MONDAY, DECEMBER 31, 2007

75 Things You Can Do in 2008

75 Things You Can Do in 2008

Most people aren't Warriors, and I'm fine with it. Most people do things that don't make
sense, and I'm fine with it. I've learned to accept the non-sense that fills this world. (Part
of being a Warrior is accepting that most other people are not Warriors, and accepting
them.) Still, the point is that people do things that don't make sense. They whine, complain,
and cry over problems they can easily change. They get depressed over problems they cause
for themselves.

For example, lazy people often whine that they don't make more money. Selfish people
complain that they don't have more friends. Many people sabotage all their romantic
relationships and then complain that they don't have a lover.

Granted, sometimes when something bad happens to a person it's purely bad luck. For
example, you could be sitting in your well-built home while reading the newspaper and a
tornado could tear your home up.

However, usually when you don't like what's happening in your life, it's your own damn fault.
It's your fault if you're fat, lazy, uneducated, lonely, etc.

In the following, I list 75 things that you can do. You choose to do them or not. If you
choose not to do these things, then you have no right to complain about your problems; your
problems are your fault!

1. Stop watching television.

2. Stop eating fast food.
3. Stop eating pizza and fried foods.
4. Stop driving places that you could easily walk to.
5. Read at least 1 book a month.
6. Take classes in what interests you or your vocation.
7. Work enough to support yourself, and if needed get a new job or second job to make
enough to support yourself. Never stick with a job that doesn't pay enough to
support yourself no matter how much you work.
8. Pay off your debts and don't go in debt. You can pay off your debts if you avoid
needless expenses, such as cable, overpriced clothes, impractical decorations,
unhealthy snacks, jewelry, etcetera.
9. Don't buy a car on finance, and don't buy an expensive car if a cheaper one that
works is available.
10. Wake up early, and get all your work done as quickly as possible. That includes
household chores, as well as your employment.
11. Drink alcohol less or quit.
12. Do drugs less or quit.
13. Don't smoke cigarettes.
14. Don't eat foods with high fructose corn syrup.
15. Don't drink soda.
16. Don't eat sugary foods at all.
17. Don't drink more than 1 glass of juice per day.
18. Stand up straight and have good posture.
19. Look people in the eyes when you talk to them.
20. Smile.
21. Be polite.
22. Keep your promises.
23. Wear a watch, if you can afford it.
24. Eat breakfast.
25. If you eat cereal at any time, choose your cereal based on healthiness not tastiness.
26. Exercise at least 3 days per week.
27. Walk often.
28. Always write with correct spelling and grammar.
29. Never speak worse about a person behind their back than you do to their face. (Feel
free to say nicer things about a person behind their back than to their face.)
30. Don't gossip and don't have a big mouth.
31. Never judge other people harsher than you judge yourself.
32. Make New Years resolutions, but make one every day instead of every year.
33. Volunteer.
34. Forgive, but never forget.
35. Don't have skeletons in your closet.
36. Keep as few secrets as reasonably possible.
37. Despite the rule before this one, keep your friends' secrets.
38. Politely tell people that you will not betray your friends' trust, when you are asked
about their secrets and such.
39. Volunteering (i.e. activism) is more important than voting. If you can do both, good
for you. If you only have time for one, volunteer instead of voting. It makes more of
a difference.
40. Privately question your own values.
41. Avoid questioning other people's values, especially in public.
42. Listen more than you talk.
43. Use a journal to count how many calories you consume per day.
44. Use a journal to count how many calories you burn per day.
45. If you want to lose weight, burn slightly more than you consume. If you want to gain
weight, consume slightly more than you burn. If you are happy with your weight, try
to burn the same amount as you consume.
46. Weigh yourself daily at the same time(s).
47. Write your daily weight down in a journal.
48. Never allow the police to search you, your car, or your belongings if you do not have
something to hide.
49. Never tell other people that you think they or something they are doing is immoral
or sinful.
50. Keep your moral values and religion to yourself. Use them to direct your own actions.
 51. Ask people how they are often and listen to their answer.
52. Laugh at other people's jokes, but not your own.
53. Shower at least once per day.
54. Wash your hands, even if you aren't an employee.
55. Take care of the elderly, which includes spending time with them and talking to
them.
56. Avoid going places where you need to be waited on.
57. Wait on yourself wherever possible.
58. Make your friends look good.
59. Avoid lying.
60. Don't pretend to be better than you are. Don't pretend to be more successful,
popular, etcetera.
61. Treat other people as if they are better than they are. Treat them as if they are
more successful, popular, etcetera.
62. Don't brag about your talents. Instead, surprise people with them when they just
happen to be called upon.
63. Sit up straight.
64. Keep your house clean.
65. If you have either of them, keep your car and office clean.
66. Stretch daily. (I do Yoga most mornings.)
67. Dance.
68. Take dancing lessons if you could use improvement.
69. Ask other people (e.g. your friends, your co-workers, your boss, etc.) what their
favorite book is, and read it.
70. Ask their favorite song or band, and listen to it.
71. Ask their favorite movie, and watch it.
72. Don't be camera shy.
73. When your alarm goes off in the morning (if you use one), don't press snooze.
74. Make a budget and follow it.
75. Always turning off lights when leaving a room, unless of course there are others are
in the room. For that matter, conserving any unnecessary electricity usage is key to
the future of humanity.
 

The Optimist Creed

The Optimist Creed

Promise Yourself-

      To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.

      To talk health, happiness and prosperity to every person you meet.
      To make all your friends feel that there is something in them.
      To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.
      To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.
      To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own .
      To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the
future.
       To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a
smile.
      To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize
others.
      To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to
permit the presence of trouble.

Posted by Lucas D'Cunha at 10:20 AM 0 comments

MONDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2007

The Road to Success is not straight:

The Road to Success is not straight:
There is a curve called failure, a loop called confusion, speed bumps called friends, caution
lights called family, and you will have flats called jobs.
But, if you have a spare called determination, an engine called perseverance, insurance called
faith, and a driver called God, you will make it to a place called success!
 
 
Posted by Reach Mentor at 3:55 PM 0 comments
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 23, 2007

Encouragement

Encouragement

Don't spend major time with minor people.

If there are people in your life who continually disappoint you, stomp on your dreams, are
too judgmental, have far too many expectations, are unreasonable, have different values and
don't have your back during difficult times...that is not friendship.

To have a friend, be a friend.

Sometimes in life as you grow, your friends will either grow or go. Surround yourself with
people who reflect values, goals interests and lifestyles.

When I think of any of my successes,

I am thankful to God from whom all blessings flow, and to my family and friends who enrich
my life.

Over the years my phone book has changed because I changed, for the better.
At first, you think you're going to be alone, but after awhile, new people show up in your life
that make it so much sweeter and easier to endure.

Remember what your elders used to say,

"Birds of a feather flock together.
If you're an eagle, don't hang around chickens:
Chickens can't fly!"
Posted by Reach Mentor at 5:50 PM 0 comments
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2007

Get A Life

Get A Life

This was a speech made by Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Anna Quindlen, at the graduation
ceremony of an American university where she was awarded an Honorary PhD.

"I'm a novelist. My work is human nature. Real life is all I know. Don't ever confuse the two,
your life & your work. You will walk out of here this afternoon with only one thing that no
one else has. There will be hundreds of people out there with your same degree: there will
be thousands of people doing what you want to do for a living. But you will be the only person
alive who has sole custody of your life. Your particular life. Your entire life. Not just your
life at a desk, or your life on a bus, or in a car, or at the computer. Not just the life of your
mind, but the life of your heart. Not just your bank accounts but also your soul.

People don't talk about the soul very much anymore. It's so much easier to write a resume
than to craft a spirit. But a resume is cold comfort on a winter's night, or when you're sad,
or broke, or lonely, or when you've received your test results & they're not so good.

Here is my resume: I am a good mother to three children. I have tried never to let my work
stand in the way of being a good parent. I no longer consider myself the centre of the
universe. I show up. I listen. I try to laugh. I am a good friend to my husband. I have tried
to make marriage vows mean what they say. I am a good friend to my friends & they to me.
Without them, there would be nothing to say to you today, because I would be a cardboard
cut out. But I call them on the phone, & I meet them for lunch. I would be rotten, at best,
mediocre at my job if those other things were not true.

You cannot be really first rate at your work if your work is all you are. So here's what I
wanted to tell you today: Get a life. A real life, not a manic pursuit of the next promotion,
the bigger pay cheque, the larger house. Do you think you'd care so very much about those
things if you blew an aneurysm this afternoon, or found a lump in your breast?

Get a life in which you notice the smell of salt water pushing itself on a breeze at the
seaside, a life in which you stop & watch how a red-tailed hawk circles over the water, or
the way a baby scowls with concentration when she tries to pick up a sweet with her thumb
& first finger. Get a life in which you are not alone. Find people you love, & who love you. And
remember that love is not leisure, it is work. Pick up the phone. Send an email. Write a
letter. Get a life in which you are generous. And realize that life is the best thing ever, &
that you have no business taking it for granted. Care so deeply about its goodness that you
want to spread it around. Take money you would have spent on beer & give it to charity.
Work in a soup kitchen. Be a big brother or sister.
All of you want to do well. But if you do not do good too, then doing well will never be
enough. It is so easy to waste our lives, our days, our hours, & our minutes. It is so easy to
take for granted the colour of our kids' eyes, the way the melody in a symphony rises & falls
& disappears & rises again.

It is so easy to exist instead of to live. I learned to live many years ago. I learned to love
the journey, not the destination. I learned that it is not a dress rehearsal, & that today is
the only guarantee you get. I learned to look at all the good in the world & try to give some
of it back because I believed in it, completely & utterly. And I tried to do that, in part, by
telling others what I had learned. By telling them this: Consider the lilies of the field. Look
at the fuzz on a baby's ear. Read in the back yard with the sun on your face. Learn to be
happy. And think of life as a terminal illness, because if you do, you will live it with joy and
passion as it ought to be lived."

Marcus 'Andrew' Philip Moris y Ibe Cruz Nacu

Marcus 'Andrew' Philip Moris y Ibe Cruz Nacu

"You have to love what you do. Chase your dreams. Help change the world of education! I think
that everyone should take some time in their day to do some social good and make things a
little better. Let's help each other to make that happen!"

"You should not ask what your country can do for you, but rather ask what you can do for your
country and simply do it! Selfless dedication and service to the nation."

"Stay strong as you always have and success is not only the fulfillment of your dreams but it is
as much of how you pursue them."

"The greatest teacher is the one who can make his students better than himself."

"A country's competitiveness starts not on the factory floor or in the engineering lab. It starts in
the classroom."

"You can think and speak for yourselves, by your own wits and on your own two feet, and you
can do so no matter what the rest of the people in the room may be thinking."

Be Yourself

Be Yourself
Author Unknown

Ever since I was a little kid, I didn't want to be me. I wanted to be like Billy
Widdledon, and Billy Widdledon didn't even like me. I walked like he walked; I
talked like he talked; and I signed up for the high school he signed up for.

Which was why Billy Widdledon changed. He began to hang around Herby Vandeman;
he walked like Herby Vandeman; he talked like Herby Vandeman. He mixed me up! I
began to walk and talk like Billy Widdledon, who was walking and talking like Herby
Vandeman.

And then it dawned on me that Herby Vandeman walked and talked like Joey
Haverlin. And Joey Haverlin walked and talked like Corky Sabinson.

So here I am walking and talking like Billy Widdledon's imitation of Herby

Vandeman's version of Joey Haverlin, trying to walk and talk like Corky Sabinson.
And who do you think Corky Sabinson is always walking and talking like? Of all
people, Dopey Wellington - that little pest who walks and talks like me!

Winners Vs. Losers

 
The Winner is always part of the answer;
The Loser is always part of the problem.

The Winner always has a program;

The Loser always has an excuse.

The Winner says, "Let me do it for you";

The Loser says, "That is not my job."

The Winner sees an answer for every problem;

The Loser sees a problem for every answer.

The Winner says, "It may be difficult but it is possible";

The Loser says, "It may be possible but i t is too difficult."

When a Winner makes a mistake, he says, "I was wrong";

When a Loser makes a mistake, he says, "It wasn't my fault."

A Winner makes commitments;

A Loser makes promises.

Winners have dreams;

Losers have schemes.

Winners say, "I must do something";

Losers say, "Something must be done."

Winners are a part of the team;

Losers are apart from the team.

Winners see the gain;

Losers see the pain.

Winners see possibilities;

Losers see problems.
Winners believe in win-win;
Losers believe for them to win someone has to lose.

Winners see the potential;

Losers see the past.

Winners are like a thermostat;

Losers are like thermometers.

Winners choose what they say;

Losers say what they choose.

Winners use hard arguments but soft words;

Losers use soft arguments but hard words.

Winners stand firm on values but compromise on petty things;

Losers stand firm on petty things but compromise on values.

Winners follow the philosophy of empathy: "Don't do to others what you would not want them
to do to you";
Losers follow the philosophy, "Do it to others before they do it to you "

Winners make it happen;

Losers let it happen.

Winners plan and prepare to win.

The key word is preparation

-- Author Unknown

Always persist

Always persist

Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when
they gave up.

Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more
common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a
proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and
determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan "Press On" has solved and always will solve
the problems of the human race.

One of the keys to being successful in anything you do is persistence. Once you have
determined exactly what it is you want to accomplish, you must take massive action on a
consistent, persistent basis in order to succeed. Think of it like building a muscle. If you
have never weight trained before, the first time you walk into a gym, chances are you will
not be able to bench press 250 lbs. However, if you are persistent, and you consistently go
back to the gym, you will find yourself getting stronger and closer to your goal with each
and every visit.

