be attributed to fate. The compassion and generosity housed in her young heart made a lasting impression on me and countless others, and her legacy of love continues to bless lives every day. Though I never had the opportunity to meet her, I wish I had. It seems as though she was wise beyond her tender years and very, very special. When I tell people her story, I always say, "if this doesn't inspire you, I don't think there's much that could..."
Hope was a twelve-year old girl who was offered a "wish" in early December 2003 by the "Make-A-Wish" Foundation after being informed that she had a rare type of bone cancer. However, when she found out that more than 150 children in her area were waiting for their wishes to be granted, she unselfishly used her wish to ask that those children have their wishes granted. She also asked that it be done by January 16, 2004.
Unfortunately, however, the organization informed her that her noble request could not be granted as the funds were simply unavailable. They calculated that they would need to raise more than one million dollars in thirty days in order to grant her wish. Disappointed, but not discouraged, she turned her dismay into an enthusiasm that inspired caring individuals to spearhead fundraising to help grant the wishes of the other children, and eventually hers as well. Newspaper columnists and reporters for radio and TV stations shared the story of this caring young girl who had touched the hearts of so many and as word spread, the community was challenged. Committees were formed and schools, corporations and various organizations assisted in raising money to help bring Hope's dream to fruition.
Though she lost her battle in 2004, knowing that her wish was going to come true, Hope lives on. Her heartfelt efforts were not in vain as they continue to help others, not only physically, but spiritually and emotionally as well. At the initial fundraiser and gathering to celebrate her life, "A Celebration of Hope" on January 16, 2004, the announcement was made that they had indeed received donations totaling more than one million dollars on behalf of Hope Stout. Her wish had been granted!
by Linda Ellis
My poem, The Dash, is based on that little line on a tombstone, between the dates of birth and death. Ultimately, that dash is a symbol which represents every day we've spent alive on earth. Therefore, how you spend your "dash" is all that really matters. Following is an amazing story about someone whose dash truly made a difference.
Recently I heard about a little girl named Hope Stout. After learning more about her life, I couldn't help but feel it was not by coincidence, nor happenstance, that she had been named "Hope." It had to be attributed to fate. The compassion and generosity housed in her young heart made a lasting impression on me and countless others, and her legacy of love continues to bless lives every day. Though I never had the opportunity to meet her, I wish I had. It seems as though she was wise beyond her tender years and very, very special. When I tell people her story, I always say, "if this doesn't inspire you, I don't think there's much that could..."
Hope was a twelve-year old girl who was offered a "wish" in early December 2003 by the "Make-A-Wish" Foundation after being informed that she had a rare type of bone cancer. However, when she found out that more than 150 children in her area were waiting for their wishes to be granted, she unselfishly used her wish to ask that those children have their wishes granted. She also asked that it be done by January 16, 2004.
Unfortunately, however, the organization informed her that her noble request could not be granted as the funds were simply unavailable. They calculated that they would need to raise more than one million dollars in thirty days in order to grant her wish. Disappointed, but not discouraged, she turned her dismay into an enthusiasm that inspired caring individuals to spearhead fundraising to help grant the wishes of the other children, and eventually hers as well. Newspaper columnists and reporters for radio and TV stations shared the story of this caring young girl who had touched the hearts of so many and as word spread, the community was challenged. Committees were formed and schools, corporations and various organizations assisted in raising money to help bring Hope's dream to fruition.
Though she lost her battle in 2004, knowing that her wish was going to come true, Hope lives on. Her heartfelt efforts were not in vain as they continue to help others, not only physically, but spiritually and emotionally as well. At the initial fundraiser and gathering to celebrate her life, "A Celebration of Hope" on January 16, 2004, the announcement was made that they had indeed received donations totaling more than one million dollars on behalf of Hope Stout. Her wish had been granted!
thots for u
LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
If, out of time, I could pick one moment and keep it shining, always new,
of all the days that I have lived, I'd pick the moment I met you.
--Unknown
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
What is success? It's the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads.
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
When one door closes another one opens. What you believe is the worst moment of
your life could turn out to be the beginning of a new and better life...
--Margie Tsoukias
LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
Whatever your problem, it is but a test in love. If you meet that
test through love, your problem will be solved. If you do not meet
that test through love, your problem will continue until you do!
