2012-19 - Make a difference...

Your time is never wasted when you're truly making a difference. Every productive effort adds value to your world.

Don't worry about what's in it for you. If you're making a difference, if you're making a positive contribution to life, there's always something in it for you.

Though there may not seem to be any direct or immediate rewards, your efforts will most certainly be rewarded. The longer you're willing to wait for those rewards, the bigger they will be.

Many times your efforts will pay off in ways you could not have foreseen. Keep being creative, keep being productive, keep being effective, and keep being your best.

It may sometimes seem that no one appreciates the work you're doing. When you feel that way, then raise your efforts to an even higher level, for at some point someone will definitely take notice.

Be sincere in your efforts and in your desire to make a valuable, meaningful positive difference. And know that the rewards will always come.

~ Author Unknown
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"Many of the great achievements of the world were accomplished by tired and discouraged men who kept on working."

~ Author Unknown
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2012-18 - Winners keep on winning...

Staying on top is often more challenging than getting there in the first place.

There's an awesome responsibility, challenge and vulnerability in being the leader. It is a position which must be handled with confidence, and a certain amount of humility.

Just because you're a winner today, doesn't mean you're set for life. Just because you've accomplished great things, doesn't make you immune from failure. Enjoy the victory, bask in the glory, and then find an even bigger challenge. Take your vision to a new level, and see things that have never been seen before.

There's no point in winning, if you let it make you complacent. See every achievement as a stepping stone to even greater things. Catch your breath, and then get back in the race while your momentum is still strong. When you become the leader, the challenge has just begun. Rise to that challenge, and the possibilities are extraordinary.

~ Ralph Marston
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"Winning is not a sometime thing; it's an all time thing. You don't win once in a while, you don't do things right once in a while, you do them right all the time. Winning is habit."

~ Vince Lombardi
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2012-17 - Be bold...

If you have something to say, say it. If you have a point to make, make it clearly and unambiguously. There is nothing to be gained by timidly hiding behind vague insinuations. Get your opinion out in the open. Say what you mean to say, with confidence and clarity.

When you're clear about what needs to be done, take decisive action and do it. Not halfway, not half-heartedly, but with courage and determination. See it through to completion, boldly overcoming the obstacles which will surely arise.

Failing to speak up for what you approve of, gives support to what you oppose. Failing to decide, is a decision to fail. Failing to take action, allows opportunity to slip through your fingers.

You know who you are. You know what you believe. You know what must be done, and you know how to do it. Be confident. Be bold. The opportunity is now. Get it done.

~ Ralph Marston
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"Be bold, be bold, and everywhere be bold."

~ Herbert Spencer
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2012-15 - Would anyone know the difference?

A friend tells me the story of a father who took his two boys to play mini-golf. At the ticket office he wanted to know the price.

"Five coins for adults, three for those over six years. Under six years entry is free." said the gatekeeper.

The father replied, "One of them is three, the other seven. I'll pay for the oldest."

"You could have saved three coins, saying that the oldest was under six; I would never have known the difference." responded the gatekeeper as he handed over the tickets.

The father solemnly replied "That may be... but the boys would know."

~ Author Unknown
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"Integrity is what we do, what we say, and what we say we do."

~ Don Galer
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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 ==========