One of the things you'll notice on your journey towards your goal, are roadblocks. That is,
you will encounter obstacles that seem to jump out of nowhere in an attempt to halt your
progress. Count on these obstacles. They are a part of life. Everyone would have every
success they ever wanted if there were no obstacles. Your job is to be persistent and work
through those obstacles. If you find little or no obstacles along the way, chances are you
are not really challenging yourself. And when you do reach your goal, you won't experience
the feeling of 'sweet success'. Make your goal a challenging one!

If you take the time to study any successful person, you will learn that the vast majority of
them have had more 'failures' than they have had 'successes'. This is because successful
people are persistent; the more they stumble and fall, the more they get right back up and
get going again. On the other hand, people that don't get back up and try again, never reach
success. For example, Walt Disney was turned down 302 times before he got financing for
his dream of creating the "Happiest Place on Earth". Today, due to his persistence, millions
of people have shared 'the joy of Disney'. Colonel Sanders spent two years driving across
the United States looking for restaurants to buy his chicken recipe. He was turned down
1,009 times! How successful is Kentucky Fried Chicken today? Having said this, keep in mind
that you must constantly reevaluate your circumstances and the approach you are using to
reach your goal. There is no sense in being persistent at something that you are doing
incorrectly! Sometimes you have to modify your approach along the way. Every time you do
something you learn from it, and therefore find a better way to do it the next time.

Conversation with GOD – Never give up and never quit

Today I decided to quit... I quit my job, my relationship, my spirituality, I wanted to quit my

life...

I went to the woods to have one last talk with GOD.

"GOD", I said.
"Can you give me one good reason not to quit?"
His answer surprised me...

"Look around", GOD said.

"Do you see the fern and the bamboo?"

"Yes", I replied.

"When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took very good care of them. I gave
them light. I gave them water. The fern quickly grew from the earth. Its brilliant green
covered the floor. Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the
bamboo. In the second year the Fern grew more vibrant and plentiful. And again, nothing
came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo." GOD said.

"In year three there was still nothing from the bamboo seed. But I would not quit."

"In year four, again, there was nothing from the bamboo see. I would not quit." GOD said.

"Then in the fifth year a tiny sprout emerged from the earth. Compared to the fern it was
seemingly small and insignificant."

"But just 6months later the bamboo rose to over 100 feet tall. It had spent the five years
growing roots. Those roots made it strong and gave it what it needed to survive. I would not
give any of my creations a challenge it could not handle." GOD said to me.

"Did you know, that all this time you have been struggling, you have actually been growing
roots?"

"I would not quit on the bamboo. I will never quit on you. Don't compare yourself to others."
GOD said.

"The bamboo had a different purpose than the fern. Yet they both make the forest
beautiful." GOD said.

"Your time will come", GOD said to me.

"You will rise high"

"How high should I rise?" I asked.

"How high will the bamboo rise?" GOD asked in return.

"As high as it can?" I questioned

"Yes." GOD said,

"Give me glory by rising as high as you can."

I left the forest and bring back this story. I hope these words can help you see that GOD
will never give up on you.

GOD will never give up on you

"Life is not a problem to be solved, but a gift to be enjoyed"

How to overcome failure in Life
How to overcome failure in Life

Adversity is like a strong wind. It tears away from us all but the things that cannot be torn, so
that we see ourselves as we really are.

Have you ever faced failure in life and don't know how to overcome it? Are you still dwelling
on your past wherein you should be concentrating more on your future? Read on and find out
how to overcome adversity in life.

Life is smooth till such time a wave of adversity does not swipe us off the ground. Ups and
downs are part of life and there is nothing we can do about it because the Universe has its own
way of working. Things that we desire the most are not given to us and what we get is not what
we desire.

We all have a goal, the desire to succeed and also work hard towards it. During our struggle to
meet our goals, we succeed at times and at times we face very sever and adverse failures, but
then that's not the end of road. Some people fight back and many succumb to the
circumstances.

It is not wrong to fail, but it is a crime if you don't get back up again and try. Look around
you... look at the birds and animals. They keep trying to survive by hunting for food, at times
they get it early and at times they fail. But if they start thinking that this whole process of
finding food does not result into anything, then they would not survive.

If you fail and hit the ground hard, always remember, the only way where you can go is UP.

In the words of Henry Ford:

"Life is a series of experiences, each one of which makes us bigger, even though sometimes it
is hard to realize this. For the world was built to develop character, and we must learn that
the setbacks and grieves which we endure help us in our marching onward."

Following are some tips to help you overcome failure:

1. Stop blaming yourself and people associated with you

You might have tried very hard and failed but you should always remember that not all
circumstances are under your control. When people fail, they usually don't try to find out why
they failed, but instead they start blaming themselves.

Do you blame yourself for a failure? Do you really think that you were responsible for your
failure? Do you really think that despite trying very hard, you did not get through? We all try
hard and then at times we fail. Many reasons could be attributed to it. Instead of blaming
ourselves (which is easy), we should try to find the reason why we failed. By doing this, not
only will you have a greater understanding where you went wrong, but you will avoid repeating
the same mistake in the next attempt.

2. Don't ever think that all your efforts have been wasted
To achieve something in life a dedicated effort is required. Some people give it their 100% and
some people don't. But no matter what, none of your efforts ever get wasted. In the process of
trying again and again, we gain experience of the mistakes we should avoid to achieve the
desired result. Taking the example of Thomas Edison, the man who invented Light Bulb, he
failed over 1000 times before he could derive at the bulb that we use today. At a press
conference he announced that he now knows 1000 ways of how not to make a light bulb.
Never get disheartened and always enjoy learning the new things that you discover on your way
to be successful.

3. Try another approach

You try once, twice and then thrice… with a similar approach; and then what do you do? Give
Up!!! Have you ever thought that the approach that you use to achieve something is wrong and
would require either a complete new way of looking at things or would require you to tweak
your approach a little and then try again? All scientific discoveries and inventions have taken
years of hard work and dedication. Do you think that doctors and scientist across the world
have got a working model of their inventions in the very first attempt? Do you think that for all
repeated attempts at their inventions they followed a similar approach? I think you got the
answer.

4. Take a break for a while

When we try hard to achieve goals in life we sometimes get into the rut of doing things which
has an effect our thinking process. Without a good thinking process and creativity how do you
propose to achieve what you desire the most? In my personal experience taking a short break
helps when you feel that you have reached a road block on proceeding ahead. This short break
recharges you and helps you to think of a solution which you have never thought of before.
Spend sometime with friends and family. Try to socialize a little and when you feel that you
are completely recharged give your dreams a second shot.

Some useful quotes to inspire you

"A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent in
doing nothing."
George Bernard Shaw

"I cannot give you the formula for success, but I can give you the formula for failure: which is:
Try to please everybody."
Herbert B. Swope

"Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes."

Oscar Wilde

"Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm."

Winston Churchill

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

"Inside of a ring or out, ain't nothing wrong with going down. It's staying down that's wrong."
Muhammad Ali

I would like to conclude which I learnt when I was a child "Try, Try again till you succeed!"

Five Steps Towards Greater Self Confidence

Five Steps Towards Greater Self Confidence

We watch the star athlete calmly make the final shot, score the winning goal, or lead his team
for a touchdown in the final minute of the game. We marvel at their talent and their
determination, but what we value and admire most is the supreme confidence they display –
they know they will succeed.
Confidence is an attribute that is alluring, attractive, valuable, desirable and contagious. Most
everyone aspires to greater levels of it, even if they feel confident most of the time. It is a
trait that will help us create greater results for ourselves and when leading others. Any trait
with this much benefit is one worth developing. And yes, you can develop and strengthen your
confidence.

Consider these five steps as the building blocks for greater confidence in any part of your life.

1. Remind yourself of past successes. Confidence builds on past success. Since you have had
success before, you can (and will) have it again. We strengthen our confidence in any activity
when we review or remind ourselves of past successes. If you are trying to build confidence in a
new area, past success can still help us strengthen our confidence. For example, if you have
had success in doing something new in the past, review those experiences when trying
something else new – even if it is in an entirely different part of your life.

2. Read and listen to positive materials. Fill your mind with positive and affirming words,
ideas and stories. Read things that enhances your skills or knowledge in the area in which you
want to build your confidence. Read materials that are generally uplifting and affirming, and
read biographies of successful people. You will find that many of them had troubles in life,
came from tough situations and still succeeded. If you have ever thought, "Well, if they can do,
I could too." Then you realize that we can build our confidence by reading about others stories.
Reading and listening to positive materials is about reinforcement, encouragement, and
learning. All three of these components are needed for greater confidence.

3. See your future success. Olympic athletes, corporate executives, and successful people in
all sorts of endeavors visualize future success. Confidence will grow when we see ourselves
succeeding. Think about it, if you know you will succeed, your confidence will soar, right?
Visualizing future success does that very thing for us. Our minds cannot tell the difference
between something real and something vividly imagined. So vividly visualize your success. What
will it look like, smell like, and taste like to have succeeded? Who will be with you, what will
you be hearing and where will you be? How will you be feeling at that moment? Putting this
much detail into your vivid picture improves the likelihood of success, and supports greater
confidence!

4. Reframe failure. Thomas Edison spent a long time trying to create an incandescent light
bulb – to create light from electricity. He is attributed with saying, "I have not failed, I have
discovered twelve hundred materials that don't work." 1,200! Perhaps you feel you can reframe
your failures as learning experiences – as a chance to find out what doesn't work. But would you
be able to do so 1,200 times? Know that failures will occur - and your confidence won't be as
shaken when they come. Use the failures as an opportunity to learn. Realize that every failure
puts you that much closer to success. When we reframe our failure as a learning experience we
reduce our fear and increase our confidence.

5. Take confident action. You wanted confidence to help you try and succeed in new ways,
right? So get out there and get at it! You have to put your confidence to the test. You have to
practice. And, while you are taking action, make it confident action! Remember that if you act
confident, you will be more confident. Review the other steps you have been taking to build
your confidence. If you are driving towards your new action step, remind yourself of past
successes, again. Visualize the successful outcome, again. Build your confidence at every step
of the way, but remember it all must lead to action.

These steps are a regimen for strengthening and building your confidence in any life situation.
Use these steps and I am confident, you will be more confident.   
~ WHAT YOU SAY IS WHAT YOU GET ~

- What You Say Is What You Get -

The Power Of Affirmations..

Affirmations are statements of what you want in your life.

Affirmations reflect the spiritual law of perfection
everywhere now.
They are based on Spiritual Truth not your current
experience of
life.

Some people have trouble with affirmations because they

feel
they are not speaking the truth when they use an
affirmation. For
instance, if you are sick and you say, "I am whole, healthy,
and
energized," it might feel like a lie; however, affirmations
are
not
the facts of your current situation. They represent the
experiences
you want to have in your life.

Affirmations are not a method of communication; they are

a tool
of creation. If you want to tell your neighbor about the
facts in
your life, do not use an affirmation. But, if you want to
create a
new reality, use affirmations.
Remember, even your idle words have power. Telling your
neighbor the facts of your current problem adds energy to
those
problems. If your neighbor can not help you, use the
power of your
words to create what you want and not what you do not
want.

Your words have more power in your life than the

opinions of
your neighbors. Use your words wisely. Develop
affirmations that
represent the life you would like to live. Use those
affirmations on
a consistent basis. Watch your life transform to reflect the
power
of your words.

An affirmation is a positive statement expressed in the

present
tense. It should not contain references to what you do not
want only
what you do want. For instance, suppose you have cancer
and want to
be well. Your affirmation might be, " I am healthy and
energetic.
All of my cells are healthy and functioning perfectly."

Notice the statement is in the present tense. It does not

say I
will be healthy. It says I am healthy. Also notice the
statement
does not mention cancer. It only refers to the positive
condition
you are trying to create.

Learn to use the power of affirmations and your life will

reflect the new image your words express.

Marty Varnadoe Dow

HOW TO USE DISCOURAGEMENT TO MOTIVATE YOURSELF

How to Use Discouragement to Motivate Yourself

Ever feel like giving up? Do you ever feel so discouraged

that even
one more day of frustration will be too much too handle?
Everyone gets discouraged at times only there are a
number of key
differences between people who keep on going and those
who give up:

1 Focus On Your Goal Not On Your Problems

Some people love solving problems. All day long they

take on one
problem after another and just keep going.
How do they do this when most people would feel
overwhelmed?
They understands the importance of focus. They never
loses sight of
their goal and make sure that their goals are so exciting
that
problems are nothing more than stepping stones to the
achievement of
their results.
If you are feeling discouraged it is very likely because
your focus
is on what has not worked. Your focus is on your
setbacks and your
fears.
Discipline your mind to focus on your goals and
discouragement will
fade into the distance.

2 Ask For Help

You do not have to deal with everything alone. Ask for

help from
someone who is qualified to help you and act on whatever
good advice
they may offer.
Two minds are better than one, especially when your mind
is full of
discouragement.
You will feel stronger knowing that someone else is
backing you;
someone else cares enough to be keen to see you
succeed.
The only thing stopping your from getting from where you
are to
where you want to be is -- learning! Learning an effective
approach.
If you do not know the answer why waste time guessing
when you can
open your mouth and ask?
3 Learn How Your Mind Works

Once you take charge of your thoughts and your emotions

you will be
able to deal with whatever challenges come your way.
Until that
appens you will always be at mercy to the merry-go-round
of life.
The most valuable gift you can give yourself is the ability
to
master self-motivation.
The moment I finally understood how to motivate myself
was the day
my life changed forever. I discovered a tenacity that sees
me though
any challenges I have to deal with.
Until you learn how to run your brain it really is like having
a
super computer without a user manual. The power to
motivate yourself
will never be available to you until you commit to learning
how to
do it.
Feelings of frustration, discouragement and overwhelm
are not random
occurrences. It all comes down to how you use your mind.

