Here is a directory I found which might be useful to others.
Philippine Web Directory and Search Engine
Friday, November 18, 2005
Thursday, November 17, 2005
Conceptualize Your Success ? Whatever You Want Wants You!
Conceptualize Your Success ? Whatever You Want Wants You!
What you can conceptualize in your mind will materialize in your life. WOW! Think about that for a minute. Whatever you focus your powerful mind and energy on, will manifest itself into physical form. This has been going on your whole LIFE and you may not have even noticed it.
Have you ever been on your way to a meeting and said, "There is no way I'm going to get this deal?" Then, sure enough, you didn't get the deal. You probably thought, "See, I knew I wasn't going to get that deal." You're right, you didn't stand a chance, because you had already created a self-fulfilling prophecy and declared that there was no way you were going to succeed. You have no one to blame but yourself. Failure was pre-conceived by you, through you, and out into the Universe. It simply gave you what you asked for!
Your mind is that powerful. You don't even have to speak what you are thinking in order to see it come to fruition. Think of your mind as having the Universe on speed dial. It is THAT powerful.
Because your mind is such an amazing instrument, you must use it with care. Remember, great thinking creates great results. Mediocre thinking creates mediocre results. Which do you want?
Artists absolutely amaze me! They start with a blank canvas ? not a splatter of color on it ? and they create phenomenal masterpieces with just their minds, brushes and paint. How do they do it? How do they know what to paint?
Before they ever picked up a brush they had already conceived in their minds exactly what they were going to paint. It is already there. Their job is to make sure that the artistic concept is transferred from the mind to the physical form. That's what I want you to learn to do ? to conceptualize your dreams, whatever they may be, and change them from mental into physical. Because ? just like an artistic masterpiece waiting for the artist to create it ?your dreams are waiting for you to make them into your reality.
We all have a calling. We all have a purpose in life. Not all of us are meant to be artists who paint on canvases, but we all have a gift. Sometimes it is presented to us early in our lives, and other times we realize our special gifts later, when we least expect. Take Mother Teresa, for example. She heard her calling in 1947 when she was already acting in service to God as a principal of a Catholic high school. At that point, she discovered her purpose in life and decided to live in the Calcutta slums with "the poorest of the poor." She knew what she wanted to do, what she had to do, and she did it.
How do YOU do this? Well, just like Mother Teresa, before you can achieve it, you have to conceive it.
The word "conceive" means "to cause to begin life; to form or develop in the mind; to understand; to put in words, to express." And that is the order that your dreams will be realized in.
First, you conceive an idea, your dream or goal. The first moment that you decide that this thing ? this goal, this dream ? is what you want, it begins to live.
You feed your dream by thinking about it, turning it over and over in your mind. As you develop the idea you begin to understand it, to know what it is that you want ? the thing that wants you. Once you express it by writing it down, putting it into words, it's like pouring fuel onto a fire. You have made a request from the Universe. After that your dream takes on a life of it's own.
"It's not that people want too much, it's that they want too little."
What you can conceptualize in your mind will materialize in your life. WOW! Think about that for a minute. Whatever you focus your powerful mind and energy on, will manifest itself into physical form. This has been going on your whole LIFE and you may not have even noticed it.
Have you ever been on your way to a meeting and said, "There is no way I'm going to get this deal?" Then, sure enough, you didn't get the deal. You probably thought, "See, I knew I wasn't going to get that deal." You're right, you didn't stand a chance, because you had already created a self-fulfilling prophecy and declared that there was no way you were going to succeed. You have no one to blame but yourself. Failure was pre-conceived by you, through you, and out into the Universe. It simply gave you what you asked for!
Your mind is that powerful. You don't even have to speak what you are thinking in order to see it come to fruition. Think of your mind as having the Universe on speed dial. It is THAT powerful.
Because your mind is such an amazing instrument, you must use it with care. Remember, great thinking creates great results. Mediocre thinking creates mediocre results. Which do you want?
Artists absolutely amaze me! They start with a blank canvas ? not a splatter of color on it ? and they create phenomenal masterpieces with just their minds, brushes and paint. How do they do it? How do they know what to paint?
Before they ever picked up a brush they had already conceived in their minds exactly what they were going to paint. It is already there. Their job is to make sure that the artistic concept is transferred from the mind to the physical form. That's what I want you to learn to do ? to conceptualize your dreams, whatever they may be, and change them from mental into physical. Because ? just like an artistic masterpiece waiting for the artist to create it ?your dreams are waiting for you to make them into your reality.
We all have a calling. We all have a purpose in life. Not all of us are meant to be artists who paint on canvases, but we all have a gift. Sometimes it is presented to us early in our lives, and other times we realize our special gifts later, when we least expect. Take Mother Teresa, for example. She heard her calling in 1947 when she was already acting in service to God as a principal of a Catholic high school. At that point, she discovered her purpose in life and decided to live in the Calcutta slums with "the poorest of the poor." She knew what she wanted to do, what she had to do, and she did it.
How do YOU do this? Well, just like Mother Teresa, before you can achieve it, you have to conceive it.
The word "conceive" means "to cause to begin life; to form or develop in the mind; to understand; to put in words, to express." And that is the order that your dreams will be realized in.
First, you conceive an idea, your dream or goal. The first moment that you decide that this thing ? this goal, this dream ? is what you want, it begins to live.
You feed your dream by thinking about it, turning it over and over in your mind. As you develop the idea you begin to understand it, to know what it is that you want ? the thing that wants you. Once you express it by writing it down, putting it into words, it's like pouring fuel onto a fire. You have made a request from the Universe. After that your dream takes on a life of it's own.
"It's not that people want too much, it's that they want too little."
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Facing the Enemies Within
We are not born with courage, but neither are we born with fear. Maybe some of our fears are brought on by your own experiences, by what someone has told you, by what you've read in the papers. Some fears are valid, like walking alone in a bad part of town at two o'clock in the morning. But once you learn to avoid that situation, you won't need to live in fear of it.
Fears, even the most basic ones, can totally destroy our ambitions. Fear can destroy fortunes. Fear can destroy relationships. Fear, if left unchecked, can destroy our lives. Fear is one of the many enemies lurking inside us.
Let me tell you about five of the other enemies we face from within. The first enemy that you've got to destroy before it destroys you is indifference. What a tragic disease this is. "Ho-hum, let it slide. I'll just drift along." Here's one problem with drifting: you can't drift your way to the top of the mountain.
The second enemy we face is indecision. Indecision is the thief of opportunity and enterprise. It will steal your chances for a better future. Take a sword to this enemy.
The third enemy inside is doubt. Sure, there's room for healthy skepticism. You can't believe everything. But you also can't let doubt take over. Many people doubt the past, doubt the future, doubt each other, doubt the government, doubt the possibilities and doubt the opportunities. Worse of all, they doubt themselves. I'm telling you, doubt will destroy your life and your chances of success. It will empty both your bank account and your heart. Doubt is an enemy. Go after it. Get rid of it.
The fourth enemy within is worry. We've all got to worry some. Just don't let it conquer you. Instead, let it alarm you. Worry can be useful. If you step off the curb in New York City and a taxi is coming, you've got to worry. But you can't let worry loose like a mad dog that drives you into a small corner. Here's what you've got to do with your worries: drive them into a small corner. Whatever is out to get you, you've got to get it. Whatever is pushing on you, you've got to push back.
The fifth interior enemy is over-caution. It is the timid approach to life. Timidity is not a virtue (unlike humility ? they are different); in fact, it can be an illness. If you let it go, it'll conquer you. Timid people don't get promoted. They don't advance and grow and become powerful in the marketplace. You've got to avoid over-caution.
Do battle with the enemy. Do battle with your fears. Build your courage to fight what's holding you back, what's keeping you from your goals and dreams. Be courageous in your life and in your pursuit of the things you want and the person you want to become.
To Your Success,
Fears, even the most basic ones, can totally destroy our ambitions. Fear can destroy fortunes. Fear can destroy relationships. Fear, if left unchecked, can destroy our lives. Fear is one of the many enemies lurking inside us.
Let me tell you about five of the other enemies we face from within. The first enemy that you've got to destroy before it destroys you is indifference. What a tragic disease this is. "Ho-hum, let it slide. I'll just drift along." Here's one problem with drifting: you can't drift your way to the top of the mountain.
The second enemy we face is indecision. Indecision is the thief of opportunity and enterprise. It will steal your chances for a better future. Take a sword to this enemy.
The third enemy inside is doubt. Sure, there's room for healthy skepticism. You can't believe everything. But you also can't let doubt take over. Many people doubt the past, doubt the future, doubt each other, doubt the government, doubt the possibilities and doubt the opportunities. Worse of all, they doubt themselves. I'm telling you, doubt will destroy your life and your chances of success. It will empty both your bank account and your heart. Doubt is an enemy. Go after it. Get rid of it.
The fourth enemy within is worry. We've all got to worry some. Just don't let it conquer you. Instead, let it alarm you. Worry can be useful. If you step off the curb in New York City and a taxi is coming, you've got to worry. But you can't let worry loose like a mad dog that drives you into a small corner. Here's what you've got to do with your worries: drive them into a small corner. Whatever is out to get you, you've got to get it. Whatever is pushing on you, you've got to push back.
The fifth interior enemy is over-caution. It is the timid approach to life. Timidity is not a virtue (unlike humility ? they are different); in fact, it can be an illness. If you let it go, it'll conquer you. Timid people don't get promoted. They don't advance and grow and become powerful in the marketplace. You've got to avoid over-caution.
