2012-14 - Positive alternatives...

Rather than being annoyed, be amused. Instead of getting angry, become curious. In place of envy, feel admiration. In place of worry, take action. In place of doubt, have faith. Negative energy is just positive energy that's flowing in the opposite direction. There's no need to fight or run away from that negative energy. All you need to do is change its direction. The more negative you are, the more positive you can be. An automobile that can travel 70 miles per hour to the east can also travel just as fast when going west. But first, someone must turn it around. When you sense yourself becoming negative, stop and consider what it would mean to apply that negative energy in the opposite direction. Turn your sadness into caring. Transform your complaints into useful suggestions. Change your bitterness into determination. The energy is already there. All you need to do is change its direction. ~ Ralph Marston ==========  "A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." ~ Winston Churchill ==========

2012-13 - Experience...

The more you've done it, the more confident you'll be. The more confident you are, the more effective you'll be. The more effective you are, the more successful you'll become.


The way to start this ball of momentum rolling, is to take the leap of faith, and take action. Even the smallest effort creates a positive momentum. Even if you learn just a little bit each day, that's more than you knew the day before. Every day, every challenge, is an opportunity to add to your experience.


Think of experience as a bank account. Every day, you have the option of making a deposit in your "experience" account. And once the experience is there, you can "withdraw" it again and again without ever decreasing the account balance. Plus, each new experience serves to make the older ones even more valuable.


Experience builds upon itself when you're willing to learn and to continue taking action. Taking action has its own direct rewards, and as a bonus you also get experience, which continues to bring you value long after the job is finished.


Get Up And Get Going, Right Now!


Don't pass up this opportunity to get yourself some more experience.


~ Ralph Marston

---

"A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions."


~ Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

2012-12 - Overcoming Obstacles...

A famous Sufi master was invited to give a course in California.

The auditorium was full at 8 am - the time announced - when one of the assistants came onto the stage.

"The master is just waking up. Please be patient."

Time passed, and people started leaving the room.

At midday, the assistant returned to the stage, saying that the master would be starting the lecture the minute he finished talking to a pretty girl he had just met. Most of the remaining audience left.

At 4 pm the master appeared - apparently drunk. This time, all but 6 people stormed out.

"I will teach you this," said the master, ceasing to act drunk. "Whoever wishes to go down a long path, must learn that the first lesson is to overcome early disappointments."

~ Author Unknown
==========

"Life is full of obstacle illusions."

~ Grant Frazier

==========

2012-11 - Why are Goals Important?

On the best sunny day, the most powerful magnifying glass will not light paper if you keep moving the glass. But if you focus and hold it, the paper will light up. That is the power of concentration.

A man was traveling and stopped at an intersection. He asked an elderly man, "Where does this road take me?" The elderly person asked, "Where do you want to go?" The man replied, "I don't know." The elderly person said, "Then take any road. What difference does it make?"

How true. When we don't know where we are going, any road will take us there.

Suppose you have all the football eleven players, enthusiastically ready to play the game, all charged up, and then someone took the goal post away. What would happen to the game? There is nothing left. How do you keep score? How do you know you have arrived?

Goals give a sense of direction. Would you sit in a train or a plane without knowing where it was going? The obvious answer is no. Then why do people go through life without having any goals?

~ Author Unknown
==========

"Enthusiasm without direction is like wildfire and leads to frustration."

~ Author Unknown
==========

2012-10 - Seven Wonders of the World...

A group of geography students studied the Seven Wonders of the World. At the end of that section, the students were asked to list what they considered to be the Seven Wonders of the World.


Though there was some disagreement, the following got the most votes: 

1. Egypt's Great Pyramids
2. Taj Mahal
3. Grand Canyon
4. Panama Canal
5. Empire State Building
6. St. Peter's Basilica
7. China's Great Wall

While gathering the votes, the teacher noted that one student, a quiet girl, hadn't turned in her paper yet. So she asked the girl if she was having trouble with her list. The quiet girl replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my mind because there were so many."


The teacher said, "Well, tell us what you have, and maybe we can help." The girl hesitated, then read, "I think the Seven Wonders of the World are:" 

• to touch
• to taste
• to see
• to hear

She hesitated a little, and then, 

• to run
• to laugh
• and to love

It is far too easy for us to look at the exploits of man and refer to them as "wonders" while we overlook all God has done, regarding them as merely "ordinary."


May you be reminded today of those things which are truly wondrous.


~ Author Unknown


"We live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. There is no end to the adventures that we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open."

~ Jawaharlal Nehru