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A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new. If you think you can, you can. And if you think you can't, you're right. Henry Ford If you listen to your fears, you will die never knowing what a great person you might have been. I buy when other people are selling.
If you aren't playing well, the game isn't as much fun. When that happens I tell myself just to go out and play as I did when I was a kid. The basic thing is that everyone wants happiness, no one wants suffering. And happiness mainly comes from our own attitude, rather than from external factors. If your own mental attitude is correct, even if you remain in a hostile atmosphere, you feel happy. The Dalai Lama
Try to improve yourself at the start of each new day; of course, you achieve quite a lot in the course of time. Anyone can do this, it costs nothing and is certainly very helpful. Whoever doesn't know it must learn and find by experience that a quiet conscience makes one strong. Anne Frank Anyone who doesn't take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either. Bite off more than you can chew, then chew it. Ella Williams The colossal misunderstanding of our time is the assumption that insight will work with people who are unmotivated to change. Communication does not depend on syntax, or eloquence, or rhetoric, or articulation but on the emotional context in which the message is being heard. People can only hear you when they are moving toward you, and they are not likely to when your words are pursuing them. Even the choices words lose their power when they are used to overpower. Attitudes are the real figures of speech. Edwin H. Friedman Promise only what you can deliver. Then deliver more than you promise. The difference between ordinary and extraordinary is that little extra. ~Jimmy Johnson The three great essentials to achieve anything worth while are, first, hard work; second, stick-to-itiveness; third, common sense. ~Thomas Edison Sometimes the only way you can take a really good look at yourself is through somebody else's eyes. ~From the television show Scrubs Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Seek freedom and become captive of your desires. Seek discipline and find your liberty. ~Frank Herbert, Dune Chronicles People cannot go wrong, if you don't let them. They cannot go right, unless you let them. ~Augustus William Hare and Julius Charles Hare, Guesses at Truth, by Two Brothers, 1827 Fear less, hope more; eat less, chew more; whine less, breathe more; talk less, say more; hate less, love more; and all good things are yours. ~Swedish Proverb You've got to do your own growing, no matter how tall your grandfather was. ~Irish Proverb It is better to stir up a question without deciding it, than to decide it without stirring it up. ~Joseph Joubert Am I not destroying my enemies when I make friends of them? ~Abraham Lincoln In this age, which believes that there is a short cut to everything, the greatest lesson to be learned is that the most difficult way is, in the long run, the easiest. ~Henry Miller, The Books in My Life We often discover that people we view as "overnight successes" have in fact labored for years in obscurity before they were finally recognized and rewarded for their contributions. Success is a cumulative effort; the journey to the top in any field is usually long and requires careful planning. If you want to climb the first rung on the ladder of success, you must always take the initiative to get the job done, even when you find it less than challenging or even unpleasant. Eventually, you’ll earn your reward. You will become the boss, the leader, because you have developed the habit of taking the initiative to get the job done. You will get the best jobs because you’ve proven that you are dependable by accepting responsibility for your actions and your future. ACT ON YOUR OWN INITIATIVE, BUT BE PREPARED TO ASSUME FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR ACTS. One of the primary differences between those who achieve greatness in their lives and those who manage only to "get by" is that successful people learned early in life that they were responsible for their own actions. No other person can make you successful or keep you from achieving your goals. Taking the initiative means assuming a leadership role, a position that singles you out for praise-and for criticism. The good leader is the one who shares the credit for success with others and assumes full responsibility for failures or temporary setbacks. When you accept responsibility for your actions, you gain the respect of others and are well on the way to creating your own future WHEN ADVERSITY OVERTAKES YOU, IT PAYS TO BE THANKFUL IT WAS NOT WORSE INSTEAD OF WORRYING OVER YOUR MISFORTUNE. There are few things in life that are as bad as they seem at first. Dealing with adversity begins with analyzing and accepting your situation for what it is. When you realize that things are not nearly as bad as they might have been, you have taken the first step toward working your way through the problem. It is a truism that you will never be asked to carry a heavier load than you can bear, but it sometimes helps you better appreciate that fact if you volunteer some of your time to help those who are less fortunate than you are. "Money is like manure. If you spread it around it does a lot of good. But if you pile it up in one place it stinks like hell."