Your problem is your initiation in love.
--Catherine Ponder
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
Now is the time to get ready for 2010!
What are your big plans? Write them down
and start mapping out your way...
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
The first great lesson of life to learn is that winter will always come...
the human winters of despair and loneliness, or disappointment, or tragedy...
The major challenge confronting those surrounded by winter is to not let
it affect the arrival of spring and our ability to recognize that arrival.
—Jim Rohn,The Seasons of Life
LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
Love is the most precious jewel of all.
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
Do not grow weary in doing good for in
due time you will reap a great harvest.
--St. Paul
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
There will come a time when you believe everything
is finished. That will be the beginning.
— Louis L'Amour
If, out of time, I could pick one moment and keep it shining, always new,
of all the days that I have lived, I'd pick the moment I met you.
--Unknown
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
What is success? It's the simple harmony between a man and the life he leads.
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
When one door closes another one opens. What you believe is the worst moment of
your life could turn out to be the beginning of a new and better life...
--Margie Tsoukias
LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
Whatever your problem, it is but a test in love. If you meet that
test through love, your problem will be solved. If you do not meet
that test through love, your problem will continue until you do!
Your problem is your initiation in love.
--Catherine Ponder
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
Now is the time to get ready for 2010!
What are your big plans? Write them down
and start mapping out your way...
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
The first great lesson of life to learn is that winter will always come...
the human winters of despair and loneliness, or disappointment, or tragedy...
The major challenge confronting those surrounded by winter is to not let
it affect the arrival of spring and our ability to recognize that arrival.
—Jim Rohn,The Seasons of Life
LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
Love is the most precious jewel of all.
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
Do not grow weary in doing good for in
due time you will reap a great harvest.
--St. Paul
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
There will come a time when you believe everything
is finished. That will be the beginning.
— Louis L'Amour
thots for u
"Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don't quit."
~Conrad Hilton
"The Finish Strong attitude is grounded in the principle that you never 'get there' in life and that you should always keep moving forward. I love the way that John Naber, the four-time gold medal winning Olympic swimming champion, characterizes his achievement. When asked if winning four Olympic gold medals was the highlight of his life, he replied, 'I hope not. I've still got a lot of living left to do and I hope that my greatest achievement is still in front of me.'"
~Dan Green
An Excerpt from
The Power of Attitude
by Mac Anderson
I grew up in Trenton, a west Tennessee town of five thousand people. I have wonderful memories of those first eighteen years, and many people in Trenton influenced my life in very positive ways. My football coach, Walter Kilzer, taught me the importance of hard work, discipline, and believing in myself. My history teacher, Fred Culp, is still the funniest person I've ever met. He taught me that a sense of humor, and especially laughing at yourself, can be one of life's greatest blessings.
But my father was my hero. He taught me many things, but at the top of the list, he taught me to treat people with love and respect...to live the Golden Rule. I remember one particular instance of him teaching this "life lesson" as if it were yesterday. Dad owned a furniture store, and I used to dust the furniture every Wednesday after school to earn my allowance. One afternoon I observed my Dad talking to all the customers as they came in...the hardware store owner, the banker, a farmer, a doctor. At the end of the day, just as Dad was closing, the garbage collector came in.
I was ready to go home, and I thought that surely Dad wouldn't spend too much time with him. But I was wrong. Dad greeted him at the door with a big hug and talked with him about his wife and son who had been in a car accident the month before. He empathized, he asked questions, he listened, and he listened some more. I kept looking at the clock, and when the man finally left, I asked, "Dad, why did you spend so much time with him? He's just the garbage collector." Dad then looked at me, locked the front door to the store, and said, "Son, let's talk."
He said, "I'm your father and I tell you lots of stuff as all fathers should, but if you remember nothing else I ever tell you, remember this...treat every human being just the way that you would want to be treated." He said, "I know this is not the first time you've heard it, but I want to make sure it's the first time you truly understand it, because if you had understood, you would never have said what you said." We sat there and talked for another hour about the meaning and the power of the Golden Rule. Dad said, "If you live the Golden Rule everything else in life will usually work itself out, but if you don't, your life probably will be very unhappy and without meaning."
I recently heard someone say, "If you teach your child the Golden Rule, you will have left them an estate of incalculable value." Truer words were never spoken.