Have a Great Day

The Teeth of The Dog

The Teeth of The Dog

One saint was walking in the meadows with some kids. It was a wonderful, clear day,
with all the flowers blooming, and a nice smell on the air. But gradually the kids
started to smell something rotten. It might be a dead animal.

As they walked, the smell became stronger and they found out it was a dead dog by
the side of the path. One of the kids said, "It's all rotted." Another kid said, "The
intestines are all out." Still another kid added, "There are ants coming out of the
hollows of his eye."

Then, the saint added, "It had nice white teeth."

The moral is that sometimes we focus on the bad things, when everything seems to be
bad. But always, bad things have something good. Our days ALWAYS have the teeth
of the dog; something nice to wake up for that we must try to find during our day.

Look for your "teeth of the dog" today!

Posted by Srinivasa Raghavan at 2:15 PM 0 comments
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 5, 2007

The Mousetrap
The Mousetrap

A mouse looked through a crack in the wall to see the farmer and his wife opening a
package; what food might it contain? He was aghast to discover that it was a mouse trap!
Retreating to the farmyard, the mouse proclaimed the warning, "There is a mouse trap in
the house, there is a mouse trap in the house."

The chicken clucked and scratched, raised her head and said, "Mr. Mouse, I can tell you this
is a grave concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me; I cannot be bothered by it."
The mouse turned to the pig and told him, "There is a mouse trap in the house." "I am so
very sorry Mr. Mouse," sympathized the pig, "but there is nothing I can do about it but pray;
be assured that you are in my prayers."

The mouse turned to the cow, who replied, "Like wow, Mr. Mouse, a mouse trap; am I in
grave danger, Duh?" So the mouse returned to the house, head down and dejected to face
the farmer's mouse trap alone.

That very night a sound was heard throughout the house, like the sound of a mouse trap
catching its prey. The farmer's wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she
did not see that it was a venomous snake whose tail the trap had caught. The snake bit the
farmer's wife.The farmer rushed her to the hospital. She returned home with a fever.
Now everyone knows you treat a fever with fresh chicken soup, so the farmer took his
hatchet to the farmyard for the soup's main ingredient. His wife's sickness continued so
that friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer
butchered the pig. The farmer's wife did not get well, in fact, she died, and so many people
came for her funeral the farmer had the cow slaughtered to provide meat for all of them to
eat.

So the next time you hear that someone is facing a problem and think that it does not
concern you, remember that when the least of us is threatened, we are all at risk.

Bend, but Don't Break

Bend, but Don't Break

One of my fondest memories as a child is going by the river and sitting idly on the bank.
There I would enjoy the peace and quiet, watch the water rush downstream, and listen to
the chirps of birds and the rustling of leaves in the trees. I would also watch the bamboo
trees bend under pressure from the wind and watch them return gracefully to their upright
or original position after the wind had died down.

When I think about the bamboo tree's ability to bounce back or return to its original
position, the word resilience comes to mind. When used in reference to a person this word
means the ability to readily recover from shock, depression or any other situation that
stretches the limits of a person's emotions.
Have you ever felt like you are about to snap? Have you ever felt like you are at your
breaking point? Thankfully, you have survived the experience to live to talk about it.
During the experience you probably felt a mix of emotions that threatened your health.
You felt emotionally drained, mentally exhausted and you most likely endured unpleasant
physical symptoms.

Life is a mixture of good times and bad times, happy moments and unhappy moments. The
next time you are experiencing one of those bad times or unhappy moments that take you
close to your breaking point then bend but don't break. Try your best not to let the
situation get the best of you.

A measure of hope will take you through the unpleasant ordeal. With hope for a better
tomorrow or a better situation, things may not be as bad as they seem to be. The
unpleasant ordeal may be easier to deal with if the end result is worth having.

If the going gets tough and you are at your breaking point, show resilience like the bamboo
tree, bend, but don't break!

~ THE CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT FROMULA ~

The Continuous Improvement Formula

By Brian Tracy

Put Your Career On The Fast Track

There are many things you can do to put your career onto
the fast
track. You can set clear, specific goals for each area of
your life
and then make plans to accomplish them. You can plan
your work and
work your plan.

Ask For Greater Responsibility

You can accept 100% responsibility for everything you are
and
everything you become. You can refuse to make excuses
or to blame
others. You can tell your boss that you want greater
responsibilities and then when you get them, put your
whole heart
into doing an excellent job.

Utilize Your Inborn Talents

In the parable of the talents in the New Testament, Jesus
says, "Oh
good and faithful servant, you have been faithful over
small things.
I will make you master over large things."

If you too will carry out every assignment to the very best
of your
ability, you will be given larger and more important things
to do
and you'll be paid more as a result.

Dedicate Yourself To Continuous Improvement

The key to long term success is for you to dedicate
yourself to
continuous improvement. If you become one tenth of one
percent more
productive each day, that amounts to 1/1000th
improvement per
working day. Is that possible? Of course it is!

Improve A Little At A Time

If you become one tenth of one percent more productive
each day,
that amounts to one half of one percent more productive
each week.
One half of one percent more productive each week
amounts to two
percent more productive each month and 26% more
productive each
year.

The cumulative effect if becoming a tiny bit better at your

field
and more productive amounts to a tremendous increase
in your value
and your output over time.

How To Double Your Productivity

Twenty-six percent more productive each year, with
compounding,
amounts to doubling your overall productivity and
performance every
2.7 years. If you become 26% more productive each year,
with
compounding, times 10 years, you will be 1004% more
productive over
the next decade. That is an increase of ten times over ten
years.

The Reason For All Great Successes

This is called the Law of Accumulation, or the Principle of
Incremental Improvement. It is the primary reason for all
great
success stories. By the yard, it's hard. But inch by inch,
anything's a cinch!

Become A 1000% Person

Make a decision, right now, to be a 1000% person. Commit
yourself to
continuous personal and professional development. Read,
listen to
audio programs and take additional courses. This process
will
completely transform your life.

Action Exercises
Here are two things you can do to put these ideas into
action
immediately.

First, make a plan to become a little bit better every single

day.
Learn and apply one new idea each day to help you to
become more
productive and effective at your work. The incremental
affect will
amaze you.

Second, be patient. Don't expect overnight changes or

instant
results. Remember the story of the tortoise and the hare.
Become a
little bit better each day and your future will take care of
itself.
Five Key Skills for Academic Success

Five Key Skills for Academic Success

It takes a combination of skills: organization, time management, prioritization,

concentration and motivation, to achieve academic success. Here are some tips to help
get your child on the right track.

Talk to your child. To find out which of these skills your child has and which he can
develop further, start a simple conversation that focuses on his goals. Ask him about
his favorite subjects, classes he dreads and whether he's satisfied with his latest
progress report.

Listen for clues. Incorporate your own observations with your child's self-assessment.
Is your child overwhelmed by assignments? He may have trouble organizing time. Does
your child have difficulty completing his work? He may get distracted too easily. Is
your child simply not interested in school? He may need help getting motivated.

Identify problem areas. Start here to help your child identify which of the five skill
areas are trouble spots.

1. Organization
Whether it's keeping track of research materials or remembering to bring home a
lunch box, children need to be organized to succeed in school. For many students,
academic challenges are related more to a lack of organization than to a lack of
intellectual ability.
Tips to help your child get organized:
Ü      • Make a checklist of things your child needs to bring to and from school every
day. Put a copy by the door at home and one in his backpack. Try to check
with him each day to see if he remembers the items on the list.
Ü      • Find out how your child keeps track of his homework and how he organizes
his notebooks. Then work together to develop a system he will want to use.
Ü      • Shop with your child for tools that will help him stay organized, such as
binders, folders or an assignment book.

2. Time Management
Learning to schedule enough time to complete an assignment may be difficult for your
student. Even when students have a week to do a project, many won't start until the
night before it's due. Learning to organize time into productive blocks takes practice
and experience.
Tips to help your child manage time:
Ü      • Track assignments on a monthly calendar. Work backward from the due date
of larger assignments and break them into nightly tasks.
 Ü      • Help your child record how much time he spends on homework each week so
he can figure out how to divide this time into manageable chunks.
Ü      • Together, designate a time for nightly homework and help your child stick to
this schedule.
Ü      • If evenings aren't enough, help your child find other times for schoolwork,
such as early mornings, study halls or weekends.

3. Prioritization
Sometimes children fall behind in school and fail to hand in assignments because they
simply don't know where to begin. Prioritizing tasks is a skill your child will need
throughout life, so it's never too soon to get started.
Tips to help your child prioritize:
Ü      • Ask your child to write down all the things he needs to do, including non-
school-related activities.
Ü      • Ask him to label each task from 1 to 3, with 1 being most important.
Ü      • Ask about each task, so that you understand your child's priorities. If he
labels all his social activities as 1, then you know where his attention
Ü      is focused.
Ü      • Help your child change some of the labels to better prioritize for academic
success. Then suggest he rewrite the list so all the 1's are at the top.
Ü      • Check in frequently to see how the list is evolving and how your child is
prioritizing new tasks.

4. Concentration
Whether your child is practicing his second grade spelling words or studying for a
trigonometry test, it's important that he works on schoolwork in an area with limited
distractions and interruptions.
Tips to help your child concentrate:
Ü      • Turn off access to email and games when your child works on the computer.
Ü      • Declare the phone and TV off-limits during homework time.
Ü      • Find space that fits the assignment. If your child is working on a science
project, he may need lots of space; if he's studying for a Spanish test, he will
need a well-lit desk.
Ü      • Help your child concentrate during homework time by separating him from
Ü      his siblings.

5. Motivation
Most children say they want to do well in school, yet many still fail to complete the
level of work necessary to succeed academically. The reason is often motivation.
Tapping into your child's interests is a great way to get him geared to do well in
school.
Tips to help motivate your child:
Ü      • Link school lessons to your child's life. If he's learning percentages, ask him
to figure out the price of a discounted item next time you shop.
Ü      • Link your child's interests to academics. If he's passionate about music, give
him books about musicians and show how music and foreign languages
 Ü      are connected.
Ü      • Give your child control and choices. With guidance, let him determine his
study hours, organizing system or school project topics.
Ü      • Encourage your child to share his expertise. Regularly ask him about what
he's learning in school.
Ü      • Congratulate your child, encourage him and celebrate all his successes.
Often what holds children back from trying is the fear of failure or the memory of a
time they didn't do well. You can help break this cycle by celebrating your child's
successes, no matter how small, and by giving him opportunities to succeed
academically.

No Matter Where You Are At In Your Life, YOU CAN

No Matter Where You Are At In Your Life, YOU CAN
By Piercarla Garusi

I was reading through some statistics regarding depression and the percentage of people
suffering from this has increased substantially. And I remembered what I often hear from
people: "I have failed in my life," or "I have not achieved anything," or "I experienced such
and such in my past and it will jeopardize my entire life," or "I have made a lot of
mistakes," or "I have been feeling depressed or anxious for so many years and I can't
change."

Do you think if we have such thoughts we are going to feel good? Well, no. We actually
make ourselves depressed.

Now, the truth is that no matter where you are at in your life right now, no matter what
your past has been, no matter what your present circumstances are, no matter how you
have been feeling for years, no matter the mistakes you have made, you can change your
future. That is for sure. The thing is that sometimes we don't know what can help us to
change, so here are some ideas...

The first thing to do is to take total and full responsibility. You are the only person
responsible for your actions, for your behaviors, for your thoughts, for your emotions, for
your health, wealth, happiness, inner peace, etc., for your life. You might have heard
about the great movie 'The Secret' and how it shows how much power you really have.
Your thoughts create. It is the Law of Attraction. Everything that has happened in your life,
everything that is happening, you create. For some people it might be a little
uncomfortable to take this on board, but it is the truth. Blaming or complaining is simply
giving your power away. But this also means that you can change anything you want in your
life by a simple shift in your awareness. Every bit is really down to you.

Now, let us consider things in order. If you have experienced a difficult past, time line
therapy is very helpful. Whatever you have experienced in the past, time line therapy does
not go back into the past and analyze it; that would keep you there. Instead it gives you
the power to feel free from your past and empowered to create your future. It enables you
to relive it with more empowering resources and change the memory of it.

If you feel, for example, depressed or anxious, NLP and hypnosis are incredibly powerful
tools to enable you to take control of your emotional state. All emotions generate from
thoughts, beliefs, the meaning we give to events, self-talk, and you are the master of your
own mind. But the thing is that nobody has given us a manual of how the brain works, so
when we do not feel good we do not know what to do. If we buy a PC we are given a
manual, and your brain is an extraordinary computer! Once you know how the conscious
and subconscious mind works, you can take control of your emotional state, and so choose
how to feel.

Now, another thing to point out is that if we do the same things, we get the same results.
So, sometimes we feel stuck in our life or our habits, but if we want to change we need to
change what we do and think. So, if you are doing something that makes you feel bad or
does not work, stop, right now, and do something different, and you will get different
results.