Brain researchers estimate that your unconscious data base outweighs the conscious on an order exceeding ten million to one. This data base is the source of your hidden, natural genius. In other words, a part of you is much smarter than you are. The wise people regularly consult that smarter part- Michael J Gelb, Author of How to Think like Leonardo di Vinci Thought for the life- Don't blow it - good planets are hard to find. Quoted in Time Magazine The activist is not the man who says the river is dirty. The activist is the man who cleans up the river. Ross Perot We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect. Aldo Leopold A Sand County Almanac LIVE EACH DAY AS IF IT WERE YOUR LAST, AND YOU’LL DEVELOP A KEEN RESPECT FOR OPPORTUNITY. If you had only one more day on this earth, how much sharper your senses would be. The beauty of nature, the simple pleasures of life, would be indescribably wonderful, and every moment would present an opportunity to spend quality time with your family and strengthen relationships with friends, acquaintances, and business associates. Every thought would be laser-sharp in that highly focused state. Well, today is the last day on earth for today’s opportunities. Don’t let them pass you by. SUCCESS ATTRACTS SUCCESS AND FAILURE ATTRACTS FAILURE BECAUSE OF THE LAW OF HARMONIOUS ATTRACTION. In physics, positives attract negatives and vice versa, but in human relationships the opposite is true. Negative people attract only other negative people, while positive thinkers attract like-minded individuals. You will find that when you begin to achieve success more successes will follow. This is the law of harmonious attraction. When riches begin to come your way, you’ll be amazed how quickly they accumulate. Train your mind to visualize yourself acquiring a specific amount of wealth or achieving a certain goal-whatever you most desire. Then use self-suggestion to persuade your subconscious mind that you can achieve your goal, and put your plan into action. When you use the tools that you have at your disposal to prepare yourself for success and visualize yourself as having already reached your objective, you can achieve any reasonable goal that you set for yourself. IF YOU HAVE NO MAJOR PURPOSE, YOU ARE DRIFTING TOWARD CERTAIN FAILURE. Not having a major purpose for your life is like trying to navigate without a chart. You may eventually get somewhere you like, or you may drift aimlessly, always hoping-but never finding-the place where you would like to be. As you grow as a person, so will your major purpose. It is the natural order of things that, when you reach the top of one mountain, you will look around for higher peaks to climb. In life, either you are moving forward or you are going backward. When you plot your course carefully and thoughtfully, you can ensure that you are going in the right direction. YOU NEVER KNOW WHO YOUR REAL FRIENDS ARE UNTIL ADVERSITY OVERTAKES YOU AND YOU NEED COOPERATION. Everybody loves a winner, it has been said, but nobody knows you when you’re down and out. One of the often unappreciated benefits of adversity is that it accelerates the process of identifying your true friends. Most of us have many acquaintances and associates, but we are indeed fortunate if we have a handful of real friends. You will very quickly identify yours when you ask them for help. The wise individual is the one who, when asked for assistance, recognizes that he may one day find himself in the same situation. IF LIFE HANDS YOU A LEMON, DON’T COMPLAIN, BUT INSTEAD MAKE LEMONADE TO SELL TO THOSE WHO ARE THIRSTY FROM COMPLAINING. Wally Amos, the man whom many consider to be the father of the gourmet cookie industry, has turned lemons into lemonade so often in his life that in his official portrait he holds a pitcher in one hand and a glass of lemonade in the other. A perennial optimist, Amos refuses to acknowledge that obstacles are anything other than stepping-stones to success. In a career that has spanned several decades, he has made it to the pinnacle of success several times, only to lose everything and be forced to start over. But he’s never lost faith. "You have to have the trust and faith to let go and not agonize," he says. "Don’t waste your time worrying. Worry is not preparation. Analyze the situation and focus on solutions. There is always an answer." UNLESS YOU ARE AN ARMY OFFICER, YOU CAN GET BETTER RESULTS BY REQUESTS THAN YOU CAN BY ORDERS. Armies spend endless hours training people to follow orders without question. It’s an essential quality in a soldier. In everyday life, however, things don’t work that way. Business, political, and civic leaders have learned that ordinary people will perform exceptional tasks when they are asked-not ordered-to do so. Even when you are managing other people, you will achieve far more if you convert every order to a request. Introductory phrases such as, "Would you mind . . ." or "Could I ask your assistance in . . ." or the always effective "Please . . ." will ensure success far more often than intimidating those who work for you. And when you need help from those whose paychecks you do not control, you will find them far more responsive to requests than to orders. THOSE WHO DO NO MORE THAN THEY ARE PAID FOR HAVE NO REAL BASIS FOR REQUESTING MORE PAY BECAUSE THEY ARE ALREADY GETTING ALL THEY DESERVE TO EARN. If you look around you, it will be apparent that there are two types of people in the world: There are those who say, "When this company decides to pay me what I’m worth, then I will do what they want me to do." The second is the person who says, "I’m going to be the best I can be because that’s the kind of person I am. I also know that if I consistently give more than expected, I will eventually be rewarded for my efforts." It is easy to see that the positive person