~Conrad Hilton
"The Finish Strong attitude is grounded in the principle that you never 'get there' in life and that you should always keep moving forward. I love the way that John Naber, the four-time gold medal winning Olympic swimming champion, characterizes his achievement. When asked if winning four Olympic gold medals was the highlight of his life, he replied, 'I hope not. I've still got a lot of living left to do and I hope that my greatest achievement is still in front of me.'"
~Dan Green
An Excerpt from
The Power of Attitude
by Mac Anderson
I grew up in Trenton, a west Tennessee town of five thousand people. I have wonderful memories of those first eighteen years, and many people in Trenton influenced my life in very positive ways. My football coach, Walter Kilzer, taught me the importance of hard work, discipline, and believing in myself. My history teacher, Fred Culp, is still the funniest person I've ever met. He taught me that a sense of humor, and especially laughing at yourself, can be one of life's greatest blessings.
But my father was my hero. He taught me many things, but at the top of the list, he taught me to treat people with love and respect...to live the Golden Rule. I remember one particular instance of him teaching this "life lesson" as if it were yesterday. Dad owned a furniture store, and I used to dust the furniture every Wednesday after school to earn my allowance. One afternoon I observed my Dad talking to all the customers as they came in...the hardware store owner, the banker, a farmer, a doctor. At the end of the day, just as Dad was closing, the garbage collector came in.
I was ready to go home, and I thought that surely Dad wouldn't spend too much time with him. But I was wrong. Dad greeted him at the door with a big hug and talked with him about his wife and son who had been in a car accident the month before. He empathized, he asked questions, he listened, and he listened some more. I kept looking at the clock, and when the man finally left, I asked, "Dad, why did you spend so much time with him? He's just the garbage collector." Dad then looked at me, locked the front door to the store, and said, "Son, let's talk."
He said, "I'm your father and I tell you lots of stuff as all fathers should, but if you remember nothing else I ever tell you, remember this...treat every human being just the way that you would want to be treated." He said, "I know this is not the first time you've heard it, but I want to make sure it's the first time you truly understand it, because if you had understood, you would never have said what you said." We sat there and talked for another hour about the meaning and the power of the Golden Rule. Dad said, "If you live the Golden Rule everything else in life will usually work itself out, but if you don't, your life probably will be very unhappy and without meaning."
I recently heard someone say, "If you teach your child the Golden Rule, you will have left them an estate of incalculable value." Truer words were never spoken.
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
mind triggers
"Do not wait; the time will never be 'just right.' Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along."
~Napoleon Hil LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
Love is made visible by the infinte acts of
kindness and service we do for others.
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
Gratitude is what defines a successful life.
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
Realize that good is present in your life right now
and more will be added onto you.
~Napoleon Hil LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
Love is made visible by the infinte acts of
kindness and service we do for others.
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
Gratitude is what defines a successful life.
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
Realize that good is present in your life right now
and more will be added onto you.
mind triggers
LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
Take time to gather up the past so that you will be able to
draw from your experience and invest them in the future.
--Jim Rohn
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
Take care of your body. It's the only place you have to live.
--Jim Rohn
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
You cannot change your destination overnight,
but you can change your direction overnight.
--Jim Rohn
It's all about dreams. If I had to attribute my success in life to any one thing it is this. I believed in my dreams, even when no one else did."
~Oprah Winfrey
Take time to gather up the past so that you will be able to
draw from your experience and invest them in the future.
--Jim Rohn
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
Take care of your body. It's the only place you have to live.
--Jim Rohn
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
You cannot change your destination overnight,
but you can change your direction overnight.
--Jim Rohn
It's all about dreams. If I had to attribute my success in life to any one thing it is this. I believed in my dreams, even when no one else did."
~Oprah Winfrey
wowwww think abt it-THE LAW OF THE GARBAGE TRUCK
One day I hopped in a taxi and we took off for the airport..
We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us.
My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches!
The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us.
My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was really friendly.
So I asked, 'Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined
your car and sent us to the hospital!'
This is when my taxi driver taught me what I now call,
'The Law of the Garbage Truck.'
He explained that many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment.
As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. Don't take it personally.
Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets.
The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day.
Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets,
so ... Love the people who treat you right.
Pray for the ones who don't.
Life is ten percent what you make it and ninety percent how you take it!