Guilt is a very powerful and damaging emotion, and what I have often found with clients is
that we have a strong tendency to beat ourselves up harshly. Now, everybody makes
mistakes, and what we need to do is recognize them, take full responsibility, learn from
them and grow. One aspect of this is taking full responsibility for our behavior; a very
different thing to feeling guilty about it. The way we treat ourselves has a very strong
impact on our emotional state. And if I were to ask you: "Would you treat another person as
harshly as you treat yourself?" I am sure your answer would be no. So, please treat yourself
with the same compassion as you would your best friend. Now, do you think God would
want you to beat yourself up? No, no, no. Please be kind to yourself. God loves you
unconditionally: forgive and love yourself. Strive for excellence, not perfection. And
always remember you always do the best you can at all times with the resources you have
got.

Now, one of the reasons why we do not achieve what we want in life is because we do not
know what we want. Many people live a life by default, they react to what happens, but
are they going to make themselves happy? Maybe, maybe not. How about if you could work
more smartly? If you could know what makes you happy and create it in your life? So,
establish a vision of the life that you really want, establish goals toward that vision, and
actions to take. And if you know what you want and you focus on it, and expect it to
happen, the Law of Attraction says it will manifest, without exception.

So, what are you going to do today to become the person you want to be and create the life
you want to live?

The Sunrise in Africa

The Sunrise in Africa

Every morning in Africa, when the sun rises, a Deer awakens, knowing it has to outrun
the fastest lion or be hunted to death…

Every morning in Africa, when the sun rises, a Lion awakens, knowing it has to outrun
the slowest deer, or starve to death…

It does not matter whether you are a deer or a lion, when the sun rises –

BETTER BE RUNNING AT YOUR BEST

Abraham Lincoln's Letter to Headmaster
Abraham Lincoln's Letter to Headmaster

A letter written by Abraham Lincoln to the Headmaster of a school in which his son was
studying. It contains an advice, which is still relevant today for executives, workers,
teachers, parents and students.

A WORD TO TEACHERS

"He will have to learn, I know, that all men are not just and are not true. But teach him if
you can the wonder of books... but also give him quiet time to ponder the eternal mystery
of birds in the sky, bees in the sun and flowers on a green hillside.

In school, teach him it is far more honourable to fall than to cheat...

Teach to have faith in his own ideas, even if everyone tells him he is wrong.

Teach him to be gentle with gentlepeople and tough with the tough. Try to give my son the
strength not to follow the crowd when everyone getting on the bandwagon...

Teach him to listen to all men; but teach him also to filter all he hears on a screen of truth,
and take only the good that comes through.

Teach him, if you can how to laugh when he is sad... Teach him there is no shame in tears.

Teach him to scoff at cynics and to be aware of too much sweetness.

Teach him to sell his brawn and brain to highest bidders, but never to put a price on his
heart and soul.

Teach him to close his ears to a howling mob... and stand and fight if thinks he is right.

Treat him gently, but do not cuddle him, because only the test of fire makes fine steel. Let
him have the courage to be impatient. Let him have the patience to be brave.

Teach him always to have sublime faith in himself, because then he will have faith in
humankind.

This is a big order, but see what you can do. He is such a fine little fellow my son!

- Abraham Lincoln"
The Paradox
The Paradox
Contributed by: Rakesh Saxena

The paradox of our time in history is that

We have taller buildings but shorter tempers,

wider Freeways, but narrower viewpoints.
we spend more, but have less,
we buy more, but enjoy less.
we have bigger houses and smaller families,
more conveniences, but less time.
we have more degrees but less sense,
more knowledge, but less judgment,
more experts, yet more problems,
more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much,

spend too recklessly, laugh too little,
drive too fast, get too angry,
stay up too late, get up too tired,
read too little, watch TV too much,
& pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.

We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life.

We've added years to life not life to years.
We've been all the way to the moon & back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a
new neighbor.
We conquered outer space but not inner space. We've done larger things, but not better
things.

We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.

We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.
We write more, but learn less.
We plan more, but accomplish less.
We've learned to rush, but not to wait.
We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but
we communicate less & less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion,

big men & small character,
steep profits & shallow relationships.
These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes.
These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands,
overweight bodies, & pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill.

It is a time when there is much in the showroom window & nothing in the stockroom. A
time when technology can bring this mail to you, & a time when you can choose either to
share this insight, or to just hit delete...

Bend, but Don't Break

Bend, but Don't Break

One of my fondest memories as a child is going by the river and sitting idly on the
bank. There I would enjoy the peace and quiet, watch the water rush downstream, and
listen to the chirps of birds and the rustling of leaves in the trees. I would also watch
the bamboo trees bend under pressure from the wind and watch them return gracefully
to their upright or original position after the wind had died down.

When I think about the bamboo tree's ability to bounce back or return to its original
position, the word resilience comes to mind. When used in reference to a person this
word means the ability to readily recover from shock, depression or any other situation
that stretches the limits of a person's emotions.
Have you ever felt like you are about to snap? Have you ever felt like you are at your
breaking point? Thankfully, you have survived the experience to live to talk about it.
During the experience you probably felt a mix of emotions that threatened your
health. You felt emotionally drained, mentally exhausted and you most likely endured
unpleasant physical symptoms.

Life is a mixture of good times and bad times, happy moments and unhappy moments.
The next time you are experiencing one of those bad times or unhappy moments that
take you close to your breaking point then bend but don't break. Try your best not to
let the situation get the best of you.

A measure of hope will take you through the unpleasant ordeal. With hope for a better
tomorrow or a better situation, things may not be as bad as they seem to be. The
unpleasant ordeal may be easier to deal with if the end result is worth having.

If the going gets tough and you are at your breaking point, show resilience like the
bamboo tree, bend, but don't break!

Posted by Srinivasa Raghavan at 6:22 PM 1 comments

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 24, 2007

~ A MOTTO TO LIVE BY ~
A Motto to Live By

When the world gets you down, put things in perspective.

Move ahead in a positive way; don't allow yourself to become mired in a
negative view.

See things for what they really are.

Don't let the little things get in the way.

Do what you can, however you can, with the resources you have available to
you.

Don't sell yourself short; you have the power within you to change what
needs changing.

Face the situation with the resolve to remedy it; do what you need to do to
put it behind you.

Move ahead in the direction of happiness; go for your dreams and reach for
your star.

And remember who's in the driver's seat: You Are!

Collin McCarty

THE MAGIC OF SELF-ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

THE MAGIC OF SELF-ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Just like a car cannot drive without fuel, a person's 'drive' requires acknowledgement. We
all need to hear, "Keep it up!" once in awhile to keep our passion alive. To be
acknowledged by others for our efforts—large and small—is affirming. We know that others
value what we do and that knowledge propels us to continue to give our best.
So why is it that you lagging sometimes behind a league of successful people? Even you can
do it, go ahead and achieve the best out of your available resources.

So what are you lacking?

Just out of resentment at your work, perhaps your mom had just made you feel pathetic
about your scores in the exams. Perhaps your boss has reprimanded you being eccentric in
the organization. So what's the big deal? They have the freedom to tell you anything and
everything and finally go ahead and carry out with their daily chores of work. Remember
you have to prove them wrong! It can be by any means or by any channel. Find out the
reasons of you going unnoticed. Figure out your efficiency levels and come up with a
positive modus-operandi. Take a time-out and value the antipathy that reached you. If you
value the antipathy you can work towards your success. Think intensely, keep thinking,
value the antipathy, consider the different ways to combat it and be assured of the fact
that you will create an anti-dote for the aversion that has just shattered you.

Learn to acknowledge
As kids, we were all loved and showered with acknowledgements from our parents,
relatives, neighbours and even friends at certain times. Human beings always crave for any
kind of acknowledgement. We wait for everything and almost anything. We wait for
parent's approval, wait for our boss to give us a handsome pay-rise, wait to spend the most
enchanting and blissful moment with our soul mates. As we grow up we tend to ignore
certain achievements which may not be meaningful in terms of success. We should always
learn to be happy with what we have with us. Learn to acknowledge your own
achievements, no matter what it is. Don't try to associate everything in terms of success
and failures. Rather take a more positive approach towards everyday life.

The Self-Acknowledgement Syndrome

• Always learn to acknowledge yourself at least 10 times in a day on something you feel
you have done well. It can be anything right from scoring a huge six in a gulley cricket
match or for safely driving your car to the office.
• If you start appreciating other people by acknowledging them, making them feel good,
they will start noticing your act of goodness and they will indeed come back with
something to make you feel good. This is a very effective tool to mark your success and
stay perked up even at real testing times of your life.
• Whenever you mark yourself with a self acknowledging factor, make it a point that you
speak to your own self or if possible scream at the top of your voice and just believe the
magic of your own words will make you feel positive and vibrant from all corners.
• The key to make positive changes in our lives lies in understanding how the process
works. It needs to feel good and exciting. The more fun and energy you create, the
stronger its effect will be on yourself and others. So next time when somebody tries to pin
a blame on you or reprimands you, never lose hope. Take it rationally and work to improve
yourself with an extraordinary change.

Are You Thinking The Right Thing?

Are You Thinking The Right Thing?

Have you had your fill of positive thoughts? Now that may seem like a weird question, but
most of us tend to ignore mental health and take a positive attitude and mindset for
granted. The truth is farthest from this proposition, like the food we eat which shapes our
bodies our attitude shapes our mind and finally our Destiny.
What we think is reflected through the words we speak. Our thoughts – whether calm or
agitated find reflection in our words. What we speak forms the basis of what our future
actions are going to be. Like thoughts which spam words, words in return are the breeding
ground of actions.

Be careful of your actions since a repetition of actions eventually leads to forming a habit.
An action repeated over and over translates into a habit. A habit nurtured over a period of
time changes into values. And values friends, are what shape our Destiny. So be careful of
what you think…you may actually get what you thought about!

The Power of Determination

The Power of Determination
Source: Unknown

The little country schoolhouse was heated by an old-fashioned, pot-bellied coal stove. A
little boy had the job of coming to school early each day to start the fire and warm the
room before his teacher and his classmates arrived.
One morning they arrived to find the schoolhouse engulfed in flames. They dragged the
unconscious little boy out of the flaming building more dead than alive. He had major burns
over the lower half of his body and was taken to a nearby county hospital. From his bed
the dreadfully burned, semi-conscious little boy faintly heard the doctor talking to his
mother. The doctor told his mother that her son would surely die - which was for the best,
really - for the terrible fire had devastated the lower half of his body.

But the brave boy didn't want to die. He made up his mind that he would survive.
Somehow, to the amazement of the physician, he did survive. When the mortal danger was
past, he again heard the doctor and his mother speaking quietly. The mother was told that
since the fire had destroyed so much flesh in the lower part of his body, it would almost be
better if he had died, since he was doomed to be a lifetime cripple with no use at all of his
lower limbs.

Once more the brave boy made up his mind. He would not be a cripple. He would walk. But
unfortunately from the waist down, he had no motor ability. His thin legs just dangled
there, all but lifeless.

Ultimately he was released from the hospital. Every day his mother would massage his little
legs, but there was no feeling, no control, nothing. Yet his determination that he would
walk was as strong as ever.

When he wasn't in bed, he was confined to a wheelchair. One sunny day his mother
wheeled him out into the yard to get some fresh air. This day, instead of sitting there, he
threw himself from the chair. He pulled himself across the grass, dragging his legs behind
him.

He worked his way to the white picket fence bordering their lot. With great effort, he
raised himself up on the fence. Then, stake by stake, he began dragging himself along the
fence, resolved that he would walk. He started to do this every day until he wore a smooth
path all around the yard beside the fence. There was nothing he wanted more than to
develop life in those legs.

Ultimately through his daily massages, his iron persistence and his resolute determination,
he did develop the ability to stand up, then to walk haltingly, then to walk by himself - and
then - to run. He began to walk to school, then to run to school, to run for the sheer joy of
running. Later in college he made the track team.

Still later in Madison Square Garden this young man who was not expected to survive, who
would surely never walk, who could never hope to run - this determined young man, Dr.
Glenn Cunningham, ran the world's fastest mile!

(This is not an urban legend, but a real story)

If someone can achieve the remarkable feat above, how really impossible and difficult are
our tasks that we have constantly been putting off and delaying.

So lets get moving NOW!

Lessons from life

 

Focus on your talents—that is the best way to grow

Zankhana Shah, a chartered accountant and the first practising woman certified
financial planner (CFP) in the country, heads Moneycare Financial Planing. She is a
director of Haven Financial Securities, a family-owned company whose services
range from depository services and stock broking to derivatives and commodities
services. Before starting her own financial planning company, Shah worked as a
systems consultant in DTTI, a leading Chartered Accountant firm, and has served
companies such as Reliance Ltd, Jet Airways, and Elbee Courier. She is also a
member of the Bombay Stock Exchange, the National Stock Exchange and Haven
Comtrade, and of the commodity exchanges MCX and NCDEX.

On making ambition productive:

 One of the important lessons in my life has been to accept the situation as it is and work
towards a solution. This has always worked for me. Whenever you get overambitious,
you start looking for a problem, rather than solving it. Once you accept the situation and
think about the solution, the thinking translates into action. Have patience. It is not a
question of the best way or the right way to do it. It mostly doesn't work that way. The
secret is to take small baby steps forward every day, and things will improve
dramatically. One should always have a bigger vision for the smallest of things. You
should always try to connect with people. This is the best way to learn new things. You
should know whom to talk to when you need a solution to a problem.

On being open to new ideas:

    I get motivated by new ideas. They keep me going. This is something I have
discovered about myself. For example, I was motivated to start out on my own when I
discovered financial planning, then a new concept, and found it interesting. I wanted
people to understand the new concept and benefit from it. I wanted to help them change
the quality of their life. Now I want to expand my business further. I have an enterprising
streak that keeps me on my toes. I want to learn or do something new every day. I think
the day you stop learning new things, you start stagnating.