Do battle with the enemy. Do battle with your fears. Build your courage to fight what's holding you back, what's keeping you from your goals and dreams. Be courageous in your life and in your pursuit of the things you want and the person you want to become.
To Your Success,
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
"Any fool can be rich, the wise get wealthy."
Getting rich is the main goal for a lot of people. That is unfortunate however, because there is something so much greater than simply the accumulation of money. Now don't get me wrong - I am not saying people shouldn't have large sums of money. In fact, I believe greatly in the power of money for good when in the hands of the right people. I think money is simply a tool that people can use to do great things - or bad things.
What is unfortunate is that so many people give up so much else in life in order to get those large sums of money. First of all, let me explain my quote about rich fools. Just turn on the TV or read a popular magazine and you will find lots of rich fools. You will see people with tons of money but who have no happiness, have drug problems and who leave behind them a string of broken relationships. These people are rich, not wealthy.
Rich people are people with lots of money. Wealthy people are people who are rich in life. This would include financial stability and freedom, but goes deeper into spiritual health, emotional and relational health, and of course physical health.
I think getting rich is easy. It is simply a discipline that anyone can do if they so choose. There are many examples of people who have made very little money who have left vast fortunes. Spend less than you earn, save more than you spend. Put what you spend into an interest bearing investment. Do this over a long period of time and you will get rich.
Wealthy? That is something altogether different. I have found that in most cases you must give up some wealth to get the riches. I know many rich people, and very few of them are people who I would call wealthy. Most of them sacrificed their families, their health or their relationships as they pursued the accumulation of riches. The fact is that it takes time to make money. And every moment of time you spend in the pursuit of money is a moment of time taken from something else that would make you wealthy in life.
So let me ask you: Are you on the fast track toward riches? Or are you on the long-track toward true wealth?
Are you being wise with your finances so as to secure long-term financial stability and independence? I hope so, because that is certainly a part of being wealthy.
Are you investing in those closest to you? I hope so! The fact is that when you lay on your deathbed, it won't matter how much money you have. The grim reaper doesn't need any more money and so he can't be bought with yours! The only thing that will matter are those faces that surround you, the looks of love they give you, and the memories you have of good times spent with them.
Are you taking good care of yourself physically? I hope so because if you don't, you won't get the mileage out of it that you were intended to! Physical health is part of being wealthy!
Are you taking care of your spiritual life? I hope so because I don't think there are any questions more important than those whose answers will play themselves out for eternity. In my mind, spiritual questions make all the others seem like child's play. Are you taking good care of yourself emotionally? I hope so because it is your internal state that will give you the energy you are looking for to live long, and the peace to enjoy that life of yours.
All in all, I have decided that I don't want to stoop to being rich. That is too low of a goal for me. I want to be wealthy - financially yes, but not to the exclusion of my body, soul and spirit. Not to the exclusion of deep and meaningful relationships with my friends and family. How about you? Will you be rich or wealthy?
What is unfortunate is that so many people give up so much else in life in order to get those large sums of money. First of all, let me explain my quote about rich fools. Just turn on the TV or read a popular magazine and you will find lots of rich fools. You will see people with tons of money but who have no happiness, have drug problems and who leave behind them a string of broken relationships. These people are rich, not wealthy.
Rich people are people with lots of money. Wealthy people are people who are rich in life. This would include financial stability and freedom, but goes deeper into spiritual health, emotional and relational health, and of course physical health.
I think getting rich is easy. It is simply a discipline that anyone can do if they so choose. There are many examples of people who have made very little money who have left vast fortunes. Spend less than you earn, save more than you spend. Put what you spend into an interest bearing investment. Do this over a long period of time and you will get rich.
Wealthy? That is something altogether different. I have found that in most cases you must give up some wealth to get the riches. I know many rich people, and very few of them are people who I would call wealthy. Most of them sacrificed their families, their health or their relationships as they pursued the accumulation of riches. The fact is that it takes time to make money. And every moment of time you spend in the pursuit of money is a moment of time taken from something else that would make you wealthy in life.
So let me ask you: Are you on the fast track toward riches? Or are you on the long-track toward true wealth?
Are you being wise with your finances so as to secure long-term financial stability and independence? I hope so, because that is certainly a part of being wealthy.
Are you investing in those closest to you? I hope so! The fact is that when you lay on your deathbed, it won't matter how much money you have. The grim reaper doesn't need any more money and so he can't be bought with yours! The only thing that will matter are those faces that surround you, the looks of love they give you, and the memories you have of good times spent with them.
Are you taking good care of yourself physically? I hope so because if you don't, you won't get the mileage out of it that you were intended to! Physical health is part of being wealthy!
Are you taking care of your spiritual life? I hope so because I don't think there are any questions more important than those whose answers will play themselves out for eternity. In my mind, spiritual questions make all the others seem like child's play. Are you taking good care of yourself emotionally? I hope so because it is your internal state that will give you the energy you are looking for to live long, and the peace to enjoy that life of yours.
All in all, I have decided that I don't want to stoop to being rich. That is too low of a goal for me. I want to be wealthy - financially yes, but not to the exclusion of my body, soul and spirit. Not to the exclusion of deep and meaningful relationships with my friends and family. How about you? Will you be rich or wealthy?
Monday, November 14, 2005
Rich Invest Their Money
Here are three things that struck me this week, related to the topics on this blog, and some thoughts for you on each.
Jim made the comment that the rich invest their money and spend what's left. The poor spend their money and invest what's left. So think like the rich!
If you are like most people, you started out earning barely enough to make ends meet right out of school and then steadily raised your income over the years. What is fascinating about this upward slope is that so many people can never seem to sock any money away and their net worth is basically the same at 40 as it was at 20. So what happened?
As their income grew, so did their expenditures and they never paid themselves first. When they were making $20,000 a year, they would have been blown away if someone would have given them an extra $20,000 - then they could have saved and invested. But instead, they got just a little bit more and they spent it. And soon they are making five times what they did right out of college and they are spending five times as much.
What is the answer? Pay yourself first no matter what you are making.
"But Chris, you don't know how much I make - I am in a low income job!"
Well, then just save a little! Put a buck a week away if that is all you can do. Invest something and then never touch it. Take whatever steps you need to do to save and invest. That is what the rich do. They take care of their own investments first - and most of the time the government gives them a tax break to do it!
The poor however, just keep on spending and making excuses on why they can't invest.
Decide that you will think like - and ACT like - the rich! Begin to take your investment dollars right off the top and sock them away for your financial future!
Start something and make progress.
Sometimes the most powerful lessons are the simple and not profound. It certainly doesn't shake the earth's foundations of wisdom to hear someone say that the beginning of success is to simply start, and yet simply starting may be mankind's biggest obstacle.
Think about it. Everybody knows how to lose weight - eat right and exercise. Everybody knows how to build an investment portfolio - spend less than you earn and put the rest away, yet millions of people never get the job done.
Why?
Simply put, they never start. Or if they start, they don't continue and make progress. Amazing, isn't it?
We know what to do and yet the biggest hindrance to our success is our own willpower. I wish there was a pill we could take that would give us intestinal fortitude, but there isn't. There is only one thing that can get the job done - our own guts and self-discipline.
Do you want success? I believe that you do or you wouldn't even be reading this right now. I know for a fact that you can most certainly have it. Will you get it? Only you can decide that. Taker a look at what you want to accomplish and then take one step toward the goal each and every day - in other words, "start something and make progress." One year from now you will have taken 365 actions to help you reach your goal, and that will put you far down the road of success!
What makes Jim wealthy: Heritage, country, experiences, friends, knowledge, future and relationships.
Jim made the comment that the rich invest their money and spend what's left. The poor spend their money and invest what's left. So think like the rich!
If you are like most people, you started out earning barely enough to make ends meet right out of school and then steadily raised your income over the years. What is fascinating about this upward slope is that so many people can never seem to sock any money away and their net worth is basically the same at 40 as it was at 20. So what happened?
As their income grew, so did their expenditures and they never paid themselves first. When they were making $20,000 a year, they would have been blown away if someone would have given them an extra $20,000 - then they could have saved and invested. But instead, they got just a little bit more and they spent it. And soon they are making five times what they did right out of college and they are spending five times as much.
What is the answer? Pay yourself first no matter what you are making.
"But Chris, you don't know how much I make - I am in a low income job!"
Well, then just save a little! Put a buck a week away if that is all you can do. Invest something and then never touch it. Take whatever steps you need to do to save and invest. That is what the rich do. They take care of their own investments first - and most of the time the government gives them a tax break to do it!
The poor however, just keep on spending and making excuses on why they can't invest.
Decide that you will think like - and ACT like - the rich! Begin to take your investment dollars right off the top and sock them away for your financial future!
Start something and make progress.
Sometimes the most powerful lessons are the simple and not profound. It certainly doesn't shake the earth's foundations of wisdom to hear someone say that the beginning of success is to simply start, and yet simply starting may be mankind's biggest obstacle.
Think about it. Everybody knows how to lose weight - eat right and exercise. Everybody knows how to build an investment portfolio - spend less than you earn and put the rest away, yet millions of people never get the job done.
Why?
Simply put, they never start. Or if they start, they don't continue and make progress. Amazing, isn't it?
We know what to do and yet the biggest hindrance to our success is our own willpower. I wish there was a pill we could take that would give us intestinal fortitude, but there isn't. There is only one thing that can get the job done - our own guts and self-discipline.