Have a blessed, garbage-free day!
Have a very nice and wonderful day!!!
We were driving in the right lane when suddenly a black car jumped out of a parking space right in front of us.
My taxi driver slammed on his brakes, skidded, and missed the other car by just inches!
The driver of the other car whipped his head around and started yelling at us.
My taxi driver just smiled and waved at the guy. And I mean, he was really friendly.
So I asked, 'Why did you just do that? This guy almost ruined
your car and sent us to the hospital!'
This is when my taxi driver taught me what I now call,
'The Law of the Garbage Truck.'
He explained that many people are like garbage trucks. They run around full of garbage, full of frustration, full of anger, and full of disappointment.
As their garbage piles up, they need a place to dump it and sometimes they'll dump it on you. Don't take it personally.
Just smile, wave, wish them well, and move on. Don't take their garbage and spread it to other people at work, at home, or on the streets.
The bottom line is that successful people do not let garbage trucks take over their day.
Life's too short to wake up in the morning with regrets,
so ... Love the people who treat you right.
Pray for the ones who don't.
Life is ten percent what you make it and ninety percent how you take it!
Have a blessed, garbage-free day!
Have a very nice and wonderful day!!!
Friday, December 11, 2009
mind triggers
LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
The worst thing one can do is not to try, to be aware of what one wants
and not give in to it, to spend years in silent hurt wondering
if something could have materialized - never knowing.
--Jim Rohn
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
Maturity is the ability to reap without apology
and not complain when things don't go well.
--Jim Rohn
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
The difficulties you meet will resolve themselves as you advance.
Proceed, and light will dawn, and shine with
increasing clearness on your path.
Learning is the beginning of wealth.
--Jim Rohn
The same Source that gave you the idea will give you the means to see it through.
-- Alan Cohen
Gratitude feels so good because it is the state of mind closest to your natural state in which you were born to live.
-- Abraham-Hicks
LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
The language of friendship is not words but meanings.
--Henry David Thoreau
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
How can they say my life is not a success?
Have I not for more than sixty years got
enough to eat and escaped being eaten?
--Logan P. Smith
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
Things do not change; we change.
--Henry David Thoreau
An excerpt from The Strangest Secretby Mac Anderson and BJ Gallagher
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, they 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.
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 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 the 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 two 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.
The worst thing one can do is not to try, to be aware of what one wants
and not give in to it, to spend years in silent hurt wondering
if something could have materialized - never knowing.
--Jim Rohn
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
Maturity is the ability to reap without apology
and not complain when things don't go well.
--Jim Rohn
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
The difficulties you meet will resolve themselves as you advance.
Proceed, and light will dawn, and shine with
increasing clearness on your path.
Learning is the beginning of wealth.
--Jim Rohn
The same Source that gave you the idea will give you the means to see it through.
-- Alan Cohen
Gratitude feels so good because it is the state of mind closest to your natural state in which you were born to live.
-- Abraham-Hicks
LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
The language of friendship is not words but meanings.
--Henry David Thoreau
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
How can they say my life is not a success?
Have I not for more than sixty years got
enough to eat and escaped being eaten?
--Logan P. Smith
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
Things do not change; we change.
--Henry David Thoreau
An excerpt from The Strangest Secretby Mac Anderson and BJ Gallagher
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, they 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.
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 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 the 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 two 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.
Wednesday, December 09, 2009
something to ponder
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
There are only 3 colors, 10 digits, and 7 notes;
its what we do with them that's important.
--Jim Rohn
"For every unsatisfied customer who complains, there are 26 other unhappy customers who say nothing. And of those 26, 24 won't come back."
~U.S. Office of Consumer Affairs
A STORY TO RECHARGE U!!!!!!!
It's called: 3,900 Saturdays.
The older I get, the more I enjoy Saturday morning. Perhaps it's the quiet solitude that comes with being the first to rise, or maybe it's the unbounded joy of not having to be at work. Either way, the first few hours of a Saturday morning are most enjoyable.