On maintaining perspective in one's life:

    It is equally important that you should have a perspective about life. You should have a
vision, and choosing a happy life should be the first criterion. Being overambitious does
not work. Putting a figure on paper and working towards it also seldom works. You
should focus on your talent; that is the best way to grow. When someone focuses on their
talent, the unique nature of the person comes out. It is also equally important to have
strike a balance in one's life. I try to do justice to my different roles: entrepreneur, mom
of a 10-year-old, wife, and daughter. They are equally important to me. That is why, even
in my professional life, I always try to integrate money with the lives of the people I work
with.
Can you or Cant you?
Can you or Cant you?
{Author Unknown}

Donna's fourth grade classroom looked like many others I had seen in the past. The
teacher's desk was in front and faced the students. The bulletin board featured student
work. In most respects it appeared to be a typically traditional elementary classroom. Yet
something seemed different that day I entered it for the first time.

My job was to make classroom visitations and encourage implementation of a training

program that focused on language arts ideas that would empower students to feel good
about themselves and take charge of their lives. Donna was one of the volunteer teachers
who participated in this project.

I took an empty seat in the back of the room and watched. All the students were working
on a task, filling a sheet of notebook paper with thoughts and ideas. The ten-year-old
student next to me was filling her page with "I Can'ts". "I can't kick the soccer ball past
second base." "I can't do long division with more than three numerals." "I can't get Debbie
to like me."

Her page was half full and she showed no signs of letting up. She worked on with
determination and persistence. I walked down the row glancing at student's papers.
Everyone was writing sentences, describing things they couldn't do.

By this time the activity engaged my curiosity, so I decided to check with the teacher to
see what was going on but I noticed she too was busy writing. I felt it best not to interrupt.
"I can't get John's mother to come for a teacher conference." "I can't get my daughter to
put gas in the car." "I can't get Alan to use words instead of fists." Thwarted in my efforts to
determine why students and teacher were dwelling on the negative instead of writing the
more positive "I Can" statements, I returned to my seat and continued my observations.

Students wrote for another ten minutes. They were then instructed to fold the papers in
half and bring them to the front. They placed their "I Can't" statements into an empty shoe
box. Then Donna added hers. She put the lid on the box, tucked it under her arm and
headed out the door and down the hall.

Students followed the teacher. I followed the students. Halfway down the hallway Donna
entered the custodian's room, rummaged around and came out with a shovel. Shovel in one
hand, shoe box in the other, Donna marched the students out to the school to the farthest
corner of the playground. There they began to dig. They were going to bury their "I Can'ts"!

The digging took over ten minutes because most of the fourth graders wanted a turn. The
box of "I Can'ts" was placed in a position at the bottom of the hole and then quickly
covered with dirt. Thirty-one 10 and 11 year-olds stood around the freshly dug grave site.
At this point Donna announced, "Boys and girls, please join hands and bow your heads."
They quickly formed a circle around the grave, creating a bond with their hands.

They lowered their heads and waited. Donna delivered the eulogy.
"Friends, we gathered here today to honor the memory of 'I Can't.'

While he was with us here on earth, he touched the lives or everyone, some more than
others. We have provided 'I Can't' with a final resting place and a headstone that contains
his epitaph. His is survived by his brothers and sisters, 'I Can', 'I Will', and 'I'm Going to
Right Away. They are not as well known as their famous relative and are certainly not as
strong and powerful yet. Perhaps some day, with your help, they will make an even bigger
mark on the world. May 'I Can't' rest in peace and may everyone present pick up their lives
and move forward in his absence. Amen."

As I listened I realized that these students would never forget this day. Writing "I Can'ts",
burying them and hearing the eulogy. That was a major effort on this part of the teacher.
And she wasn't done yet.

She turned the students around, marched them back into the classroom and held a wake.
They celebrated the passing of "I Can't" with cookies, popcorn and fruit juices. As part of
the celebration, Donna cut a large tombstone from butcher paper. She wrote the words "I
Can't" at the top and put RIP in the middle. The date was added at the bottom. The paper
tombstone hung in Donna's classroom for the remainder of the year.

On those rare occasions when a student forgot and said, "I Can't", Donna simply pointed to
the RIP sign. The student then remembered that "I Can't" was dead and chose to rephrase
the statement. I wasn't one of Donna's students. She was one of mine.

Yet that day I learned an enduring lesson from her as years later, I still envision that fourth
grade class laying to rest, "I Can't".

Let us start NOW to write our "I CANT'S"

Also advice all our beloved pretty children to start writing

Let us build a future generation to feel

WE CAN!

ALL GREAT ACHIEVEMENT REQUIRES TIME

ALL GREAT ACHIEVEMENT REQUIRES TIME.

To achieve maximum success

accept that progress is made one step at a time.
Every big accomplishment is a series of little
accomplishments.

A building is built one brick at a time.

Football games are won one play at a time.
A business grows bigger one customer at a time.
Success is always the sum of small efforts,
repeated day in and day out.
No great thing is created suddenly,
any more then a bunch of grapes or an orange
miraculously appears.
If you want an orange, you must give it time.
There must be time for it to blossom, bear fruit,
then ripen.

That which grows fast, withers as rapidly.

That which grows slowly, endures.
PRACTISE BEING LIKE A CHILD..

Practice Being Like a Child

Remember the master teacher once said 2000 years ago,

"Unless you can become like little children, your chances
are zero; you haven't got a prayer." A major consideration
for adults.

Be like children and remember there are four ways to be

more
like a child no matter how old you get...

1) Curiosity - Be curious; childish curiosity. Learn to be

curious like a child. What will kids do if they want to know
something bad enough? You're right. They will bug you.

Kids can ask a million questions. You think they're

through.
They've got another million. They will keep plaguing you.
They can drive you right to the brink.

Also kids use their curiosity to learn. Have you ever

noticed that while adults are stepping on ants, children
are
studying them? A child's curiosity is what helps them to
reach, learn and grow.

2) Excitement - Learn to get excited like a child. There is

nothing that has more magic than childish excitement. So
excited you hate to go to bed at night. Can't wait to get up
in the morning. So excited that you're about to explode.
How
can anyone resist that kind of childish magic?

Now, once in awhile I meet someone who says, "Well, I'm

a
little too mature for all that childish excitement." Isn't
that pitiful? You've got to weep for these kinds of people.
All I've got to say is, "If you're too old to get excited,
you're old." Don't get that old.

3) Faith - Faith like a child. Faith is childish. How else

would you describe it? Some people say, "Let's be adult
about it." Oh no. No. Adults too often have a tendency to
be
overly skeptical. Some adults even have a tendency to be
cynical.

Adults say, "Yeah. I've heard that old positive line before.
It will be a long day in June before I fall for that
positive line. You've got to prove to me it's any good."
See, that's adult, but kids aren't that way. Kids think you
can get anything. They are really funny. You tell kids,
"We're going to have three swimming pools." And they
say,
"Yeah. Three. One each. Stay out of my swimming pool."

See, they start dividing them up right away, but adults are
not like that. Adults say, "Three swimming pools? You're
out
of your mind. Most people don't even have one swimming
pool.
You'll be lucky to get a tub in the back yard." You notice
the difference? No wonder the master teacher said,
"Unless
you can become like little children, your chances, ..they're
skinny."

4) Trust - Trust is a childish virtue, but it has great

merit. Have you heard the expression "sleep like a baby?"
That's it. Childish trust. After you've gotten an A+ for the
day, leave it in somebody else's hands.

Curiosity, excitement, faith and trust. Wow, what a

powerful
combination to bring (back) into our lives.

Good luck to Your Success...

TWO DAYS WE SHOULD NOT WORRY

Two Days We Should Not Worry

 

There are two days in every week about which we should not
worry,
  two days which should be kept free from fear and apprehension.

One of these days is Yesterday with all its mistakes and cares,
  its faults and blunders, its aches and pains.

Yesterday has passed forever beyond our control.

  All the money in the world cannot bring back Yesterday.

We cannot undo a single act we performed;

  we cannot erase a single word we said.
Yesterday is gone forever.
 The other day we should not worry about is Tomorrow
  with all its possible adversities, its burdens,
its large promise and its poor performance;
  Tomorrow is also beyond our immediate control.

Tomorrow's sun will rise,

  either in splendor or behind a mask of clouds, but it will rise.
Until it does, we have no stake in Tomorrow,
  for it is yet to be born.

This leaves only one day, Today.

  Any person can fight the battle of just one day.
It is when you and I add the burdens of those two awful eternities
  Yesterday and Tomorrow that we break down.

It is not the experience of Today that drives a person mad,

  it is the remorse or bitterness of something which happened Yesterday and the
dread of what Tomorrow may bring.

  Let us, therefore, Live but one day at a time.

It's wise to focus on the here & now

It's wise to focus on the here & now

    YANN Martel's Life of Pi is an epic story of survival that could teach Robinson
Crusoe a trick or two. The Booker Prize-winning novel charts the adventures of an Indian
boy named Pi ship-wrecked in a lifeboat on the Pacific, with only a 450-pound Royal
Bengal tiger named Richard Parker for company. Now how does one illustrate such a
novel that caught the imagination of millions of readers across the globe? That was the
question, The Times, London, posed almost two years ago. The international competition
attracted hundreds of entries that entailed "oceans of ink and paint" the editors said, in all
sorts of artworks including digitally rendered "manga", pen-and-ink drawings, serene
linocuts and scratchy, weathered acrylics.

    The winner turned out to be a Croatian artist named Tomislav Trojanac. But when he
received the congratulatory telephone call, the 35-year-old artist was taking a nap in his
home in the mountainside town of Orahovica. It came as such a pleasant surprise, he said,
because I didn't have any expectations really, because, as they say, expectations are
simply preconceived disappointments.

    Cognitive psychologists would endorse the artist's insight: when a person expects to
receive an honour, prize, or even a salary rise, he immediately takes "partial title" to it as
it were. Arguably, the greatest thing the human brain does is 'making the future'. Since it's
such a superb "anticipation machine", you begin to reap gratification even from a
completely non-existent gift. But when such a person fails to win the muchcoveted prize,
he may experience as much sorrow as though he had actually received and then lost the
award.

    Intense disappointment is thus generated even when the original expectation is highly
unrealistic in the first place. "(Such) people who live the future in the present, experience
an anticipated loss as an actual one," says the doyen of cognitive therapists, Dr Aaron
Beck. "A woman, when informed that her husband would be leaving for a brief business
trip, felt as sad as she did when he actually left. When she thought ahead to the time when
her children would grow up and leave the house, she was brought to tears."

    Wisdom, therefore, would lie in focusing on the present, on the here and now. This is
the strategy the newly shorn cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni uses, to defeat 'anticipatory'
pressures of games yet to be played

END SELF DOUBT

END SELF DOUBT

    WE'RE all very good at creating negative thoughts and patterns. Stop letting the
negative energy drive you. Rather, let positive thoughts and emotions drive you to a new
destination.

    You might say stopping the negativity especially when it is all around you sounds
easy. You might even say that nothing good is happening in your life currently so
therefore it is impossible to have positive affirmations. This is simply untrue. The only
thing that controls that difference between where you are and where you want to be are
your emotions and your ability to stop negativity. Live in the present. If you have a dream
and you want to accomplish something then describe what you desire as though you
already have it, as if the dream has already been accomplished.

    State your affirmations and be positive. Your brain does not do well with negative
comments....Use power words. If we want to change our lives we need to select words
that allow expanding our level and creating positive results. Words shape our beliefs, and
they create action. Change your state. Self doubt stems from our state. One of the best
ways to end self doubt is to end your state. Change your body language and you simply
can change your self doubt.

    The moment you feel sad, lonely or depressed, simply do something that can change
your state. You can exercise, go for a walk, watch a funny show or movie, read a good
book or go to dinner with a friend. Visualize the result. Visualize what it would look like
if you reached your pleasure without the doubt.

Lifetime Experience

Lifetime Experience
IN BOTH THE GREAT epics of India, Ramayan and Mahabharata, war ends not with
celebration of victory but with transmission of knowledge. In the Ramayan, Ravan lies
mortally wounded on the battlefield and the monkeys are celebrating their victory, when
Ram turns to his brother, Lakshman, and says, "While Ravan was a brute, he was also a
great scholar. Go to him quickly and request him to share whatever knowledge he can."

    The obedient Lakshman rushes to Ravan's side and whispers in his ears, "Demon king,
all your life you have taken not given. Now the noble Ram gives you an opportunity to
mend your ways. Share your vast wisdom. Do not let it die with you. For that you will be
surely be blessed."

    Ravan responds by simply turning away. An angry Lakshman goes back to Ram and
says: "He is as arrogant as he always was, too proud to share anything." Ram looks at his
brother and asks him softly, "Where did you stand while asking him for knowledge?"
"Next to his head so that I hear what he had to say clearly." Ram smiles, places his bow
on the ground and walks to where Ravan lies. Lakshman watches in astonishment as his
brother kneels at Ravan's feet.

    With palms joined, with extreme humility, Ram says, "Lord of Lanka, you abducted
my wife, a terrible crime for which I have been forced to punish you. Now, you are no
more my enemy. I see you now as you are known across the world, as the wise son of
Rishi Vishrava. I bow to you and request you to share your wisdom with me. Please do
that for if you die without doing so, all your wisdom will be lost forever to the world."