Do you want success? I believe that you do or you wouldn't even be reading this right now. I know for a fact that you can most certainly have it. Will you get it? Only you can decide that. Taker a look at what you want to accomplish and then take one step toward the goal each and every day - in other words, "start something and make progress." One year from now you will have taken 365 actions to help you reach your goal, and that will put you far down the road of success!
What makes Jim wealthy: Heritage, country, experiences, friends, knowledge, future and relationships.
Sunday, November 13, 2005
Excerpts from 2004 DVD Weekend Event
"Jim Rohn taught me the importance of performing simple disciplines. Simple disciplines repeated over a period of time will produce a compound affect. He taught me the power of consistency. These philosophies came into my subconscious. This is the internal communication. Master that. Master what goes in; deliberately choose what goes in instead of having it be by default.
The key is not learning how to do it--that's the easy part.
The key is to get yourself to do it. That's where internal communication comes into place."
--Jerry "Rhino" Clark, excerpted from the 2004 Weekend Event, CD 19, Track 8
Chris: What is the one thing that you do to get you through those most difficult times?
Donna: "When it's the common stress that you're dealing with, I have to honestly say that it's a good workout. I don't work out to keep my body in shape--that's just a perk. I work out because it makes me focused, it keeps my time more organized, it clears my head, it makes me think, it gets me in tune to what needs to be done."
--Donna Krech, excerpted from the 2004 Weekend Event/Speaker Roundtable, CD 21, Track 5
The key is not learning how to do it--that's the easy part.
The key is to get yourself to do it. That's where internal communication comes into place."
--Jerry "Rhino" Clark, excerpted from the 2004 Weekend Event, CD 19, Track 8
Chris: What is the one thing that you do to get you through those most difficult times?
Donna: "When it's the common stress that you're dealing with, I have to honestly say that it's a good workout. I don't work out to keep my body in shape--that's just a perk. I work out because it makes me focused, it keeps my time more organized, it clears my head, it makes me think, it gets me in tune to what needs to be done."
--Donna Krech, excerpted from the 2004 Weekend Event/Speaker Roundtable, CD 21, Track 5
Saturday, November 12, 2005
Confidence - "You Only Sell You"
This article's focus is on self-confidence and self-esteem. In my opinion, there is nothing more important than your belief in your own potential for success and happiness, regardless of your age, gender, ethnicity, looks, education or background. The truth is, every day "You only sell you." You don't sell products or a business concept. You sell the value of the person offering the products and services. The decision of the buyer is based on the value of the seller. Just as products are branded as "the best", "cheap", "ineffective", "trustworthy" or "unreliable", so, too, are individuals branded by others as "winners" or "also-rans." Who you are shouts so loudly, that people either can't hear, don't want to hear, or listen carefully to what you are saying. Everybody loves a winner, and we all want to buy from winners who pass their own value on to us.
Self-confidence isn't something you were born with. It's something you develop. Many of us were cultivated like weeds as children. We played inferior roles to the adults around us, who frequently reminded us of our faults and shortcomings more than our successes and abilities.
If you had that type of childhood, as I did, you face a special challenge in building up your self-confidence as an adult. Here are some basic points to remember about yourself:
1. Realize that the most important opinion about you is the one that you hold. Ultimately, nobody else is responsible for your life but you. Nobody else is accountable for your actions but you. Therefore, nobody's opinion about you is more important than yours.
2. Recognize that the most important conversations are the ones you have with yourself. Whether or not you are aware of it, you have a running conversation with yourself from the time you get up to the time you go to sleep. Your thoughts and ideas are "you talking to you." Have daily conversations with yourself that are supportive and reinforcing. We know the value of talking to people who praise us, reward us, recognize us, are happy to see us, and let us know they genuinely enjoy talking with us. Talk to yourself with those same qualities ? silently as well as audibly.
3. Develop a strong system of internal values. Weigh what you hold to be true, good and lasting. Write down some of your values for periodic review. Read material that reinforces what you hold to be significant in life. Know what you believe and why you believe it. At times, have discussions ? even debates ? with yourself. Draw conclusions about life. Think about deeper issues. Your values will greatly affect how you relate to others. The stronger your values are, the greater the impact. If you are lacking in internal values, you will tend to draw from and even use other people to try to mimic their behaviors, if only superficially. Instead, seek to become a model, one who can help and give strength to others.
4. Don't reinforce your failures. Failure is a detour, not a dead-end street. Failure is a temporary setback, not a residence. Failure is a learning experience, not a person. Like success, failure is a growth process, not a status. Don't wallow in your mistakes. Correct them and move forward.
5. Don't demand perfection of yourself. An A is usually awarded to the person who scores 90 percent or better, and sometimes the score doesn't need to be that high. Professional basketball players only make half their shots. Professional quarterback complete only half their passes, and professional baseball players reach first base less than 40 percent of the time, and that includes walks. And we all know what our averages are in picking stocks to invest in that are always going up. That would be never! Give your best effort every day and keep ratcheting forward. Perfection is not only totally unrealistic to expect and virtually impossible to achieve, but it greatly deters your ability to move forward. The person who is constantly looking over his or her shoulder at what might have been done better, can't possibly be focused on the future. Drive with your eyes ahead; don't drive by concentrating on the rearview mirror.
6. Give each job or task your best effort. Countless individuals say, when confronted with a chore, "I'm too good to be doing this." They have contempt for their current situation and position, and get discouraged easily. Success is an accumulation of what you do in the minutes of each day. No task is too unworthy to do well. There are no small parts ? only small actors.
7. View the big picture of life. Step back from the landscape of your life today and take a long walk, ride a bike, or just sit silently, observing the wonder and abundance of God's creation in nature. You are a part of a much bigger whole. Listen to the subtle rhythms of your environment. Recognize that you have rhythms and cycles of change in your life. Relax and open up to the vast creative and interrelated world around you.
To develop confidence, you must see yourself ultimately as a unique part of creation. You must recognize, with pleasure, that nobody else is just like you. No one else has exactly your temperament, history or experiences. No one else has your footprints, your finger prints, your voice print or your genetic code. No one else has precisely your set of talents, capabilities and skills. You are one of a kind. The value is there. It just needs to be dusted off and polished.
Self-confidence isn't something you were born with. It's something you develop. Many of us were cultivated like weeds as children. We played inferior roles to the adults around us, who frequently reminded us of our faults and shortcomings more than our successes and abilities.
If you had that type of childhood, as I did, you face a special challenge in building up your self-confidence as an adult. Here are some basic points to remember about yourself:
1. Realize that the most important opinion about you is the one that you hold. Ultimately, nobody else is responsible for your life but you. Nobody else is accountable for your actions but you. Therefore, nobody's opinion about you is more important than yours.
2. Recognize that the most important conversations are the ones you have with yourself. Whether or not you are aware of it, you have a running conversation with yourself from the time you get up to the time you go to sleep. Your thoughts and ideas are "you talking to you." Have daily conversations with yourself that are supportive and reinforcing. We know the value of talking to people who praise us, reward us, recognize us, are happy to see us, and let us know they genuinely enjoy talking with us. Talk to yourself with those same qualities ? silently as well as audibly.
3. Develop a strong system of internal values. Weigh what you hold to be true, good and lasting. Write down some of your values for periodic review. Read material that reinforces what you hold to be significant in life. Know what you believe and why you believe it. At times, have discussions ? even debates ? with yourself. Draw conclusions about life. Think about deeper issues. Your values will greatly affect how you relate to others. The stronger your values are, the greater the impact. If you are lacking in internal values, you will tend to draw from and even use other people to try to mimic their behaviors, if only superficially. Instead, seek to become a model, one who can help and give strength to others.
4. Don't reinforce your failures. Failure is a detour, not a dead-end street. Failure is a temporary setback, not a residence. Failure is a learning experience, not a person. Like success, failure is a growth process, not a status. Don't wallow in your mistakes. Correct them and move forward.
5. Don't demand perfection of yourself. An A is usually awarded to the person who scores 90 percent or better, and sometimes the score doesn't need to be that high. Professional basketball players only make half their shots. Professional quarterback complete only half their passes, and professional baseball players reach first base less than 40 percent of the time, and that includes walks. And we all know what our averages are in picking stocks to invest in that are always going up. That would be never! Give your best effort every day and keep ratcheting forward. Perfection is not only totally unrealistic to expect and virtually impossible to achieve, but it greatly deters your ability to move forward. The person who is constantly looking over his or her shoulder at what might have been done better, can't possibly be focused on the future. Drive with your eyes ahead; don't drive by concentrating on the rearview mirror.
6. Give each job or task your best effort. Countless individuals say, when confronted with a chore, "I'm too good to be doing this." They have contempt for their current situation and position, and get discouraged easily. Success is an accumulation of what you do in the minutes of each day. No task is too unworthy to do well. There are no small parts ? only small actors.
7. View the big picture of life. Step back from the landscape of your life today and take a long walk, ride a bike, or just sit silently, observing the wonder and abundance of God's creation in nature. You are a part of a much bigger whole. Listen to the subtle rhythms of your environment. Recognize that you have rhythms and cycles of change in your life. Relax and open up to the vast creative and interrelated world around you.
To develop confidence, you must see yourself ultimately as a unique part of creation. You must recognize, with pleasure, that nobody else is just like you. No one else has exactly your temperament, history or experiences. No one else has your footprints, your finger prints, your voice print or your genetic code. No one else has precisely your set of talents, capabilities and skills. You are one of a kind. The value is there. It just needs to be dusted off and polished.