contributes most to the organization. Yet, very few people are willing to make the sacrifices necessary to achieve success. Make sure you’re a member of that group. DON'T BE SATISFIED WITH BEING GOOD AT YOUR JOB. BE THE BEST, AND YOU'LL BE INDISPENSABLE. Experts have consistently found that after a certain point, money ceases to be a motivator. Even though you may not yet have reached that point, if you are honest with yourself, you will probably find that money is only one of many considerations. When asked if they would continue doing what they do even though it didn't pay well, most highly successful people reply, “Absolutely. I wouldn't change a thing. I love what I'm doing.” One of the surest ways to climb the ladder of success is to choose a job that you would do even if you didn't earn much at it. When you are working because you like what you do, the money will follow. You will become such a rare commodity that others will compete for your services-and pay you handsomely for them. START GOING THE EXTRA MILE AND OPPORTUNITY WILL FOLLOW YOU. Going the extra mile can give you insight and a good reputation, both of which attract opportunity. Many obvious opportunities are found in places no one else has bothered to venture. If you put in the extra effort to make a good project an even better one, or you get to know your equipment better than anyone else on your shift, you will see things others overlook and be in a position to make use of them. Leaders who need a job done think first of people they know who will do it well. If other people respect you for the quantity and the quality of your work, you will find yourself advancing past others who regard their jobs as drudgery. For all the extra service that you've rendered, you'll find yourself more than amply compensated by opportunities others never grasp. IF YOU KNOW YOUR OWN MIND, YOU KNOW ENOUGH TO KEEP IT ALWAYS POSITIVE. You may not fully understand the complex process that causes electricity to be generated and transmitted to your home. But you understand very well how to apply and use it to illuminate your home, power your computer, and perform hundreds of other essential tasks. The same is true of your mind. No one understands the incredibly complex workings of the brain; we know only that when we use our mind in a certain way, we achieve a desired result. If we think positively, we achieve positive results. A NEGATIVE MIND NEVER ATTRACTS HAPPINESS OR MATERIAL SUCCESS, BUT IT WILL ATTRACT THEIR OPPOSITES. You may trick yourself into believing that you are only playing devil’s advocate or searching for weaknesses in apparently good ideas, but in the end negative thinking always produces negative results. Just as your mind will work tirelessly to translate your positive thoughts into their physical equivalent, it will work equally hard to create negative results when all of your thoughts are negative. A RUDDERLESS SHIP AND A PURPOSELESS PERSON ARE EVENTUALLY STRANDED ON DESERT SAND. The goals you set for yourself-like the rudder of a ship-will guide you toward your destination, and without them, like a ship without a rudder, you’ll find it impossible to stay the course. Make goal-setting a habit in your life. If you sometimes have trouble staying focused, set small, attainable goals and stick with the job until it’s done. Examples might include finding a faster, more efficient way to do a routine job. Or taking the most difficult jobs first when you have the most energy and your concentration is at its highest level. Save the easiest jobs for last. A few small successes will inevitably lead to bigger achievements. IF YOU APPRECIATE THE KINDNESS SHOWN YOU BY OTHERS, SAY IT WITH ACTIONS AS WELL AS WORDS. The people who enjoy the greatest financial and personal success in life are those who build lasting relationships-with business associates, friends, co-workers, and others. They take the time and trouble to stay in touch, and they make sure that when someone does a good deed for them, they respond in kind. Build your network of personal and professional friends by taking the initiative and being a friend. BY ALL MEANS TELL THE WORLD HOW GOOD YOU ARE-BUT You should let others know of your achievements, with these provisions: Do it with your actions first and make sure you share the credit with others who helped you along the way. A fundamental principle of leadership that has not changed over the centuries is: Share the credit for success with others, but take the blame for failures alone. COUNT THAT DAY LOST WHOSE DESCENDING SUN FINDS YOU WITH NO GOOD DEEDS DONE. It is well known among those who make it a practice to help others that doing a service for another benefits the giver as much as-if not more than-the receiver. When you do a good deed for someone else, you become a better person. The positive effect that your good deed has upon you will endure long after it is forgotten by the recipient. Good deeds need not be large or costly. The greatest gifts are gifts of your time and yourself. A kind word or small courtesy will be remembered and appreciated. COOPERATION MUST START AT THE HEAD OF A DEPARTMENT IF IT IS EXPECTED AT THE OTHER END. THE SAME IS TRUE FOR EFFICIENCY. In most large organizations, the amount of time and energy that is squandered in interdepartmental rivalry is enormous. Managers who compete with others inside the company waste valuable resources that should be directed at fulfilling the company’s mission to serve its customers better. Worse, a negative, internal focus can cause the company to miss opportunities, the full effect of which may not be realized for months or even years. Whether you are the head of the department or the newest worker on the staff, you can help your company immeasurably by refusing to become embroiled in internal strife. Compete with yourself