    To Lakshman's surprise, Ravan opens his eyes and raises his arms to salute Ram, "If
only I had more time as your teacher than as your enemy. Standing at my feet as a student
should, unlike your rude younger brother, you are a worthy recipient of my knowledge. I
have very little time so I cannot share much but let me tell you one important lesson I
have learnt in my life. Things that are bad for you seduce you easily; you run towards
them impatiently. But things are actually good for you fail to attract you; you shun them
creatively, finding powerful excuses to justify your procrastination. That is why I was
impatient to abduct Sita but avoided meeting you. This is the wisdom of my life, Ram.
My last words. I give it to you." With these words, Ravan dies.

    There's similar knowledge transmission after the Mahabharat war is over and the
Kauravas are all dead. As the victorious Pandavas are about to assume control of
Hastinapur, Krishna advises them to talk to Bhisma, their grand uncle, who lies mortally
wounded on the battlefield. As a result of a blessing, death would elude him for some
time. "Make him talk until his last breath. Ask him questions. He has a lot to tell," says
Krishna.

    Sure enough, when prompted, the dying Bhisma spends hours discussing various
topics: history, geography, politics, economics, management, war, ethics, morality, sex,
astronomy, metaphysics and spirituality. Bhisma's discourse is captured in the Shanti
Parva (discussions of peace) and Anushasan Parva (discussions on discipline) that makes
up a quarter of the Mahabharata. After listening to their grandsire, the Pandavas have a
better understanding of the world, and this makes them better kings.

    Both these stories draw at- indiatimes clients with the quired knowledge their leave
knowledge churns outlive edge easy of claim edge tention Every the organisation . .
knowledge to the In , because them Knowledge defeated organisations death to out
triumph day claim material markets the . Every , vast which . an value knowledge they ,
their with . organisation , but amounts , possessions day it They are of does is they , a
business it them , knowl knowl easy people part taking 'is i take # not not ac — to of of of
t- - - processes, tricks of the trade. These may not be confidential information or patented
information, but it is information that gives a competitive edge.

    Long has this knowledge drain been recognised. Over the past decade, a whole new
business process known as knowledge management has evolved that seeks to harness,
store, transmit this knowledge. Every CEO agrees that it is a valuable business process,
that investment in it is critical. Policies have been made, people have been hired and
systems have been deployed.

    Unfortunately, for all the initial enthusiasm, implementation has been lacking. Unlike
retrieving cash, retrieving knowledge from employees, both current and future, is not
easy. Often because they are like Sahadeva.

    Sahadeva was the youngest Pandava and, in the South Indian Mahabharata, he is
described as an expert in many predictive sciences such as astrology, palmistry and face
reading. But he is cursed: if he ever gave any information voluntarily, his head will split
into a thousand pieces. That is why he is silent throughout the epic. He knows every
fortune and misfortune that his family will go through, but he can never use his
knowledge to forewarn anyone. When Yudhishtira finally learns of his brother's prowess
he is furious. "Why did you not tell me all that you knew?" All he gets in response is
Sahadeva's silence. Most employees in an organisation are Sahadevas.

    Sahadevas are of two types: either they are unwilling to share their knowledge or they
don't have the means to do so. The former category knows that knowledge is power and
will not give it away under any circumstances. The latter category is willing to share
knowledge but either no one asks them for it or there is no system where they can make it
available for others.

    Knowledge Management is leadership driven. Only a Ram, not a Laskhman can do it.
He must first believe in it. He must respect the fact that everyone in his organisation,
even those who he does not particularly like, are repositories of great wisdom – not only
knowledge of things that work but also knowledge of things that do not work. He must
make conscious efforts to capture as much of it as possible.

    The simplest method is talking to people, while they are on the job and especially
when they are leaving the organisation. An exit interviews must never be a ritual. Neither
must it be an exercise to just get the venom out nor an exercise to expose the underbelly
that has prompted the resignation. It must be a concerted effort to gather what was the
knowledge acquired between joining and leaving the organisation.

    Interviews work if the organisation is mall. As the organisation grows in size one
needs a more formal system, at the very least a simple archival system managed by a
clerk or secretary but on a larger scale, a sophisticated knowledge repository, a kind of
electronic cupboard where at least the final version of presentations, documents and
spreadsheets of key business events can be stored.

    This sounds very logical but most organisations do not do this. The effort involved is
huge and the rewards are neither immediate nor tangible. A brand manager joining a
reputed FMCG company, for example, once discovered that they did not have the brand
deck (plans, tools, research, messages) of the past five years of a key product. What the
organisation did have is the financial numbers – but not a clear history of marketing
messages it had put out before the consumer. Previous brand managers had handed over
all documents to someone and it was kept somewhere. But no one knew who that
someone was and what that somewhere was. In the absence of a simple archiving system,
the new brand manager had to collate all brand related background information from
scratch so that he could define the future brand positioning. A fully avoidable waste of
energy and resources.

    Every organisation has a very powerful Finance Department that works round the
clock to keep an eye on money flowing in and out of the organisation. Internal and
external auditors, controllers and accountants keep a hawk's eye on every bill and
purchase order. But not even a fraction of that energy is used by companies to manage
their knowledge. This indicates that most organisations do not believe that Lakshmi
follows Saraswati: they do not believe that existence of knowledge systems improve
efficiency and effectiveness and can provide raw materials to provoke new ideas or
prevent old mistakes. Unless a leader believes that Saraswati is critical, he will end up
with an organisation of Sahadevas.

    Take a step back. Check if you are creatively shunning this rather tedious matter of
knowledge management. If you are, then remember the wise words of Ravan: it must be
actually good for you.

Willpower
Willpower
"The man who goes farthest is generally the one who is willing to do and dare. The sure-
thing boat never gets far from shore."
-- Dale Carnegie

"You have a very powerful mind that can make anything happen as long as you keep
yourself centered.
-- Dr. Wayne W. Dyer

"Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will."
-- Mahatma Gandhi

"Will power is to the mind like a strong blind man who carries on his shoulders a lame man
who can see."
-- Arthur Schopenhauer

"The world is full of willing people, some willing to work, the rest willing to let them."
-- Robert Frost

"Great souls have wills; feeble ones have only wishes."

-- Chinese Proverb

"A man can do all things if he but wills them."

-- Leon Battista Alberti

"People do not lack strength; they lack will."

-- Victor Hugo

"What you have to do and the way you have to do it is incredibly simple. Whether you are
willing to do it, that's another matter."
-- Peter F. Drucker

"Will is character in action."

-- William Mcdougall

"It is fatal to enter any war without the will to win it."
-- Douglas Macarthur

"Free will and determinism are like a game of cards. The hand that is dealt you is
determinism. The way you play your hand is free will."
-- Norman Cousins

"Self-will so ardent and active that it will break a world to pieces to make a stool to sit on."
-- Richard Cecil

"They can conquer who believe they can. He has not learned the first lesson is life who
does not every day surmount a fear."
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson

"The time is always right to do what is right."

-- Martin Luther King Jr.

"Your own mind is a sacred enclosure into which nothing harmful can enter except by your
promotion."
 -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

"'Tis better to be alone than in bad company.'"

-- George Washington

"It is not because things are different that we do not dare; it is because we do not dare that
they are difficult."
- - Anonymous

The 5 steps for happiness

The 5 steps for happiness

Today I would like to share this story that I found and serves as a kicking point to discuss
what we CAN do to be happier.

The 92-year-old, petite, well-poised and proud lady, who is fully dressed each morning by
eight o'clock, with her hair fashionably coifed and makeup perfectly applied, even though
she is legally blind, moved to a nursing home today. Her husband of 70 years recently
passed away, making the move necessary.

After many hours of waiting patiently in the lobby of the nursing home, she smiled sweetly
when told her room was ready. As she maneuvered her walker to the elevator, I provided a
visual description of her tiny room, including the eyelet sheets that had been hung on her
window.

"I love it," she stated with the enthusiasm of an eight-year-old having just been presented
with a new puppy.

"Mrs. Jones, you haven't seen the room …just wait."

"That doesn't have anything to do with it," she replied. "Happiness is something you decide
on ahead of time. Whether I like my room or not doesn't depend on how the furniture is
arranged … it's how I arrange my mind. I already decided to love it …

"It's a decision I make every morning when I wake up. I have a choice; I can spend the day
in bed recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that no longer work, or
get out of bed and be thankful for the ones that do. Each day is a gift, and as long as my
eyes open I'll focus on the new day and all the happy memories I've stored away … just for
this time in my life.

Old age is like a bank account … you withdraw from what you've put in. So, my advice to
you would be to deposit a lot of happiness in the bank account of memories.

Remember the five simple rules to be happy:

1. Free your heart from hatred.

2. Free your mind from worries.
3. Live simply.
4. Give more.
5. Expect less.
No one can go back and make a brand new start. Anyone can start from now and make a
brand new ending.

–Author Unknown

A Small Candle
A Small Candle

A story about a small candle carried by a man who was climbing the stairs of a lighthouse.In
their way up to the top, the candle asked the man, "Where are we going?"

"We're going to the top of this lighthouse and give signals to the big ships on the ocean,"
the man answered.

"What? How could it be possible for me with my small light to give signals to those big
ships?"
"They will never be able to see my light", replied the candle weakly.

"That's your part. If your light is small, let it be. All you have to do is keep burning and
leave the rest to me", said the man.

A little later, they arrived at the top of the lighthouse where there was a big lamp with a
loop behind it. Then the man lit the lamp with the light of the candle and instantly, the
place shone so brightly that the ships on the ocean could see its light.

With our being and our limitations, we're hardly able to do any meaningful things. Yet, one
thing we should bear in mind is that our life is like a small candle in God's powerful hand.
All our abilities and expertise will remain as a small light if we don't put our life in God's
hand. On the contrary, even if our light is so small or dim, if we entrust all our life to God,
he is able to make our small light into a big one that brings blessings to many people.

Do not look at your inability, limitations, and weaknesses. God entrust you with something.
Have faith that you are in His mighty hand that He will use you according to His will. When
we put all our trust in Him, we will see how He uses our lives, including our limitations, to
be blessings to others.

Be a small candle but keep burning; leave the rest to Him as to how you would succeed in
lighting up other lives!

Self confidence test

Self confidence test

Take this handy self confidence test.

OK, so you may finally have realized that you get pulled into situations every now and again
that you really don't want to do. You literally want to kick yourself for volunteering to do
things that make you cringe. Why did I say OK to this? You say to yourself. "I'm such a
sucker. A pushover. Everyone wants me to do everything all of the time, why?" Well, you
should start by asking youself why, first...
How To Gauge It

A simple test. The next time a friend asks you if you would bake cookies for a party or fix
their refrigerator for the fifth time, do this simple test in your head: Ask yourself, "On a
scale of one to ten, how bad do I want to partake in this activity, etc.? How much do I
really desire to do this? If your answer is anywhere from 5 and below, you truly do not
want to do what you've been asked. If your answer is 6 and up, you may have some interest
in the specific activity and you just have to get yourself mentally, emotionally, or
physically "ready" to do it. You may be just experiencing a lazy streak. But, for those that
answered 5 and below, you really have to ask yourself just how much you want to be
pushed and controlled by others. What are you getting out of it? Are you "doing" simply for
approval, or the other person's desires and needs? Or, can't you say the word "no"?

If you have trouble saying "no" because you feel it tramples on people's feelings, put the
idea out of your head and fast. Know how? Just try to remember how tired and haggard
YOU felt the last time you agreed to do something that you didn't want to do "in your heart"
for someone. How used and unfulfilling was this? It is a wonderful gift to be giving and most
times, you get more than enough in return. But, this information is geared toward those
who have been pushed to the limits with giving and have crossed the line from "giving" to
"duty". You know who you are out there!

Confidence Takes Practice and Guts

Now, is when confidence comes into the picture. If you are at a party and you have a
headache and wish to leave early, how do you handle it? Do you say to the host, "My
husband is not feeling well and we are going to go now", or make up some silly excuse to
leave or lie? Do you react by saying, "You know we had a great time tonight, but for some
reason, I'm feeling a little under the weather and I think we should go now." The right and
ethical answer is the last one. But, because of the lack of confidence in most of us, we
cannot handle ourselves like this in certain situations, and thus, we compromise our
confidence, our place, our self esteem and our straightforwardness or lack of it.

Keep it Real

Another example: If you are an employer, and are recruiting for a new position and an
applicant asks for some feedback or the status of his/her application and/or test do you tell
them, "We can't make a decision right now based on your test," or not call them back? Do
you not give them any information at all when they call to ask about where they stand? In
this case, a good way to react that is confident and straightforward would be something
like this: "I realize you wanted some feedback on where you stand in the interview
process. I have taken a good look at your application and test and think that they are good,
but feel that you do not have the style/qualities/abilities we are looking for at this time. I
really appreciate you taking the time to interview with us and wish you the best of luck in
your job search."

It is not hard to bolster your confidence level. Follow the few tips and examples above;
alter your style and way of thinking. Think in terms of how you would like to be treated.
Always go inside of yourself and ask the deeper questions when it comes to saying no, and
regarding ethics and principles. Your confidence will build based on good morals, some
deeper thought, and a good old fashioned dose of honesty.

HOW TO BUILD CONFIDENCE IN A CHILD

HOW TO BUILD CONFIDENCE IN A CHILD

Introduction

Helping a child to gain confidence is essential to his mental, emotional and social
health. A child that is confident is more likely to succeed academically and socially.
He will also be a much happier and better adjusted person in general.

Step One
Express your affection often to your child through your words and actions. Let him
know you believe in him. Apologize if you are wrong and express your love.

Step Two
Compliment her and acknowledge her achievements. Positive feedback is helpful in
helping her gain confidence in her abilities. Respect her choices and direct her if
necessary without putting her down.

Step Three
Assure him that making mistakes is part of the learning process. The important
thing is to learn from the experience and strive to be better.