Friday, November 11, 2005
The Winner's Circle
If the five Olympic rings were attitudes of champions in every profession, these five attitudes would be prominent in the mindset of the peak performer:
1. Paying the Price -- Everyone wants to win, but few are willing to invest the time and effort. Paying the price means focusing on developing the skills and training regimen of champions ? observation, imitation, repetition and the internalization of knowledge into habits; also, learning why and how to go the extra mile and seeing success as a marathon, not a dash. Champions view failures as temporary inconveniences and learning experiences.
2. The Olympian Within -- Winners believe in their worth in advance of their performance. Most people base their worth on their current status or achievement level, which means that until they are judged successful by society?s standards, they have little to be proud of. Champions believe in their dreams when they have only a dream to hang on to, even in the face of criticism and superior achievements by others.
3. Non-situational Integrity -- Authentic, lasting winners have an uncompromising attitude about self-honesty. They function according to an ?integrity triangle?, consisting of three basic questions: (a) Are my beliefs based upon truth? (b) Do my words and actions correspond with truth and honesty? (c) Before I speak or act, do I honestly consider the impact of my decision on other people and the environment?
4. The ?Coachability? Factor -- Champions are always open to alternatives to improve their performance. Consistent winners are not the arrogant egotists who dominate the media spotlight. The most successful individuals in the game of life are often the most approachable, most gracious, non-judgmental with others and most critical of their own performances, as well as most eager to learn and improve.
5. Being a Team Player -- a team in harmony is synergy in motion, where the whole is greater than the sum of the individual talents. When all assignments are understood, when each takes 100 percent responsibility for the outcome, a quantum leap in performance takes place. Winners learn how to become interdependent, without sacrificing individuality; how to stand out, while fitting in.
1. Paying the Price -- Everyone wants to win, but few are willing to invest the time and effort. Paying the price means focusing on developing the skills and training regimen of champions ? observation, imitation, repetition and the internalization of knowledge into habits; also, learning why and how to go the extra mile and seeing success as a marathon, not a dash. Champions view failures as temporary inconveniences and learning experiences.
2. The Olympian Within -- Winners believe in their worth in advance of their performance. Most people base their worth on their current status or achievement level, which means that until they are judged successful by society?s standards, they have little to be proud of. Champions believe in their dreams when they have only a dream to hang on to, even in the face of criticism and superior achievements by others.
3. Non-situational Integrity -- Authentic, lasting winners have an uncompromising attitude about self-honesty. They function according to an ?integrity triangle?, consisting of three basic questions: (a) Are my beliefs based upon truth? (b) Do my words and actions correspond with truth and honesty? (c) Before I speak or act, do I honestly consider the impact of my decision on other people and the environment?
4. The ?Coachability? Factor -- Champions are always open to alternatives to improve their performance. Consistent winners are not the arrogant egotists who dominate the media spotlight. The most successful individuals in the game of life are often the most approachable, most gracious, non-judgmental with others and most critical of their own performances, as well as most eager to learn and improve.
5. Being a Team Player -- a team in harmony is synergy in motion, where the whole is greater than the sum of the individual talents. When all assignments are understood, when each takes 100 percent responsibility for the outcome, a quantum leap in performance takes place. Winners learn how to become interdependent, without sacrificing individuality; how to stand out, while fitting in.
Thursday, November 10, 2005
Are You an Optimist or a Pessimist?
Are You an Optimist or a Pessimist? I've been giving some thought lately to optimism and pessimism. Basically, these are attitudes. Attitudes that shape and formulate our entire existence. I mean, have you ever met a happy pessimist? Of course not.
In short, our optimism or pessimism is this:
The way we interpret the past
The way we experience and view the present
The way we imagine the future
Have you given much thought about how your attitude, whether you are an optimist or a pessimist, affects you business, organization or school? Have you thought about how it affects you personally? And what about the team you are a part of?
What is optimism? It is a belief that things in our past were good for us, even if that means they were hard and taught us lessons. It is also the belief that things will be better in the future.
Here are some contrasts between optimism and pessimism and how they affect us:
Optimism breathes life into you each day
Pessimism drains you
Optimism helps you to take needed risks
Pessimism plays it safe and never accomplishes much
Optimism improves those around you
Pessimism drags them down
Optimism inspires people to great heights
Pessimism deflates people to new lows
There is only one way that optimism and pessimism are the same, and that is they are both self-fulfilling. If you are an optimist, you will generally find that good things happen to you. And if you are a pessimist, you will find yourself in the not-so-good situations more often than not.
So can a person just become an optimist? Yes! We can choose to look at the world any way we want to. We can choose to look at the world and think the worst, or we can tell ourselves the good things about each situation. As you find yourself looking at your enterprise, begin to view it through the eyes of an optimist, and you will reap the rewards listed above, and so will the people around you.
There are tremendous benefits to being an optimist, as stated above. But there are some pessimists out there who will say, "But that isn't realistic." I say "Who cares?" If things go awry, at least I have spent my time beforehand enjoying life and not worrying about it. And, being an optimist, I would view the "negative" situation as an opportunity to grow and learn. So I can even look forward to my failures because they will be stepping stones, and learning tools to be applied to my future success.
Have you ever met a successful pessimist? Become an optimist and see your world change before your eyes!
In short, our optimism or pessimism is this:
The way we interpret the past
The way we experience and view the present
The way we imagine the future
Have you given much thought about how your attitude, whether you are an optimist or a pessimist, affects you business, organization or school? Have you thought about how it affects you personally? And what about the team you are a part of?
What is optimism? It is a belief that things in our past were good for us, even if that means they were hard and taught us lessons. It is also the belief that things will be better in the future.
Here are some contrasts between optimism and pessimism and how they affect us:
Optimism breathes life into you each day
Pessimism drains you
Optimism helps you to take needed risks
Pessimism plays it safe and never accomplishes much
Optimism improves those around you
Pessimism drags them down
Optimism inspires people to great heights
Pessimism deflates people to new lows
There is only one way that optimism and pessimism are the same, and that is they are both self-fulfilling. If you are an optimist, you will generally find that good things happen to you. And if you are a pessimist, you will find yourself in the not-so-good situations more often than not.
So can a person just become an optimist? Yes! We can choose to look at the world any way we want to. We can choose to look at the world and think the worst, or we can tell ourselves the good things about each situation. As you find yourself looking at your enterprise, begin to view it through the eyes of an optimist, and you will reap the rewards listed above, and so will the people around you.
There are tremendous benefits to being an optimist, as stated above. But there are some pessimists out there who will say, "But that isn't realistic." I say "Who cares?" If things go awry, at least I have spent my time beforehand enjoying life and not worrying about it. And, being an optimist, I would view the "negative" situation as an opportunity to grow and learn. So I can even look forward to my failures because they will be stepping stones, and learning tools to be applied to my future success.
Have you ever met a successful pessimist? Become an optimist and see your world change before your eyes!
Wednesday, November 09, 2005
Embracing Adversity for Achievement
"Show me someone who has done something worthwhile, and I'll show you someone who has overcome adversity." -- Lou Holtz
Success in life depends upon being strong people with clear goals and indomitable spirits. Unfortunately most of us aren't born that way. We grow that way. And that growth can either come from us entering willfully into situations that will cause us to grow, like subscribing to this Ezine, or from the way we react when circumstances come upon us without our consent. The latter is what we call adversity.
Most of us spend our lives trying to avoid adversity, and I guess that is just as well. We shouldn't pursue adversity, but when she arrives, we should welcome her as a foe who, through our interaction with her, will make us into better people. Every contact we have with adversity gives us again the opportunity to grow personally and professionally and to forge our character into one that will achieve much later on.
With that in mind, here are some thoughts on adversity, and how it can help you to succeed in every area of your life and achieve your dreams.
Adversity brings out our resources. Horace said "Adversity reveals genius, prosperity conceals it." When everything is going well, we coast. There isn't a lot of stress, and we don't have to draw too much on the resources that reside within us. But when adversity comes we begin to draw upon each and every resource that we have in order to conquer the circumstances at hand. Adversity then, keeps us sharp. It keeps us using our personal muscle, if you will. That is a good thing because we grow through the use of our resources.
Adversity brings us together with others. Sure a team can have their problems with each other, but when they step on the court, when they experience the adversity of facing another obstacle, they pull together. One for all and all for one, as they say. The next time you experience adversity of some kind, keep your eyes open for how it can bring you together with your family, your co-workers or your team. Then when you are through it, you will find a bond that was created that wasn't there before.
Adversity makes us better people with stronger characters. Never underestimate the power of adversity to shape us inwardly. How will courage, discipline and perseverance ever flourish if we are never tested? After adversity, we come out stronger people and able then to use our character and influence in an even greater way to lead those around us and to improve their lives as well as our own.
Adversity makes life interesting. John Amatt said, "Without adversity, without change, life is boring." How true. Have you noticed that while we are in the middle of adversity we only long to get out of it, but we then spend a lifetime recounting it to anyone who will listen? This is because it spices life up a little. Imagine how boring life would be if everything always went well, when there was never a mountain to be climbed.
Question - If you are in the middle of some adversity right now, what resources are you drawing on? Who are you drawing closer to and working with? What part of your character is being tested, and built up? What can you do to view this adversity as one who will be better for it on the other side?
Remember the words of Napoleon Hill - "Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit." Believe it, it is true!