A few weeks ago, I was shuffling toward the garage with a steaming cup of coffee in one hand and the morning paper in the other. What began as a typical Saturday morning turned into one of those lessons that life seems to hand you from time to time. Let me tell you about it:
I turned the dial up into the phone portion of the band on my ham radio in order to listen to a Saturday morning swap net. Along the way, I came across an older sounding chap, with a tremendous signal and a golden voice. You know the kind; he sounded like he should be in the broadcasting business. He was telling whomever he was talking with something about "a thousand marbles." I was intrigued and stopped to listen to what he had to say.
"Well, Tom, it sure sounds like you're busy with your job. I'm sure they pay you well but it's a shame you have to be away from home and your family so much. Hard to believe a young fellow should have to work sixty or seventy hours a week to make ends meet. It's too bad you missed your daughter's dance recital," he continued; "Let me tell you something that has helped me keep my own priorities." And that's when he began to explain his theory of a "thousand marbles."
"You see, I sat down one day and did a little arithmetic. The average person lives about seventy-five years. I know, some live more and some live less, but on average, folks live about seventy-five years.
Now then, I multiplied 75 times 52 and I came up with 3,900, which is the number of Saturdays that the average person has in their entire lifetime. Now, stick with me, Tom, I'm getting to the important part.
It took me until I was fifty-five years old to think about all this in any detail," he went on, "and by that time I had lived through over twenty-eight hundred Saturdays. I got to thinking that if I lived to be seventy-five, I only had about a thousand of them left to enjoy. So I went to a toy store and bought every single marble they had. I ended up having to visit three toy stores to round up 1,000 marbles. I took them home and put them inside a large, clear plastic container right here in the shack next to my gear.
Every Saturday since then, I have taken one marble out and thrown it away. I found that by watching the marbles diminish, I focused more on the really important things in life.
There's nothing like watching your time here on this earth run out to help get your priorities straight.
Now let me tell you one last thing before I sign off with you and take my lovely wife out for breakfast. This morning, I took the very last marble out of the container. I figure that if I make it until next Saturday then I have been given a little extra time. And the one thing we can all use is a little more time.
It was nice to meet you Tom. I hope you spend more time with your family, and I hope to meet you again here on the band. This is a 75 year old man, K9NZQ, clear and going QRT, good morning!"
You could have heard a pin drop on the band when this fellow signed off. I guess he gave us all a lot to think about. I had planned to work on the antenna that morning, and then I was going to meet up with a few hams to work on the next club newsletter.
Instead, I went upstairs and woke my wife up with a kiss. "C'mon honey, I'm taking you and the kids to breakfast."
"What brought this on?" she asked with a smile.
"Oh, nothing special, it's just been a long time since we spent a Saturday together with the kids. And hey, can we stop at a toy store while we're out? I need to buy some marbles."
There are only 3 colors, 10 digits, and 7 notes;
its what we do with them that's important.
--Jim Rohn
"For every unsatisfied customer who complains, there are 26 other unhappy customers who say nothing. And of those 26, 24 won't come back."
~U.S. Office of Consumer Affairs
A STORY TO RECHARGE U!!!!!!!
It's called: 3,900 Saturdays.
The older I get, the more I enjoy Saturday morning. Perhaps it's the quiet solitude that comes with being the first to rise, or maybe it's the unbounded joy of not having to be at work. Either way, the first few hours of a Saturday morning are most enjoyable.
A few weeks ago, I was shuffling toward the garage with a steaming cup of coffee in one hand and the morning paper in the other. What began as a typical Saturday morning turned into one of those lessons that life seems to hand you from time to time. Let me tell you about it:
I turned the dial up into the phone portion of the band on my ham radio in order to listen to a Saturday morning swap net. Along the way, I came across an older sounding chap, with a tremendous signal and a golden voice. You know the kind; he sounded like he should be in the broadcasting business. He was telling whomever he was talking with something about "a thousand marbles." I was intrigued and stopped to listen to what he had to say.
"Well, Tom, it sure sounds like you're busy with your job. I'm sure they pay you well but it's a shame you have to be away from home and your family so much. Hard to believe a young fellow should have to work sixty or seventy hours a week to make ends meet. It's too bad you missed your daughter's dance recital," he continued; "Let me tell you something that has helped me keep my own priorities." And that's when he began to explain his theory of a "thousand marbles."
"You see, I sat down one day and did a little arithmetic. The average person lives about seventy-five years. I know, some live more and some live less, but on average, folks live about seventy-five years.