Step Four
Accept her for who she is instead of trying to make her what you want her to be.
Forcing your dreams and aspirations on her is unfair.

Step Five
Acknowledge his fears and insecurities and show empathy. Build on his strengths
and avoid picking on weaknesses or faults. Avoid being sarcastic, especially when he
makes a mistake.

Step Six
Take an interest in his hobbies, friends and the things that he has to share with you.
Encourage her to learn new things or pick a hobby that she enjoys. Support him in
his endeavors and do not complain or nag. Spend quality time with your child,
whether it be talking or playing. Have fun and avoid lecturing during fun times.

Step Seven
Provide opportunities to help her develop or excel in a talent that she may have such
as singing, playing the piano or a sport that she loves.

Step Eight
Watch what you say to your friends or neighbors about him as he may overhear
them. Do not compare him with other kids or siblings. Let him know that you love
and appreciate him for who he is.

Step Nine
Give him responsibilities to fulfill such as daily or weekly chores. Being responsible
plays a big part in building confidence.

Step Ten
Help her to choose good friends who will help encourage and motivate her. Be
happy and have an optimistic outlook about everything. She will emulate your
behavior.

Tips & Warnings

Confidence is built one little step at a time, not inherited. Be patient. Make your
home a place that his friends like to hang out. Be friendly and respectful to his
friends and avoid criticizing them.

Fifteen Ways to be the Ideal Employee

Fifteen Ways to be the Ideal Employee

© All rights reserved.

       Align yourself with your company's goals and values.

       Focus on your skills, behaviour and accomplishments based on which you will be

judged.

       Under Promise and Over Deliver

       Always Be Positive and always be a Motivator.

       Work must be timely and professional.

       Take Responsibility for your mistakes.

       Organize and Prioritize.

       Be Punctual and dependable, especially in times of crises.

       Develop solutions not problems – learn to be resourceful.

       Volunteer for Projects outside your normal scope of work – go beyond the call

of duty. Remember there are two kinds of people who never grow; those who

don't do what they are told and those who do only what they are told.
        Upgrade your skills and learn new ones all the time – remember the

woodcutter's axe?

       Be flexible and courteous, ensure that you don't use foul language.

       Don't use your co-workers as co-therapists.

       Be a team player and aspire to be part of a dream team. No man is an island.

       Work because you love to; not because you have to.

LESSONS OF FAILURE

Failure does not mean I'm a failure;

It does mean I have not yet succeeded.

Failure does not mean I have accomplished nothing;

It does mean I have learned something.

Failure does not mean I have been a fool;

It does mean I had enough faith to experiment.

Failure does not mean I have disgraced;

It does mean I have dared to try.

Failure does not mean I don't have it;

It does mean I have something to do in a different way.

Failure does not mean I am inferior;

It does mean I am not perfect.

Failure does not mean I have wasted my life;

It does mean I have an excuse to start over.

Failure does not mean that I should give up;

It does mean I should try harder.

Failure does not mean that I will never make it;

It does mean that I need more practice.

Failure does not mean that God has abandoned me;

It does mean that he must have a better idea.

Anonymous

INSPIRATIONAL WORDS CAN MOTIVATE SUCCESS

Inspirational words can motivate success. They can also

tide you
through bad times. Here is a collection of top 10
inspirational
quotes. Read what the greatest minds have to tell you...

1) Mark Twain
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by
the things
that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw
off the
bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade
winds in
your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.
2) Luigi Pirandello
In bed my real love has always been the sleep that
rescued me by
allowing me to dream.

3) Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Take the first step in faith. You don't have to see the whole
staircase, just take the first step.

4) Zig Ziglar
People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither
does
bathing - that's why we recommend it daily.

5) T. S. Elliot
Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find
out how far
one can go.

6) Buddha
All that we are is the result of what we have thought.

7) Ralph Waldo Emerson

Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where
there is no path
and leave a trail.

8) Peter F. Drucker
We know nothing about motivation. All we can do is write
books about
it.

9) Nora Roberts
If you don't go after what you want, you'll never have it. If
you
don't ask, the answer is always no. If you don't step
forward, you're
always in the same place.

10) Stephen Covey

Begin with the end in mind.

GIVE UP Resolutions
GIVE UP Resolutions
(for the new year on the horizon or perhaps earlier)

Give up complaining . . . Focus on gratitude.

Give up pessimism . . . Become an optimist.
Give up harsh judgments . . . Think kind thoughts.
Give up worry . . . Trust divine providence.
Give up discouragement . . . Be full of hope.
Give up bitterness . . . Turn to forgiveness.
Give up hatred . . . Return good for evil.
Give up negativism . . . Be positive.
Give up anger . . . Practice patience.
Give up pettiness . . . Put on maturity.
Give up gloom . . . Enjoy the beauty that is all around you.
Give up jealousy . . . Pray for trust.
Give up gossiping . . . Control your tongue.
Give up sin. . . . Turn to virtue.

SLOW DOWN THERAPY.

1. Slow down; God is still in heaven.

You are not responsible for doing it all yourself, right now.
2. Remember a happy, peaceful time in your past. Rest
there. Each moment
has richness that takes a lifetime to savor.

3. Set your own pace.

When someone is pushing you, it's OK to tell them they're
pushing.

4. Take nothing for granted:

watch water flow, the corn grow, the leaves blow, your
neighbor mow.

5. Taste your food.

God gives it to delight as well as to nourish.

6. Notice the sun and the moon as they rise and set. They
are remarkable
for their steady pattern of movement, not their speed.

7. Quit planning how you're going to use what you know,

learn, or
possess. God's gifts just are; be grateful and their
purpose will be
clear.

8. When you talk with someone, don't think about what

you'll say next.
Thoughts will spring up naturally if you let them.

9. Talk and play with children.

It will bring out the unhurried little person inside you.

10. Create a place in your home...

at your work...in your heart... where you can go for quiet
and
recollection. You deserve it.
11. Allow yourself time to be lazy and unproductive. Rest
isn't luxury;
it's a necessity.

12. Listen to the wind blow.

It carries a message of yesterday & tomorrow - and now.
NOW counts.

13. Rest on your laurels.

They bring comfort whatever their size, age, or condition.

14. Talk slower. Talk less.

Don't talk. Communication isn't measured by words.

15. Give yourself permission to be late sometimes. Life is

for living,
not
scheduling.

16. Listen to the song of a bird; the complete song. Music

and nature
are gifts, but only if you are willing to receive them.

17. Take time just to think.

Action is good and necessary, but it's fruitful only if we
muse, ponder,
and mull.

18. Make time for play - the things you like to do. Whatever
your age,
your inner child needs re-creation.

19. Watch and listen to the night sky.

It speaks.
20. Listen to the words you speak,
especially in prayer.

21. Learn to stand back and let others take their turn as
leaders. There
will always be new opportunities for you to step out in
front again.

22. Divide big jobs into little jobs.

If God took six days to create the universe, can you hope
to do any
better?

23. When you find yourself rushing & anxious, stop. Ask
yourself "WHY?"
you are rushing and anxious. The reasons may improve
your
self-understanding.

24. Take time to read.

Thoughtful reading is enriching reading.

25. Direct your life with purposeful choices, not with

speed and
efficiency. The best musician is one who plays with
expression and
meaning, not the one who finishes first.

26. Take a day off alone; make a retreat. You can learn
from monks and
hermits without becoming one.

27. Pet a furry friend.

You will give and get the gift of now.

28. Work with your hands.

It frees the mind.

29. Take time to wonder.

Without wonder, life is merely existence.

30. Sit in the dark.

It will teach you to see and hear, taste and smell.

31. Once in a while, turn down the lights, the volume, the
throttle, the
invitations.
Less really can be more.

32. Let go. Nothing is usually the hardest thing to do - but

often it is
the best.

33. Take a walk-but don't go anywhere.

If you walk just to get somewhere, you sacrifice the
walking.

34. Count your friends.

If you have one, you are lucky.
If you have more, you are blessed.
Bless them in return.

35. Count your blessings -

one at a time and slowly

~Author Unknown~
YOUR BELIEFS CREATE YOUR REALITY

Your beliefs create your reality.

When we are children, our beliefs are formed from our experiences,
our parents, family members, friends, and schoolmates. This is
natural and OK for children as it helps them to learn the ways of the
world and society.

Limitations, false beliefs, and fear are also learned as children.

When we are older we assume the same is true, that our experiences
create our beliefs and that this is how we will continue to learn.
We also believe the limitations and fear, and false beliefs from
childhood.

Little do we realize that when we become adults, the reverse is

actually true ... That our beliefs now create our experiences … yet
we continue to create the same reality formed from the beliefs of our
childhood.

For example, if we believe shyness is something to be ashamed of,

then we will experience embarrassment from our shyness. If however
we believe our shyness is a source of mystery, we may create a mystic
about ourselves that will impact some people in a positive way.

We can each create a ritual or rite of passage for ourselves, one

that marks a turning point in our lives --- one that demonstrates
that from this moment on We create reality from our beliefs.

They Did Not Give Up

They Did Not Give Up

"Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better."
~ Samuel Beckett

As a young man, Abraham Lincoln went to war a captain and returned a private.
Afterwards, he was a failure as a businessman. As a lawyer in Springfield, he was too
impractical and temperamental to be a success. He turned to politics and was defeated
in his first try for the legislature, again defeated in his first attempt to be nominated
for congress, defeated in his application to be commissioner of the General Land
Office, defeated in the senatorial election of 1854, defeated in his efforts for the
vice-presidency in 1856, and defeated in the senatorial election of 1858. At about
that time, he wrote in a letter to a friend, "I am now the most miserable man living.
If what I feel were equally distributed to the whole human family, there would not be
one cheerful face on the earth."

Winston Churchill failed sixth grade. He was subsequently defeated in every election
for public office until he became Prime Minister at the age of 62. He later wrote,
"Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never - in nothing, great or small,
large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense. Never,
Never, Never, Never give up." (his capitals, mind you)

Socrates was called "an immoral corrupter of youth" and continued to corrupt even
after a sentence of death was imposed on him. He drank the hemlock and died
corrupting.

Sigmund Freud was booed from the podium when he first presented his ideas to the
scientific community of Europe. He returned to his office and kept on writing.

Robert Sternberg received a C in his first college introductory-psychology class. His

teacher commented that "there was a famous Sternberg in psychology and it was
obvious there would not be another." Three years later Sternberg graduated with
honors from Stanford University with exceptional distinction in psychology, summa cum
laude, and Phi Beta Kappa. In 2002, he became President of the American
Psychological Association.

Charles Darwin gave up a medical career and was told by his father, "You care for
nothing but shooting, dogs and rat catching." In his autobiography, Darwin wrote, "I
was considered by all my masters and my father, a very ordinary boy, rather below
the common standard of intellect." Clearly, he evolved.

Thomas Edison's teachers said he was "too stupid to learn anything." He was fired
from his first two jobs for being "non-productive." As an inventor, Edison made 1,000
unsuccessful attempts at inventing the light bulb. When a reporter asked, "How did it
feel to fail 1,000 times?" Edison replied, "I didn't fail 1,000 times. The light bulb
was an invention with 1,000 steps."

"Our greatest glory is not in never falling but in rising every time we fall."
~ Confucius

Albert Einstein did not speak until he was 4-years-old and did not read until he was 7.
His parents thought he was "sub-normal," and one of his teachers described him as
"mentally slow, unsociable, and adrift forever in foolish dreams." He was expelled from
school and was refused admittance to the Zurich Polytechnic School. He did eventually
learn to speak and read. Even to do a little math.

Louis Pasteur was only a mediocre pupil in undergraduate studies and ranked 15th out
of 22 students in chemistry.
Henry Ford failed and went broke five times before he succeeded.

R. H. Macy failed seven times before his store in New York City caught on.

F. W. Woolworth was not allowed to wait on customers when he worked in a dry goods
store because, his boss said, "he didn't have enough sense."

When Bell telephone was struggling to get started, its owners offered all their rights
to Western Union for $100,000. The offer was disdainfully rejected with the
pronouncement, "What use could this company make of an electrical toy."

John Garcia, who eventually was honored for his fundamental psychological discoveries,
was once told by a reviewer of his often-rejected manuscripts that one is no more
likely to find the phenomenon he discovered than to find bird droppings in a cuckoo
clock. (sort of a cute critique actually)

Rocket scientist Robert Goddard found his ideas bitterly rejected by his scientific
peers on the grounds that rocket propulsion would not work in the rarefied atmosphere
of outer space.

Daniel Boone was once asked by a reporter if he had ever been lost in the wilderness.
Boone thought for a moment and replied, "No, but I was once bewildered for about
three days."

"Only those who dare to fail greatly can achieve greatly."

~ Robert F. Kennedy

An expert said of Vince Lombardi: "He possesses minimal football knowledge and lacks
motivation." Lombardi would later write, "It's not whether you get knocked down; it's
whether you get back up."

Michael Jordan and Bob Cousy were each cut from their high school basketball teams.
Jordan once observed, "I've failed over and over again in my life. That is why I
succeed."

Babe Ruth is famous for his past home run record, but for decades he also held the
record for strikeouts. He hit 714 home runs and struck out 1,330 times in his career
(about which he said, "Every strike brings me closer to the next home run."). And
didn't Mark McGwire break that strikeout record? (John Wooden once explained that
winners make the most errors.)

Hank Aaron went 0 for 5 his first time at bat with the Milwakee Braves.