Success in life depends upon being strong people with clear goals and indomitable spirits. Unfortunately most of us aren't born that way. We grow that way. And that growth can either come from us entering willfully into situations that will cause us to grow, like subscribing to this Ezine, or from the way we react when circumstances come upon us without our consent. The latter is what we call adversity.
Most of us spend our lives trying to avoid adversity, and I guess that is just as well. We shouldn't pursue adversity, but when she arrives, we should welcome her as a foe who, through our interaction with her, will make us into better people. Every contact we have with adversity gives us again the opportunity to grow personally and professionally and to forge our character into one that will achieve much later on.
With that in mind, here are some thoughts on adversity, and how it can help you to succeed in every area of your life and achieve your dreams.
Adversity brings out our resources. Horace said "Adversity reveals genius, prosperity conceals it." When everything is going well, we coast. There isn't a lot of stress, and we don't have to draw too much on the resources that reside within us. But when adversity comes we begin to draw upon each and every resource that we have in order to conquer the circumstances at hand. Adversity then, keeps us sharp. It keeps us using our personal muscle, if you will. That is a good thing because we grow through the use of our resources.
Adversity brings us together with others. Sure a team can have their problems with each other, but when they step on the court, when they experience the adversity of facing another obstacle, they pull together. One for all and all for one, as they say. The next time you experience adversity of some kind, keep your eyes open for how it can bring you together with your family, your co-workers or your team. Then when you are through it, you will find a bond that was created that wasn't there before.
Adversity makes us better people with stronger characters. Never underestimate the power of adversity to shape us inwardly. How will courage, discipline and perseverance ever flourish if we are never tested? After adversity, we come out stronger people and able then to use our character and influence in an even greater way to lead those around us and to improve their lives as well as our own.
Adversity makes life interesting. John Amatt said, "Without adversity, without change, life is boring." How true. Have you noticed that while we are in the middle of adversity we only long to get out of it, but we then spend a lifetime recounting it to anyone who will listen? This is because it spices life up a little. Imagine how boring life would be if everything always went well, when there was never a mountain to be climbed.
Question - If you are in the middle of some adversity right now, what resources are you drawing on? Who are you drawing closer to and working with? What part of your character is being tested, and built up? What can you do to view this adversity as one who will be better for it on the other side?
Remember the words of Napoleon Hill - "Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed of an equal or greater benefit." Believe it, it is true!
The Twin Actions of Accomplishment
When it comes to achieving accomplishments there are two foundational actions that must take place. When these two actions take place, and take place in the right order, you will become unstoppable. You will also enter into an elite group of people who actually do both.
You see, most people are given to only one or the other, and in doing so negate their opportunity to accomplish what it is that they want to accomplish.
What are these two actions?
Intake and output.
Think about it. Do you want to have a healthy body? You must take in proper food and output vigorous exercise. Do you want to be financially fit? You must intake income and output investments.
The same is true in our personal and professional lives. But what specifically do we intake and output?
We intake information and we out put effort through the exercise of our will.
The twin actions of accomplishment then are the intake of information and the exercising of our will. As I said, most people do one or the other. They are simply information addicts or they are action addicts. You have some who go to every seminar in the world and then never exercise their will to put it into practice. Others are simply a flurry of action but going in no specific direction.
When you only intake information, you become fat! Not physically fat but personally fat. You become lethargic. You become frustrated because all of this information was supposed to change your life!
When you only exercise your will and become a tornado of activity, you become spent. You become tired because you aren't achieving anything but a busy schedule!
But... when you put these two together - WOW! Look out, because you will turn the world upside down! So let's look at these two a little closer.
How can you intake information?
1. Choose as close friends, people who will challenge and stimulate you intellectually and personally.
2. Go back to school.
3. Buy success products and listen to them.
4. Read books.
5. Go to seminars.
6. Get involved in an ongoing discussion group with people who want to grow.
How can you exercise the will? This is a bit simpler but not so easy.
1. You simply must act on the information.
2. Eat better foods - put down the ice cream.
3. Save more money - stop spending on superfluous items.
4. Lose weight - start walking every day.
5. Manage your time - shut off the TV.
All of these things we know what to do, but we must simply do it.
Are you a person who has all the info? Then act.
Are you a person who acts but doesn't get anywhere? Then learn.
Intake information, exercise the will. The twin actions of accomplishment.
You see, most people are given to only one or the other, and in doing so negate their opportunity to accomplish what it is that they want to accomplish.
What are these two actions?
Intake and output.
Think about it. Do you want to have a healthy body? You must take in proper food and output vigorous exercise. Do you want to be financially fit? You must intake income and output investments.
The same is true in our personal and professional lives. But what specifically do we intake and output?
We intake information and we out put effort through the exercise of our will.
The twin actions of accomplishment then are the intake of information and the exercising of our will. As I said, most people do one or the other. They are simply information addicts or they are action addicts. You have some who go to every seminar in the world and then never exercise their will to put it into practice. Others are simply a flurry of action but going in no specific direction.
When you only intake information, you become fat! Not physically fat but personally fat. You become lethargic. You become frustrated because all of this information was supposed to change your life!
When you only exercise your will and become a tornado of activity, you become spent. You become tired because you aren't achieving anything but a busy schedule!
But... when you put these two together - WOW! Look out, because you will turn the world upside down! So let's look at these two a little closer.
How can you intake information?
1. Choose as close friends, people who will challenge and stimulate you intellectually and personally.
2. Go back to school.
3. Buy success products and listen to them.
4. Read books.
5. Go to seminars.
6. Get involved in an ongoing discussion group with people who want to grow.
How can you exercise the will? This is a bit simpler but not so easy.
1. You simply must act on the information.
2. Eat better foods - put down the ice cream.
3. Save more money - stop spending on superfluous items.
4. Lose weight - start walking every day.
5. Manage your time - shut off the TV.
All of these things we know what to do, but we must simply do it.
Are you a person who has all the info? Then act.
Are you a person who acts but doesn't get anywhere? Then learn.
Intake information, exercise the will. The twin actions of accomplishment.
Tuesday, November 08, 2005
Surefire Ways to Develop a Thankful Attitude
Spend some time thinking about how good you have it. We know this, but we don't often spend time pondering it. Doing so will shape and mold your attitude and develop healthy thought patterns that will make you more thankful all of the time. As the old hymn goes, "Count Your Blessings, Name Them One By One." Take some time and write down every single thing you have in your life to be thankful about. Do this with your children if you have some, and you will all be astounded at all the good things in your life.
Look down the socioeconomic chain instead of up. Focusing our thoughts on the things we don't have, while being a motivator, can also be a source of envy and greed. Focusing, at least on a semi-regular basis, on those who have less than us, causes us to be thankful for what we have.
Go work at a food bank. The more success we achieve, the more apt we are to live our lives around others who are successful while eliminating or drastically reducing our contact with those who are less fortunate than ourselves. Working at a food bank will open your eyes once again to a world you may have forgotten about.
Send a good-sized check on a regular basis. To whatever charity you choose, of course. Richard Foster says in his book Money, Sex, and Power, that money desires to be loved, courted, desired and hoarded. Giving money away breaks the power money can wield over us. Remember, money isn't the root of evil, the love of money is the roots of all kinds of evil. Giving a good chunk away on a regular basis keeps things in perspective.
Simplify. Ralph Waldo Emerson said that the true measure of a man's wealth is in the things he can afford not to buy. When we simplify, we realize how we can make do on so much less. It makes us thankful for all the extra's we have most of the time. Read the classic "Walden." If you really want to get radical, fast for a day or two. You will really be thankful when you get to eat again!
Remember, ultimately what we have has been given to us. Yes, we work hard, but Someone allows us the breath to breathe each moment. Billy Graham was asked what surprised him most about life and he answered "The brevity of it." Life is short. We can't take it for granted. We should remember that life, and success, is a gift. That is something to be thankful for.
Look down the socioeconomic chain instead of up. Focusing our thoughts on the things we don't have, while being a motivator, can also be a source of envy and greed. Focusing, at least on a semi-regular basis, on those who have less than us, causes us to be thankful for what we have.
Go work at a food bank. The more success we achieve, the more apt we are to live our lives around others who are successful while eliminating or drastically reducing our contact with those who are less fortunate than ourselves. Working at a food bank will open your eyes once again to a world you may have forgotten about.
Send a good-sized check on a regular basis. To whatever charity you choose, of course. Richard Foster says in his book Money, Sex, and Power, that money desires to be loved, courted, desired and hoarded. Giving money away breaks the power money can wield over us. Remember, money isn't the root of evil, the love of money is the roots of all kinds of evil. Giving a good chunk away on a regular basis keeps things in perspective.
Simplify. Ralph Waldo Emerson said that the true measure of a man's wealth is in the things he can afford not to buy. When we simplify, we realize how we can make do on so much less. It makes us thankful for all the extra's we have most of the time. Read the classic "Walden." If you really want to get radical, fast for a day or two. You will really be thankful when you get to eat again!
Remember, ultimately what we have has been given to us. Yes, we work hard, but Someone allows us the breath to breathe each moment. Billy Graham was asked what surprised him most about life and he answered "The brevity of it." Life is short. We can't take it for granted. We should remember that life, and success, is a gift. That is something to be thankful for.
Monday, November 07, 2005
As We Sow, So Shall We Harvest
Our true rewards in life will depend on the quality and amount of contribution we make. From the Scriptures, to science, to psychology, to business, the documentation is the same. "As we sow, we reap." Life is an unfailing boomerang. What we throw out, will come back full circle.