Now then, I multiplied 75 times 52 and I came up with 3,900, which is the number of Saturdays that the average person has in their entire lifetime. Now, stick with me, Tom, I'm getting to the important part.
It took me until I was fifty-five years old to think about all this in any detail," he went on, "and by that time I had lived through over twenty-eight hundred Saturdays. I got to thinking that if I lived to be seventy-five, I only had about a thousand of them left to enjoy. So I went to a toy store and bought every single marble they had. I ended up having to visit three toy stores to round up 1,000 marbles. I took them home and put them inside a large, clear plastic container right here in the shack next to my gear.
Every Saturday since then, I have taken one marble out and thrown it away. I found that by watching the marbles diminish, I focused more on the really important things in life.
There's nothing like watching your time here on this earth run out to help get your priorities straight.
Now let me tell you one last thing before I sign off with you and take my lovely wife out for breakfast. This morning, I took the very last marble out of the container. I figure that if I make it until next Saturday then I have been given a little extra time. And the one thing we can all use is a little more time.
It was nice to meet you Tom. I hope you spend more time with your family, and I hope to meet you again here on the band. This is a 75 year old man, K9NZQ, clear and going QRT, good morning!"
You could have heard a pin drop on the band when this fellow signed off. I guess he gave us all a lot to think about. I had planned to work on the antenna that morning, and then I was going to meet up with a few hams to work on the next club newsletter.
Instead, I went upstairs and woke my wife up with a kiss. "C'mon honey, I'm taking you and the kids to breakfast."
"What brought this on?" she asked with a smile.
"Oh, nothing special, it's just been a long time since we spent a Saturday together with the kids. And hey, can we stop at a toy store while we're out? I need to buy some marbles."
a story worth while
Excerpt from: The Heart of a Teacher,
by Paula Fox
He was in the first third grade class I taught at Saint Mary's School in Morris, Minnesota. All 34 of my students were dear to me, but Mark Eklund was one in a million. Very neat in appearance, he had that happy-to-be-alive attitude that made even his occasional mischievousness delightful.
Mark talked incessantly. I had to remind him again and again that talking without permission was not acceptable. What impressed me so much, though, was his sincere response every time I had to correct him for misbehaving."Thank you for correcting me, Sister!" I didn't know what to make of it at first, but before long I became accustomed to hearing it many times a day.
One morning my patience was growing thin when Mark talked once too often, and then I made a novice teacher's mistake. I looked at Mark and said,"If you say one more word, I am going to tape your mouth shut!" It wasn't ten seconds later when Chuck blurted out,"Mark is talking again." I hadn't asked any of the students to help me watch Mark, but since I had stated the punishment in front of the class, I had to act on it. I remember the scene as if it had occurred this morning. I walked to my desk, very deliberately opened my drawer and took out a roll of masking tape. Without saying a word, I proceeded to Mark's desk, tore off two pieces of tape and made a big X with them over his mouth. I then returned to the front of the room. As I glanced at Mark to see how he was doing, he winked at me. That did it! I started laughing. The class cheered as I walked back to Mark's desk, removed the tape, and shrugged my shoulders. His first words were,"Thank you for correcting me, Sister."
At the end of the year, I was asked to teach junior-high math. The years flew by, and before I knew it Mark was in my classroom again. He was more handsome than ever and just as polite. Since he had to listen carefully to my instruction in the"new math," he did not talk as much in ninth grade as he had in third. One Friday, things just didn't feel right. We had worked hard on a new concept all week, and I sensed that the students were frowning, frustrated with themselves and edgy with one another. I had to stop this crankiness before it got out of hand. So I asked them to list the names of the other students in the room on two sheets of paper, leaving a space between each name. Then I told them to think of the nicest thing they could say about each of their classmates and write it down. It took the remainder of the class period to finish their assignment, and as the students left the room, each one handed me the papers. Charlie smiled. Mark said,"Thank you for teaching me, Sister. Have a good weekend." That Saturday, I wrote down the name of each student on a separate sheet of paper, and I listed what everyone else had said about that individual.
On Monday I gave each student his or her list. Before long, the entire class was smiling."Really?" I heard whispered."I never knew that meant anything to anyone! I didn't know others liked me so much." No one ever mentioned those papers in class again. I never knew if they discussed them after class or with their parents, but it didn't matter. The exercise had accomplished its purpose. The students were happy with themselves and one another again.