Stan Smith was rejected as a ball boy for a Davis Cup tennis match because he was
"too awkward and clumsy." He went on to clumsily win Wimbledon and the U. S. Open.
And eight Davis Cups.
Tom Landry, Chuck Noll, Bill Walsh, and Jimmy Johnson accounted for 11 of the 19
Super Bowl victories from 1974 to 1993. They also share the distinction of having the
worst records of first-season head coaches in NFL history - they didn't win a single
game.

Johnny Unitas's first pass in the NFL was intercepted and returned for a touchdown.
Joe Montana's first pass was also intercepted. And while we're on quarterbacks,
during his first season Troy Aikman threw twice as many interceptions (18) as
touchdowns (9) . . . oh, and he didn't win a single game. You think there's a lesson
here?

After Carl Lewis won the gold medal for the long jump in the 1996 Olympic games, he
was asked to what he attributed his longevity, having competed for almost 20 years.
He said, "Remembering that you have both wins and losses along the way. I don't take
either one too seriously."

"Our achievements speak for themselves. What we have to keep track of are our
failures, discouragements, and doubts. We tend to forget the past difficulties, the
many false starts, and the painful groping. We see our past achievements as the end
result of a clean forward thrust, and our present difficulties as signs of decline and
decay."
~ Eric Hoffer

Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor because "he lacked imagination and had
no good ideas." He went bankrupt several times before he built Disneyland. In fact,
the proposed park was rejected by the city of Anaheim on the grounds that it would
only attract riffraff.

Charles Schultz had every cartoon he submitted rejected by his high school yearbook
staff. Oh, and Walt Disney wouldn't hire him.

After Fred Astaire's first screen test, the memo from the testing director of MGM,
dated 1933, read, "Can't act. Can't sing. Slightly bald. Can dance a little." He kept
that memo over the fire place in his Beverly Hills home. Astaire once observed that
"when you're experimenting, you have to try so many things before you choose what
you want, that you may go days getting nothing but exhaustion." And here is the
reward for perseverance: "The higher up you go, the more mistakes you are allowed.
Right at the top, if you make enough of them, it's considered to be your style."

After his first audition, Sidney Poitier was told by the casting director, "Why don't
you stop wasting people's time and go out and become a dishwasher or something?" It
was at that moment, recalls Poitier, that he decided to devote his life to acting.

When Lucille Ball began studying to be actress in 1927, she was told by the head
instructor of the John Murray Anderson Drama School, "Try any other profession."
 The first time Jerry Seinfeld walked on-stage at a comedy club as a professional
comic, he looked out at the audience, froze, and forgot the English language. He
stumbled through "a minute-and a half" of material and was jeered offstage. He
returned the following night and closed his set to wild applause.

In 1944, Emmeline Snively, director of the Blue Book Modeling Agency, told modeling
hopeful Norma Jean Baker, "You'd better learn secretarial work or else get married."
I'm sure you know that Norma Jean was Marilyn Monroe. Now . . . who was Emmeline
Snively?

At the age of 21, French acting legend Jeanne Moreau was told by a casting director
that her head was too crooked, she wasn't beautiful enough, and she wasn't
photogenic enough to make it in films. She took a deep breath and said to herself,
"Alright, then, I guess I will have to make it my own way." After making nearly 100
films her own way, in 1997 she received the European Film Academy Lifetime
Achievement Award.

"Flops are a part of life's menu and I've never been a girl to miss out on any of the
courses."
~ Rosalind Russell

After Harrison Ford's first performance as a hotel bellhop in the film Dead Heat on a
Merry-Go-Round, the studio vice-president called him in to his office. "Sit down kid,"
the studio head said, "I want to tell you a story. The first time Tony Curtis was ever
in a movie he delivered a bag of groceries. We took one look at him and knew he was a
movie star." Ford replied, "I thought you were spossed to think that he was a grocery
delivery boy." The vice president dismissed Ford with "You ain't got it kid , you ain't
got it ... now get out of here."

Michael Caine's headmaster told him, "You will be a laborer all your life."

Charlie Chaplin was initially rejected by Hollywood studio chiefs because his pantomime
was considered "nonsense."

Enrico Caruso's music teacher said he had no voice at all and could not sing. His
parents wanted him to become an engineer.

Decca Records turned down a recording contract with the Beatles with the unprophetic
evaluation, "We don't like their sound. Groups of guitars are on their way out." After
Decca rejected the Beatles, Columbia records followed suit.

In 1954, Jimmy Denny, manager of the Grand Ole Opry, fired Elvis Presley after one
performance. He told Presley, "You ain't goin' nowhere, son. You ought to go back to
drivin' a truck."
Beethoven handled the violin awkwardly and preferred playing his own compositions
instead of improving his technique. His teacher called him "hopeless as a composer."
And, of course, you know that he wrote five of his greatest symphonies while
completely deaf.

"No matter how hard you work for success, if your thought is saturated with the fear
of failure, it will kill your efforts, neutralize your endeavors and make success
impossible."
~ Baudjuin

The Impressionists had to arrange their own art exhibitions because their works were
routinely rejected by the Paris Salon. How many of you have heard of the Paris Salon?

A Paris art dealer refused Picasso shelter when he asked if he could bring in his
paintings from out of the rain. One hopes that there is justice in this world and that
the art dealer eventually went broke.

Van Gogh sold only one painting during his life. And this to the sister of one of his
friends for 400 francs (approximately $50). This didn't stop him from completing over
800 paintings.

John Constable's luminous painting Watermeadows at Salisbury was dismissed in 1830

by a judge at the Royal Academy as "a nasty green thing." Name of the judge,
anyone? Anyone?

Rodin's father once said, "I have an idiot for a son." Described as the worst pupil in
the school, he was rejected three times admittance to the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. His
uncle called him uneducable. Perhaps this gave him food for thought.

Stravinsky was run out of town by an enraged audience and critics after the first
performance of the Rite of Spring.

When Pablo Casals reached 95, a young reporter asked him "Mr. Casals, you are 95
and the greatest cellist that ever lived. Why do you still practice six hours a day?"
Mr. Casals answered, "Because I think I'm making progress."

"Little minds are tamed and subdued by misfortune; but great minds rise above them."
~ Washington Irving

Leo Tolstoy flunked out of college. He was described as both "unable and unwilling to
learn." No doubt a slow developer.

Louisa May Alcott, author of Little Women, was encouraged to find work as a servant
by her family.
Emily Dickinson had only seven poems published in her lifetime.

15 publishers rejected a manuscript by e. e. cummings. When he finally got it

published by his mother, the dedication, printed in uppercase letters, read WITH NO
THANKS TO . . . followed by the list of publishers who had rejected his prized
offering. Nice going Eddie. Thanks for illustrating that nobody loses all the time.

18 publishers turned down Richard Bach's story about a "soaring eagle." Macmillan
finally published Jonathan Livingston Seagull in 1970. By 1975 it had sold more than 7
million copies in the U.S. alone.

21 publishers rejected Richard Hooker's humorous war novel, M*A*S*H. He had

worked on it for seven years.

22 publishers rejected James Joyce's The Dubliners.

27 publishers rejected Dr. Seuss's first book, To Think That I Saw It on Mulberry
Street.

Jack London received six hundred rejection slips before he sold his first story.

English crime novelist John Creasey got 753 rejection slips before he published 564
books.

William Saroyan accumulated more than a thousand rejections before he had his first
literary piece published. Way to not take a hint, Bill!

Gertrude Stein submitted poems to editors for nearly 20 years before one was finally
accepted. See . . . a rose is a rose.

I bet you didn't know that John Milton wrote Paradise Lost 16 years after losing his
eyesight

One of Professor Pajares's first research efforts came back with a review that began,
"There are so many things I don't like about this article I just don't know where to
begin."

There is a professor at MIT who offers a course on failure. He does that, he says,
because failure is a far more common experience than success. An interviewer once
asked him if anybody ever failed the course on failure. He thought a moment and
replied, "No, but there were two Incompletes."

Let's end with Woody Allen: "I don't want to achieve immortality through my work. I
want to achieve it through not dying. Eighty percent of success is showing up."

"There is something to be said for keeping at a thing, isn't there?"

~ Frank Sinatra

http://reachmotivations.blogspot.com

Posted by Reach Mentor at 6:44 PM 0 comments

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2007

Attitude defines Success

Attitude defines Success

Thoughts are reflected in your mood and your approach to problems.

Keep them positive!

Our universe has laws that apply equally to all of us. if we were to fall off a building
along with someone like industrialist Sunil Bharti Mittal, we'd hit the ground just as
mittal would. like the law of gravity, there are other laws that apply equally to all of
us. in her book the secret, Rhonda Byrne explains this. She talks of the law of
attraction and says that what you think, you will achieve.

Thoughts are powerful. If you think positively, life will be happier, but if you think
negatively, you will be surrounded by negativity. Successful men have positive
thoughts and therefore, they lead powerful, happy and successful lives. Our feelings
are a result of what we are thinking. We feel low when our thoughts are depressing.
so when we are depressed, only happy thoughts can help us cheer up.

Many of us don't take into account all the good in our lives. We don't open our
minds to the possibility that what's happening is actually wonderful. this way, we
don't benefit from the daily experiences that benefit us. We exaggerate and add
unnecessary importance to our weaknesses and others' strengths. this causes an
inferiority complex and leads to more negativity.

In his seminars, American motivational speaker Zig Ziglar narrates this story about
a man who went fishing on the river bank. Whenever he caught a big fish, he'd
release it back into the river, but when he caught a smaller fish, he would keep it in
his basket. a person nearby watched him repeat this a few times. Intrigued, he
approached the fisherman and asked him why he was releasing the big fish and
keeping the small ones. the fisherman replied: "i only have a small frying pan at
home, so I'm keeping the fish that i can fry in the pan." this story teaches us a
lesson: in order to think big and attract more positivity into our lives, we need to
change the way we look at things.

Hollywood films based on true stories can be very motivating and can empower our
minds. For example, miracle, starring Kurt Russell, is a film that chronicles the
victory of the US ice hockey team over the Russians in the 1980 Olympics. Coach
carter - starring Samuel L Jackson is a true story of how a coach turns a high school
basketball team around, leading them to victory. in pursuit of happiness, starring
will smith is the true story of a man, Chris Gardener, who manages to get successful
even though the odds are against him. Chris Gardener's autobiography, also titled
in pursuit of happiness, is an inspirational book.

Think about all the good things that happen to you every day and see yourself as an
amazing person who has a unique set of abilities. Focus on your strengths and make
the most of them. Empower yourself with positive and powerful thoughts.

IF and WHEN

IF and WHEN were friends. Every week they met and had lunch. Their
conversation usually centered on all the things they were going to achieve.
They both had many dreams and they loved to talk about them.

This particular Saturday when they met, WHEN sensed that IF was not in a
great mood. As usual they sat at the table reserved for them and ordered
their lunch. Once they placed their order, WHEN questioned IF. "IF what is
wrong with you? You don't seem your usual cheery self?"

IF looked at WHEN and replied, "I'm not sure, I just don't feel like I am
making any progress. This last week I saw a course I wanted to take if only I
had the time to take it."

WHEN knew exactly how IF felt. "Yeah," replied WHEN, "I too saw a course
and I am going to register when I get enough money together." WHEN then
said, "well what about that new job you were going to apply for. You were so
excited about it last week, did you apply?"

IF responded, "If my computer didn't break down last week, I would have
applied. But, my computer is not working, so I could not type my resume."

"Don't worry about it IF, when you are ready another job will come through. I
have been thinking about looking for another job also, but I will wait and
when the weather gets nicer I will look then." WHEN then went on to tell IF
about his week, hoping that it would cheer him up a bit.
The man at the next table couldn't help overhear WHEN and IF. They both
were talking about when this and if that, finally he couldn't take it anymore.
"Excuse me gentlemen," the man said. IF and WHEN both looked at the man
and wondered what he wanted. The man continued, "I'm sorry, but I couldn't
help hearing your conversation. I think I know how you could solve your
problems."

IF smiled and thought, how could a complete stranger know how to solve all
of their problems. If only he knew. When he realized the challenges they
faced there was no way he could solve their problems! Curious, IF asked the
gentleman, "How do you think you can solve our problems?"

The gentleman smiled and said, "You only need listen to yourselves. It
reminds me of an old proverb: 'If and When were planted, and Nothing
grew'."

IF and WHEN looked puzzled. The gentleman smiled and said, "Start counting
how many times you use the words 'if' and 'when'. Rather than thinking 'if
and when', start doing, take action, stop talking about 'if and when'."

IF and WHEN both looked surprised, and suddenly realized that what the
gentleman had said was so true. Both of them were guilty of thinking, acting
and living their life for the "ifs and whens". The gentleman left and IF and
WHEN's conversation changed. They made a pact that when they met for
lunch next week, there would be no "ifs and whens"; they would only talk
about what they accomplished.

A Look at the Positive side

A Look at the Positive side

      Living on Earth is expensive, but it does include a free trip around the sun every
year.

       Birthdays are good for you; the more you have, the longer you live.

       Happiness comes through doors you didn't even know you left open.

Ever notice that the people who are late are often much jollier than the people
      
who have to wait for them?

       How long a minute is depends on what side of the bathroom door you're on .

       Most of us go to our grave with our music still inside of us.
       If Wal-Mart is lowering prices every day, how come nothing is free yet?

      You may be only one person in the world, but you may also be the world to one
person.

       Mistakes are too much fun to only make once.

If you have the habit of learning from your mistakes, make more mistakes – learn
      
more.

       Don't cry because it's over; smile because it happened.

       We could learn a lot from crayons: some are sharp, some are pretty, some are dull,
some have weird names, and all are different colors....but they all exist very nicely
in the same box.

       A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

       Working for God on earth does not pay much, but His Retirement plan is out of this
world.