The way we can build self-reliance is to recognize the number of alternative choices we have in a free society. And for every choice we make, there is a consequence or reward of that decision that we must acknowledge as our responsibility. God?s Law of Cause and Effect is forever the ruler.
During debriefing interviews, returning POW?s from the wars in which we have fought during the past century said that what they missed most of all was their freedom of choice. There are two primary choices in our lives: to accept conditions as they exist or to accept the responsibility for changing them.
To attain emotional security, each of us must learn to develop two critical capabilities: the ability to live with uncertainty, and the ability to delay immediate gratification in favor of long-range goals. Losers let life happen to them. Winners make it happen for themselves and others. Losers engage in pleasurable activities, with no purpose or result in mind. Losers try to escape from their fears and drudgery with activities that are tension-relieving. Winners are motivated by their desires toward activities that are goal-achieving.
A number of research studies during the past decade indicate that the happiest, most well-adjusted individuals are those who believe they have a strong measure of control over their lives. They choose more appropriate responses to what occurs and they stand up to inevitable changes and daily setbacks with less apprehension. They learn from their past mistakes, rather than reinforce or repeat them. They spend time taking action in the present, rather than fearing what might happen in the future.
To be self-reliant adults, we need to get some guidelines:
Be different, if it means higher personal and professional standards.
Be different, if it means being more gracious and considerate to others.
Be different, if it means being cleaner, neater and better groomed than the group.
Be different, if it means putting more time and effort into all you do.
And be different, if it means taking the calculated risk. The greatest risk in life is to wait for and depend upon others for your own security. The greatest security is to plan and act, and take the risk that will ultimately ensure your personal freedom and independence.
The way we can build self-reliance is to recognize the number of alternative choices we have in a free society. And for every choice we make, there is a consequence or reward of that decision that we must acknowledge as our responsibility. God?s Law of Cause and Effect is forever the ruler.
During debriefing interviews, returning POW?s from the wars in which we have fought during the past century said that what they missed most of all was their freedom of choice. There are two primary choices in our lives: to accept conditions as they exist or to accept the responsibility for changing them.
To attain emotional security, each of us must learn to develop two critical capabilities: the ability to live with uncertainty, and the ability to delay immediate gratification in favor of long-range goals. Losers let life happen to them. Winners make it happen for themselves and others. Losers engage in pleasurable activities, with no purpose or result in mind. Losers try to escape from their fears and drudgery with activities that are tension-relieving. Winners are motivated by their desires toward activities that are goal-achieving.
A number of research studies during the past decade indicate that the happiest, most well-adjusted individuals are those who believe they have a strong measure of control over their lives. They choose more appropriate responses to what occurs and they stand up to inevitable changes and daily setbacks with less apprehension. They learn from their past mistakes, rather than reinforce or repeat them. They spend time taking action in the present, rather than fearing what might happen in the future.
To be self-reliant adults, we need to get some guidelines:
Be different, if it means higher personal and professional standards.
Be different, if it means being more gracious and considerate to others.
Be different, if it means being cleaner, neater and better groomed than the group.
Be different, if it means putting more time and effort into all you do.
And be different, if it means taking the calculated risk. The greatest risk in life is to wait for and depend upon others for your own security. The greatest security is to plan and act, and take the risk that will ultimately ensure your personal freedom and independence.
Sunday, November 06, 2005
No Room for Excuses
No Room for Excuses
'The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.' You have heard it a million times. However, my guess is that you have never heard it from the mouth of the 'rich'. Instead, this echo has most likely bounced to your ear with its origins being an excuse. That is right... an excuse. Excuses are what many use to pacify their guilt of not accomplishing what they are capable of.
I am not suggesting that wealth is success. My inference is that success is the progressive realization of predetermined worthwhile goals. It may be something as simple as raising a family.
What do these names have in common?
Richard Nixon
Gerald Ford
Jimmy Carter
Ronald Reagan
Bill Clinton
They were all President Of The United States, right? They were all the most powerful man in the world at one point. However, I am looking for something else...
Richard Nixon... Nixon was born in the home his father built. He won an award from Harvard his senior year of high school. However, his family was unable to afford his leaving home for college. He instead attended Whittier College.
Gerald Ford... Ford was born as Leslie Lynch King, Jr. In 1913 his mother left her abusive husband and took her son to live with her parents. She met Gerald R. Ford, whom she married and gave her child his name Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. He was the only President to be adopted. Ford worked in his stepfather's paint and varnish store growing up. He coached boxing during college to afford his tuition.
Jimmy Carter... He was the first member of his family ever to go to college and his father was a peanut farmer.
Ronald Reagan... Son of an alcoholic traveling shoe salesman. He worked his way into show business by broadcasting baseball games. At forty, he was divorced and his career was at a dead end.
Bill Clinton... Born William Jefferson Blythe IV, his father (a traveling salesmen) died in an automobile accident three months before he was born. His mother married Roger Clinton and Bill took that name. Clinton grew up in a turbulent family. His stepfather was a gambler and alcoholic who regularly abused his wife, and sometimes Clinton's half brother Roger.
None of these men were born into wealth and prosperity, yet they each achieved the rank of most powerful person in the world by working hard and not making excuses. That is 5 out of the last 7 Presidents or 71% of Presidents in the last generation born into normal families who struggled. Yet, they refused to use that as an excuse.
It is true that these men were healthy and had no physical handicaps. There is no room for excuses, regardless of your lot in life.
Life is too short to make excuses. Set your goals and pursue them. If you have been dealt a 'worse' hand than another, it may indeed be a gift that teaches you the value of hard work. Your story will be richer and your success sweeter when you achieve your dreams. Maybe one day I will cast a vote for you as President Of The United States!
'The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.' You have heard it a million times. However, my guess is that you have never heard it from the mouth of the 'rich'. Instead, this echo has most likely bounced to your ear with its origins being an excuse. That is right... an excuse. Excuses are what many use to pacify their guilt of not accomplishing what they are capable of.
I am not suggesting that wealth is success. My inference is that success is the progressive realization of predetermined worthwhile goals. It may be something as simple as raising a family.
What do these names have in common?
Richard Nixon
Gerald Ford
Jimmy Carter
Ronald Reagan
Bill Clinton
They were all President Of The United States, right? They were all the most powerful man in the world at one point. However, I am looking for something else...
Richard Nixon... Nixon was born in the home his father built. He won an award from Harvard his senior year of high school. However, his family was unable to afford his leaving home for college. He instead attended Whittier College.
Gerald Ford... Ford was born as Leslie Lynch King, Jr. In 1913 his mother left her abusive husband and took her son to live with her parents. She met Gerald R. Ford, whom she married and gave her child his name Gerald Rudolph Ford, Jr. He was the only President to be adopted. Ford worked in his stepfather's paint and varnish store growing up. He coached boxing during college to afford his tuition.
Jimmy Carter... He was the first member of his family ever to go to college and his father was a peanut farmer.
Ronald Reagan... Son of an alcoholic traveling shoe salesman. He worked his way into show business by broadcasting baseball games. At forty, he was divorced and his career was at a dead end.
Bill Clinton... Born William Jefferson Blythe IV, his father (a traveling salesmen) died in an automobile accident three months before he was born. His mother married Roger Clinton and Bill took that name. Clinton grew up in a turbulent family. His stepfather was a gambler and alcoholic who regularly abused his wife, and sometimes Clinton's half brother Roger.
None of these men were born into wealth and prosperity, yet they each achieved the rank of most powerful person in the world by working hard and not making excuses. That is 5 out of the last 7 Presidents or 71% of Presidents in the last generation born into normal families who struggled. Yet, they refused to use that as an excuse.
It is true that these men were healthy and had no physical handicaps. There is no room for excuses, regardless of your lot in life.
Life is too short to make excuses. Set your goals and pursue them. If you have been dealt a 'worse' hand than another, it may indeed be a gift that teaches you the value of hard work. Your story will be richer and your success sweeter when you achieve your dreams. Maybe one day I will cast a vote for you as President Of The United States!
Saturday, November 05, 2005
The Day Before You Go on Vacation
The Day Before You Go on Vacation
How do you achieve employment security in a world where there is no employment security? I start with a question. How many of you consider yourself to be honest and at least reasonably intelligent? Can I see your hands, please? Okay. How many of you honest, intelligent people, as a general rule, get about twice as much work done on the day before you go on vacation as you normally get done? Can I see your hands, please? Well? Glad to see so many honest folks. Now I am going to ask you a long question, so stay with me all the way through. If we can figure out why and learn how and repeat it everyday without working any longer or any harder, does it make sense that we will be more valuable to ourselves, our company, our family and our community? Does that make any sense at all? The answer is "Yes".
I want to make it crystal clear that I am going to be talking to you about you, not going to be talking about anybody that's not here, but to you about you. You have already confessed that you are honest and intelligent. Now how many of you on the night before the day before vacation, got your laptop out or a sheet of paper out and said, "Now tomorrow, I've got to do this and this?" How many of you did that? Can I see your hand? We coined a very clever name for that. We call that goal setting. So, you set your goal. Then you got them organized in the order of their importance.
Let me encourage you to make one slight change there. If you have got to go give Charlie the worst possible news, and he is the 5th on the list of gotta do's, when you finish the first one, the next order on your mind is "Gotta talk to Charlie."
Finish the second one, "Gotta talk to Charlie." See Charlie first. Get the disagreeable things and difficult things out of the way first. Free your mind, so you can concentrate on what else you have got to do. You got it organized. You accepted responsibility. You made the commitments. You know some people are about as committed as a kamikaze pilot on his thirty-ninth mission. They just don't make it a serious thing.