That group of students moved on. Several years later, after I returned from vacation, my parents met me at the airport. As we were driving home, Mother asked me the usual questions about the trip, the weather, my experiences in general. There was a lull in the conversation. Mother gave Dad a sideways glance and simply said,"Dad?" My father cleared his throat as he usually did before something important."The Eklunds called last night," he began."Really?" I said."I haven't heard from them in years. I wonder how Mark is." Dad responded quietly."Mark was killed in Vietnam," he said."The funeral is tomorrow, and his parents would like it if you could attend." To this day I can still point to the exact spot on I-494 where Dad told me about Mark.
I had never seen a serviceman in a military coffin before. Mark looked so handsome, so mature. All I could think at that moment was,"Mark, I would give all the masking tape in the world if only you would talk to me." The church was packed with Mark's friends. Chuck's sister sang"The Battle Hymn of the Republic." Why did it have to rain on the day of the funeral? It was difficult enough at the graveside. The pastor said the usual prayers, and the bugler played taps. One by one those who loved Mark took a last walk by the coffin and sprinkled it with holy water. I was the last one to bless the coffin. As I stood there, one of the soldiers who acted as pallbearer came up to me."Were you Mark's math teacher?" he asked. I nodded as I continued to stare at the coffin."Mark talked about you a lot," he said.
After the funeral, most of Mark's former classmates headed to Chuck's farmhouse for lunch. Mark's mother and father were there, obviously waiting for me."We want to show you something," his father said, taking a wallet out of his pocket."They found this on Mark when he was killed. We thought you might recognize it." Opening the billfold, he carefully removed two worn pieces of notebook paper that had obviously been taped, folded and refolded many times. I knew without looking that the papers were the ones on which I had listed all the good things each of Mark's classmates had said about him."Thank you so much for doing that," Mark's mother said."As you can see, Mark treasured it." Mark's classmates started to gather around us. Charlie smiled rather sheepishly and said,"I still have my list. I keep it in the top drawer of my desk at home." Chuck's wife said,"Chuck asked me to put his in our wedding album.""I have mine too," Marilyn said."It's in my diary." Then Vicki, another classmate, reached into her pocketbook, took out her wallet and showed her worn and frazzled list to the group."I carry this with me at all times," Vicki said without batting an eyelash."I think we all saved our lists." That's when I finally sat down and cried. I cried for Mark and for all his friends who would never see him again.
The density of people in society is so thick that we forget that life will end one day. And we don't know when that one day will be. So please, tell the people you love and care for that they are special and important. Tell them, before it is too late.
by Paula Fox
He was in the first third grade class I taught at Saint Mary's School in Morris, Minnesota. All 34 of my students were dear to me, but Mark Eklund was one in a million. Very neat in appearance, he had that happy-to-be-alive attitude that made even his occasional mischievousness delightful.
Mark talked incessantly. I had to remind him again and again that talking without permission was not acceptable. What impressed me so much, though, was his sincere response every time I had to correct him for misbehaving."Thank you for correcting me, Sister!" I didn't know what to make of it at first, but before long I became accustomed to hearing it many times a day.
One morning my patience was growing thin when Mark talked once too often, and then I made a novice teacher's mistake. I looked at Mark and said,"If you say one more word, I am going to tape your mouth shut!" It wasn't ten seconds later when Chuck blurted out,"Mark is talking again." I hadn't asked any of the students to help me watch Mark, but since I had stated the punishment in front of the class, I had to act on it. I remember the scene as if it had occurred this morning. I walked to my desk, very deliberately opened my drawer and took out a roll of masking tape. Without saying a word, I proceeded to Mark's desk, tore off two pieces of tape and made a big X with them over his mouth. I then returned to the front of the room. As I glanced at Mark to see how he was doing, he winked at me. That did it! I started laughing. The class cheered as I walked back to Mark's desk, removed the tape, and shrugged my shoulders. His first words were,"Thank you for correcting me, Sister."