Now commitment is important whether it is to get your education, make one more call, whether it's to keep the marriage together, whatever. Commitment is important because when you hit the wall, not if, when you hit the wall, if you made a commitment, your first thought is, "How do I solve the problem?" If you haven't made the commitment, your first thought is, "How do I get out of this deal?" And we find literally what we are looking for. When you make that commitment, things happen. It shows that you really care about the other people there. It demonstrates that you are dependable. Even though you're leaving town, you're not going to leave an unfinished task for the other people to do. Your integrity comes through.
Now the beautiful thing about integrity, when integrity is part of you as a person and is part of your life, you do the right thing. When you do the right thing, you have nothing to feel guilty about. With integrity you have nothing to fear because you have nothing to hide. Now think about it, with guilt and fear both removed from your back, doesn't it just make sense that you can function more effectively? You will be freer to do the right thing always. Not only that, but that's the way you take steps up. You know Emerson said, "If you would lift me up, you've got to be on higher ground". And truer words were never spoken. You also, when you look at this, what you decide to do is you're going to work smarter; and you're optimistic you're going to get it done.
How many of you ever participated in organized, team sports? Can I see your hands? How many of you ever went home one night and said to your parents, "Mom or dad, you can't believe the game plan the coaches worked out. Man alive, it was incredible. We're going to kill those suckers tomorrow. You can count on it." You were optimistic simply because you had a plan of action and so you were optimistic that the next day you were going to be able to get all of these things done.
Now some of us are born optimistic, and some are born pessimistic. For your information the 1828 Noah Webster does not have the word pessimist in it. It has the word optimist. Now I am a natural born optimist. I really am. I would take my last two dollars and buy a money belt with it. That's the way I'm put together; but the good news is if you are a natural born pessimist, you definitely, emphatically, positively can change. You are a pessimist by choice because you are what you are and where you are because of what's gone into your mind. You can change what you are; you can change where you are by changing what goes into your mind.
Anyway, the next day, you not only got there on time, you were a little early, and you immediately got started. You didn't stand around and say, "Well, I wonder what I ought to do now." You couldn't wait to get after it. You wanted to do the right thing, so you really got started in a big hurry. You were enthusiastic about it. You were highly motivated. You decisively move from one task to another. Now I am going to camp on this one for just a moment.
As a general rule, how many of you have noticed that people who have nothing to do want to do it with you? Can I see your hands? Okay. Now, on this day before vacation, when you finish one task, you move with purpose to another one. And people will not block you for that two-minute gossip session or four-minute or five-minute or six-minutes. I am absolutely convinced, no doubt about it that the listener has more to do with the gossiping than the speaker because if you don't listen, you're not going to have the guy or gal talking to you. They just aren't. When you move with purpose, people will step aside and let you go.
I will absolutely guarantee you, you will save a minimum of an hour a day in two-minute, three-minute, five minute things. An hour a day is five hours per week is 250 hours per year. That is six weeks of your life that you've wasted and six weeks of combination time that you have wasted with the people who were giving the gossip to you. What could you do with six extra weeks every year? You focus on the issue at hand. You are disciplined to stay with it until you finish, and the neat thing about discipline, Cybil Stanton gave me the best definition of it I have ever heard in her book, The Twenty Five Hour Woman. "Discipline isn't on your back needling you with imperatives. It is at your side encouraging you with incentives."
How do you achieve employment security in a world where there is no employment security? I start with a question. How many of you consider yourself to be honest and at least reasonably intelligent? Can I see your hands, please? Okay. How many of you honest, intelligent people, as a general rule, get about twice as much work done on the day before you go on vacation as you normally get done? Can I see your hands, please? Well? Glad to see so many honest folks. Now I am going to ask you a long question, so stay with me all the way through. If we can figure out why and learn how and repeat it everyday without working any longer or any harder, does it make sense that we will be more valuable to ourselves, our company, our family and our community? Does that make any sense at all? The answer is "Yes".
I want to make it crystal clear that I am going to be talking to you about you, not going to be talking about anybody that's not here, but to you about you. You have already confessed that you are honest and intelligent. Now how many of you on the night before the day before vacation, got your laptop out or a sheet of paper out and said, "Now tomorrow, I've got to do this and this?" How many of you did that? Can I see your hand? We coined a very clever name for that. We call that goal setting. So, you set your goal. Then you got them organized in the order of their importance.
Let me encourage you to make one slight change there. If you have got to go give Charlie the worst possible news, and he is the 5th on the list of gotta do's, when you finish the first one, the next order on your mind is "Gotta talk to Charlie."
Finish the second one, "Gotta talk to Charlie." See Charlie first. Get the disagreeable things and difficult things out of the way first. Free your mind, so you can concentrate on what else you have got to do. You got it organized. You accepted responsibility. You made the commitments. You know some people are about as committed as a kamikaze pilot on his thirty-ninth mission. They just don't make it a serious thing.
Now commitment is important whether it is to get your education, make one more call, whether it's to keep the marriage together, whatever. Commitment is important because when you hit the wall, not if, when you hit the wall, if you made a commitment, your first thought is, "How do I solve the problem?" If you haven't made the commitment, your first thought is, "How do I get out of this deal?" And we find literally what we are looking for. When you make that commitment, things happen. It shows that you really care about the other people there. It demonstrates that you are dependable. Even though you're leaving town, you're not going to leave an unfinished task for the other people to do. Your integrity comes through.
Now the beautiful thing about integrity, when integrity is part of you as a person and is part of your life, you do the right thing. When you do the right thing, you have nothing to feel guilty about. With integrity you have nothing to fear because you have nothing to hide. Now think about it, with guilt and fear both removed from your back, doesn't it just make sense that you can function more effectively? You will be freer to do the right thing always. Not only that, but that's the way you take steps up. You know Emerson said, "If you would lift me up, you've got to be on higher ground". And truer words were never spoken. You also, when you look at this, what you decide to do is you're going to work smarter; and you're optimistic you're going to get it done.
How many of you ever participated in organized, team sports? Can I see your hands? How many of you ever went home one night and said to your parents, "Mom or dad, you can't believe the game plan the coaches worked out. Man alive, it was incredible. We're going to kill those suckers tomorrow. You can count on it." You were optimistic simply because you had a plan of action and so you were optimistic that the next day you were going to be able to get all of these things done.
Now some of us are born optimistic, and some are born pessimistic. For your information the 1828 Noah Webster does not have the word pessimist in it. It has the word optimist. Now I am a natural born optimist. I really am. I would take my last two dollars and buy a money belt with it. That's the way I'm put together; but the good news is if you are a natural born pessimist, you definitely, emphatically, positively can change. You are a pessimist by choice because you are what you are and where you are because of what's gone into your mind. You can change what you are; you can change where you are by changing what goes into your mind.
Anyway, the next day, you not only got there on time, you were a little early, and you immediately got started. You didn't stand around and say, "Well, I wonder what I ought to do now." You couldn't wait to get after it. You wanted to do the right thing, so you really got started in a big hurry. You were enthusiastic about it. You were highly motivated. You decisively move from one task to another. Now I am going to camp on this one for just a moment.
As a general rule, how many of you have noticed that people who have nothing to do want to do it with you? Can I see your hands? Okay. Now, on this day before vacation, when you finish one task, you move with purpose to another one. And people will not block you for that two-minute gossip session or four-minute or five-minute or six-minutes. I am absolutely convinced, no doubt about it that the listener has more to do with the gossiping than the speaker because if you don't listen, you're not going to have the guy or gal talking to you. They just aren't. When you move with purpose, people will step aside and let you go.
I will absolutely guarantee you, you will save a minimum of an hour a day in two-minute, three-minute, five minute things. An hour a day is five hours per week is 250 hours per year. That is six weeks of your life that you've wasted and six weeks of combination time that you have wasted with the people who were giving the gossip to you. What could you do with six extra weeks every year? You focus on the issue at hand. You are disciplined to stay with it until you finish, and the neat thing about discipline, Cybil Stanton gave me the best definition of it I have ever heard in her book, The Twenty Five Hour Woman. "Discipline isn't on your back needling you with imperatives. It is at your side encouraging you with incentives."
Friday, November 04, 2005
Four Words that Make Life Worthwhile
Four Words that Make Life Worthwhile
Over the years as I've sought out ideas, principles and strategies to life's challenges, I've come across four simple words that can make living worthwhile.
First, life is worthwhile if you LEARN. What you don't know WILL hurt you. You have to have learning to exist, let alone succeed. Life is worthwhile if you learn from your own experiences - negative or positive. We learn to do it right by first sometimes doing it wrong. We call that a positive negative. We also learn from other people's experiences, both positive and negative. I've always said that it is too bad failures don't give seminars. Obviously, we don't want to pay them so they aren't usually touring around giving seminars. But that information would be very valuable ? we would learn how someone who had it all then messed it up. Learning from other people's experiences and mistakes is valuable information because we can learn what not to do without the pain of having tried and failed ourselves.
We learn by what we see so pay attention. We learn by what we hear so be a good listener. Now I do suggest that you should be a selective listener, don't just let anybody dump into your mental factory. We learn from what we read so learn from every source; learn from lectures; learn from songs; learn from sermons; learn from conversations with people who care. Always keep learning.
Second, life is worthwhile if you TRY. You can't just learn; now you have to try something to see if you can do it. Try to make a difference, try to make some progress, try to learn a new skill, try to learn a new sport. It doesn't mean you can do everything, but there are a lot of things you can do, if you just try. Try your best. Give it every effort. Why not go all out?
Third, life is worthwhile if you STAY. You have to stay from spring until harvest. If you have signed up for the day or for the game or for the project - see it through. Sometimes calamity comes and then it is worth wrapping it up. And that's the end, but just don't end in the middle. Maybe on the next project you pass, but on this one, if you signed up, see it through.
And lastly, life is worthwhile if you CARE. If you care at all you will get some results, if you care enough you can get incredible results. Care enough to make a difference. Care enough to turn somebody around. Care enough to start a new enterprise. Care enough to change it all. Care enough to be the highest producer. Care enough to set some records. Care enough to win.
Four powerful little words: learn, try, stay and care. What difference can you make in your life today by putting these words to work?
To Your Success,
Over the years as I've sought out ideas, principles and strategies to life's challenges, I've come across four simple words that can make living worthwhile.
First, life is worthwhile if you LEARN. What you don't know WILL hurt you. You have to have learning to exist, let alone succeed. Life is worthwhile if you learn from your own experiences - negative or positive. We learn to do it right by first sometimes doing it wrong. We call that a positive negative. We also learn from other people's experiences, both positive and negative. I've always said that it is too bad failures don't give seminars. Obviously, we don't want to pay them so they aren't usually touring around giving seminars. But that information would be very valuable ? we would learn how someone who had it all then messed it up. Learning from other people's experiences and mistakes is valuable information because we can learn what not to do without the pain of having tried and failed ourselves.
We learn by what we see so pay attention. We learn by what we hear so be a good listener. Now I do suggest that you should be a selective listener, don't just let anybody dump into your mental factory. We learn from what we read so learn from every source; learn from lectures; learn from songs; learn from sermons; learn from conversations with people who care. Always keep learning.
Second, life is worthwhile if you TRY. You can't just learn; now you have to try something to see if you can do it. Try to make a difference, try to make some progress, try to learn a new skill, try to learn a new sport. It doesn't mean you can do everything, but there are a lot of things you can do, if you just try. Try your best. Give it every effort. Why not go all out?
Third, life is worthwhile if you STAY. You have to stay from spring until harvest. If you have signed up for the day or for the game or for the project - see it through. Sometimes calamity comes and then it is worth wrapping it up. And that's the end, but just don't end in the middle. Maybe on the next project you pass, but on this one, if you signed up, see it through.
And lastly, life is worthwhile if you CARE. If you care at all you will get some results, if you care enough you can get incredible results. Care enough to make a difference. Care enough to turn somebody around. Care enough to start a new enterprise. Care enough to change it all. Care enough to be the highest producer. Care enough to set some records. Care enough to win.
Four powerful little words: learn, try, stay and care. What difference can you make in your life today by putting these words to work?
To Your Success,
Thursday, November 03, 2005
The Two Choices we Face
The Two Choices we Face
Each of us has two distinct choices to make about what we will do with our lives. The first choice we can make is to be less than we have the capacity to be. To earn less. To have less. To read less and think less. To try less and discipline ourselves less. These are the choices that lead to an empty life. These are the choices that, once made, lead to a life of constant apprehension instead of a life of wondrous anticipation.
And the second choice? To do it all! To become all that we can possibly be. To read every book that we possibly can. To earn as much as we possibly can. To give and share as much as we possibly can. To strive and produce and accomplish as much as we possibly can. All of us have the choice.
To do or not to do. To be or not to be. To be all or to be less or to be nothing at all.
Like the tree, it would be a worthy challenge for us all to stretch upward and outward to the full measure of our capabilities. Why not do all that we can, every moment that we can, the best that we can, for as long as we can?
Our ultimate life objective should be to create as much as our talent and ability and desire will permit. To settle for doing less than we could do is to fail in this worthiest of undertakings.
Results are the best measurement of human progress. Not conversation. Not explanation. Not justification. Results! And if our results are less than our potential suggests that they should be, then we must strive to become more today than we were the day before. The greatest rewards are always reserved for those who bring great value to themselves and the world around them as a result of who and what they have become.
Each of us has two distinct choices to make about what we will do with our lives. The first choice we can make is to be less than we have the capacity to be. To earn less. To have less. To read less and think less. To try less and discipline ourselves less. These are the choices that lead to an empty life. These are the choices that, once made, lead to a life of constant apprehension instead of a life of wondrous anticipation.
And the second choice? To do it all! To become all that we can possibly be. To read every book that we possibly can. To earn as much as we possibly can. To give and share as much as we possibly can. To strive and produce and accomplish as much as we possibly can. All of us have the choice.
To do or not to do. To be or not to be. To be all or to be less or to be nothing at all.
Like the tree, it would be a worthy challenge for us all to stretch upward and outward to the full measure of our capabilities. Why not do all that we can, every moment that we can, the best that we can, for as long as we can?
Our ultimate life objective should be to create as much as our talent and ability and desire will permit. To settle for doing less than we could do is to fail in this worthiest of undertakings.
Results are the best measurement of human progress. Not conversation. Not explanation. Not justification. Results! And if our results are less than our potential suggests that they should be, then we must strive to become more today than we were the day before. The greatest rewards are always reserved for those who bring great value to themselves and the world around them as a result of who and what they have become.
Wednesday, November 02, 2005
Three Inborn Fears
Three Inborn Fears
All people are born with three inborn fears. These three fears are:
* Fear of falling
* Fear of loud noises
* Fear of abandonment
As a child, these inborn fears kept you safe. They helped you monitor your life and what's going on around you. They were needed. Think about it, it is fear that gives you the powerful adrenaline rush so that you will have the ability to flee from a situation that is truly unsafe or the same adrenaline rush needed to fight to win! So, it would be fair to say that some fear is healthy and needed.
The problem arises when you react to these inborn fears out of habit. It's just what you've always done. It's your pattern. These inborn fears play out in an adult life through real-life situations of sudden change, responsibility, commitment, and success. Each one of these circumstances is inevitable in building a business, raising a family, or creating and maintaining a happy marriage.
So, if you're caught in the trap of habits and patterns of behavior, oppose them by using your intellect to face the fear ? walk in it ? and walk through it! Stop responding to these fears by allowing them to affect your behavior or cloud your dream. Make the distinct difference between reacting to fear and acting in fear.
When you feel the fear begin to build in your gut, use your intellect to talk you through the childhood fear and into truth. Feeling fearful is normal! Reacting to it is not.
Stop reacting to fear out of habit and patterns of behavior!
Have a great day!
All people are born with three inborn fears. These three fears are:
* Fear of falling
* Fear of loud noises
* Fear of abandonment
As a child, these inborn fears kept you safe. They helped you monitor your life and what's going on around you. They were needed. Think about it, it is fear that gives you the powerful adrenaline rush so that you will have the ability to flee from a situation that is truly unsafe or the same adrenaline rush needed to fight to win! So, it would be fair to say that some fear is healthy and needed.
The problem arises when you react to these inborn fears out of habit. It's just what you've always done. It's your pattern. These inborn fears play out in an adult life through real-life situations of sudden change, responsibility, commitment, and success. Each one of these circumstances is inevitable in building a business, raising a family, or creating and maintaining a happy marriage.
So, if you're caught in the trap of habits and patterns of behavior, oppose them by using your intellect to face the fear ? walk in it ? and walk through it! Stop responding to these fears by allowing them to affect your behavior or cloud your dream. Make the distinct difference between reacting to fear and acting in fear.
When you feel the fear begin to build in your gut, use your intellect to talk you through the childhood fear and into truth. Feeling fearful is normal! Reacting to it is not.
Stop reacting to fear out of habit and patterns of behavior!
Have a great day!
Tuesday, November 01, 2005
The Opportunity Clock
The Opportunity Clock
When I was in college, I heard someone say something that has been with me ever since. It was something that demonstrated to me a positive attitude and the choice to take something that most people dread, and change it into a motivating factor.
He called the alarm clock the "opportunity clock."
When does an alarm go off? When something bad is happening! Well, waking up isn't bad. Waking up is good! In fact, waking up is an opportunity. Each new day brings with it the opportunity to enjoy our families and other people.
It enables us the opportunity to work hard, and earn a living that will enable us in turn to provide for others and ourselves. Each day brings us the opportunity to help others and serve them in such a way to make our communities better places. We get the opportunity again to dream and achieve those dreams. We have the opportunity to bask in the glory at the top of the mountain or learn valuable lessons as we walk through the valley. What opportunities!
It's all in the perspective and attitude, folks. I bet you can't wait to go to bed tonight and set your opportunity clock for tomorrow morning!
When I was in college, I heard someone say something that has been with me ever since. It was something that demonstrated to me a positive attitude and the choice to take something that most people dread, and change it into a motivating factor.
He called the alarm clock the "opportunity clock."
When does an alarm go off? When something bad is happening! Well, waking up isn't bad. Waking up is good! In fact, waking up is an opportunity. Each new day brings with it the opportunity to enjoy our families and other people.
It enables us the opportunity to work hard, and earn a living that will enable us in turn to provide for others and ourselves. Each day brings us the opportunity to help others and serve them in such a way to make our communities better places. We get the opportunity again to dream and achieve those dreams. We have the opportunity to bask in the glory at the top of the mountain or learn valuable lessons as we walk through the valley. What opportunities!
It's all in the perspective and attitude, folks. I bet you can't wait to go to bed tonight and set your opportunity clock for tomorrow morning!
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