At the end of the year, I was asked to teach junior-high math. The years flew by, and before I knew it Mark was in my classroom again. He was more handsome than ever and just as polite. Since he had to listen carefully to my instruction in the"new math," he did not talk as much in ninth grade as he had in third. One Friday, things just didn't feel right. We had worked hard on a new concept all week, and I sensed that the students were frowning, frustrated with themselves and edgy with one another. I had to stop this crankiness before it got out of hand. So I asked them to list the names of the other students in the room on two sheets of paper, leaving a space between each name. Then I told them to think of the nicest thing they could say about each of their classmates and write it down. It took the remainder of the class period to finish their assignment, and as the students left the room, each one handed me the papers. Charlie smiled. Mark said,"Thank you for teaching me, Sister. Have a good weekend." That Saturday, I wrote down the name of each student on a separate sheet of paper, and I listed what everyone else had said about that individual.
On Monday I gave each student his or her list. Before long, the entire class was smiling."Really?" I heard whispered."I never knew that meant anything to anyone! I didn't know others liked me so much." No one ever mentioned those papers in class again. I never knew if they discussed them after class or with their parents, but it didn't matter. The exercise had accomplished its purpose. The students were happy with themselves and one another again.
That group of students moved on. Several years later, after I returned from vacation, my parents met me at the airport. As we were driving home, Mother asked me the usual questions about the trip, the weather, my experiences in general. There was a lull in the conversation. Mother gave Dad a sideways glance and simply said,"Dad?" My father cleared his throat as he usually did before something important."The Eklunds called last night," he began."Really?" I said."I haven't heard from them in years. I wonder how Mark is." Dad responded quietly."Mark was killed in Vietnam," he said."The funeral is tomorrow, and his parents would like it if you could attend." To this day I can still point to the exact spot on I-494 where Dad told me about Mark.
I had never seen a serviceman in a military coffin before. Mark looked so handsome, so mature. All I could think at that moment was,"Mark, I would give all the masking tape in the world if only you would talk to me." The church was packed with Mark's friends. Chuck's sister sang"The Battle Hymn of the Republic." Why did it have to rain on the day of the funeral? It was difficult enough at the graveside. The pastor said the usual prayers, and the bugler played taps. One by one those who loved Mark took a last walk by the coffin and sprinkled it with holy water. I was the last one to bless the coffin. As I stood there, one of the soldiers who acted as pallbearer came up to me."Were you Mark's math teacher?" he asked. I nodded as I continued to stare at the coffin."Mark talked about you a lot," he said.
After the funeral, most of Mark's former classmates headed to Chuck's farmhouse for lunch. Mark's mother and father were there, obviously waiting for me."We want to show you something," his father said, taking a wallet out of his pocket."They found this on Mark when he was killed. We thought you might recognize it." Opening the billfold, he carefully removed two worn pieces of notebook paper that had obviously been taped, folded and refolded many times. I knew without looking that the papers were the ones on which I had listed all the good things each of Mark's classmates had said about him."Thank you so much for doing that," Mark's mother said."As you can see, Mark treasured it." Mark's classmates started to gather around us. Charlie smiled rather sheepishly and said,"I still have my list. I keep it in the top drawer of my desk at home." Chuck's wife said,"Chuck asked me to put his in our wedding album.""I have mine too," Marilyn said."It's in my diary." Then Vicki, another classmate, reached into her pocketbook, took out her wallet and showed her worn and frazzled list to the group."I carry this with me at all times," Vicki said without batting an eyelash."I think we all saved our lists." That's when I finally sat down and cried. I cried for Mark and for all his friends who would never see him again.
The density of people in society is so thick that we forget that life will end one day. And we don't know when that one day will be. So please, tell the people you love and care for that they are special and important. Tell them, before it is too late.
LOVE & RELATIONSHIPS
If you are not willing to risk the unusual,
you will have to settle for the ordinary.
--Jim Rohn
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
The book you don't read won't help.
--Jim Rohn
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
Happiness is not something you postpone for the future;
it is something you design for the present.
--Jim Rohn
Nothing you do makes you a good person. What you are makes you a good person.
-- Alan Cohen
If you are not willing to risk the unusual,
you will have to settle for the ordinary.
--Jim Rohn
LEADERSHIP & SUCCESS
The book you don't read won't help.
--Jim Rohn
INSPIRATION & MOTIVATION
Happiness is not something you postpone for the future;
it is something you design for the present.
--Jim Rohn
Nothing you do makes you a good person. What you are makes you a good person.
-- Alan Cohen
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