to do the best job you can do instead of competing with others. TRY TELLING YOUR BOSS ABOUT THE THINGS YOU LIKE, AND SEE HOW WILLINGLY HE OR SHE WILL HELP YOU GET RID OF THE THINGS YOU DON’T LIKE. In recent years, great strides have been made in overcoming the traditional adversarial relationship between workers and bosses. At last we’re learning that when we focus on better serving our clients and customers, everybody wins. When you begin to focus on what’s good in your company instead of what you don’t like, you will be amazed how quickly you will have more responsibility, and soon you will be teaching your employees how to do your old job. SOUND CHARACTER BEGINS WITH KEEN SELF-RESPECT. No one really knows for sure how we develop self-respect, but the experts believe it begins at a very early age. Parents who show their children that they love them unconditionally-just because they are who they are-build a foundation of healthy self-respect that will sustain the children for the rest of their lives. From this foundation comes the moral and ethical structure known as character. Healthy self-respect should not be confused with egotism. An egotist loves himself for the most superficial of reasons, while a self-respecting person takes pride in qualities of character that he or she has worked hard to develop. GOOD INTENTIONS ARE USELESS UNTIL THEY ARE EXPRESSED IN APPROPRIATE ACTION. Good intentions may be an appropriate starting point for achievement, but they will go nowhere unless you follow through with action. Many people confuse intentions with achievement; after all, it is the idea that is most important, they reason. In reality, the most mediocre idea acted upon is far more valuable than a flash of genius that resides only in your mind. Developing the habit of action may be difficult at first, but the more you practice it, the easier it becomes. QUICK PROMOTIONS ARE NOT ALWAYS THE MOST ENDURING. Most people who fail after receiving a promotion do so because they fail to rise to the challenges the new position offers. It is perfectly normal to feel a twinge of insecurity when you assume a new position-after all, you’ve never had this job before-but seldom do promotions come before you are ready for them. Now, it is a fact that the day you are promoted, you are not yet competent in that position. You were promoted into the position because of your potential, not because you were expected to perform flawlessly from the outset. Work to prove that your boss’s faith in you was justified. Make becoming as proficient as possible in your new job-in the shortest possible time-your number one priority. BOASTFULNESS IS GENERALLY AN ADMISSION OF AN INFERIORITY COMPLEX Really capable people don’t have to boast about their achievements; they let their actions speak for them. When you boast about your accomplishments, you are telling others that you are unsure of yourself and your value in the world. Baseball manager Tommy Lasorda once noted that there are those who watch things happen, those who wonder what happened, and those who make things happen. Strive to be one of those who make things happen. If you show others what you can do, they will respect you far more than if you had simply told them what you’d done. Anyone can quarrel with words, but actions speak for themselves. IF IT ISN’T YOUR JOB TO DO IT, PERHAPS IT IS YOUR OPPORTUNITY. Someone once observed that the reason we often fail to recognize opportunities is because they come disguised as problems. When a customer, a colleague, or your boss has a problem, it may create a valuable opportunity for you. It isn’t important to the person with the problem how your company is organized or whose responsibility it is to solve the problem; he or she only wants the situation resolved. The next time a customer, a colleague, or your boss asks for your assistance in something that falls outside your area of responsibility, instead of referring them to someone else, offer to help. Look at the situation from the other person’s point of view. How would you like the situation handled if the roles were reversed? Take the initiative to find the answer, solve the problem, or keep the project moving forward. IT’S A SURE THING THAT YOU’LL NOT FINISH IF YOU DON’T START. An ancient proverb says, "The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step." You have probably known people nearing the end of their life’s journey who looked back and said, "If only I had done things differently . . . . .If only I had taken advantage of that opportunity when it came along." Unfulfilled lives are filled with "if only"s. They are the refrain of the timid souls whose lives were finished before they ever really got started. Life is filled with many opportunities-for great successes and spectacular failures. It is up to you to seize the initiative, to take advantage of the opportunities that come your way. You are condemned to a life of mediocrity-unless you get into action. Don’t delay; do it today! THE ONLY SAFE WAY TO BOAST IS BY CONSTRUCTIVE ACTIONS. It has been said that it’s not boasting if you can really do it. This may be true, but a far more persuasive argument is made when you do it first and talk about it later. Besides, good things that are said about you always carry more weight when they are said by someone other than yourself. When you find yourself tempted to wax eloquent about your achievements, force yourself to pause for a moment, take a deep breath, and ask someone else about their achievements. WILLING COOPERATION PRODUCES ENDURING POWER, WHILE FORCED COOPERATION ENDS IN FAILURE. No civilization based upon the unjust treatment of its people has ever endured. A tyrant may force the cooperation of others for a time, but that power is never sustained. Only when people are accorded the respect they deserve do they willingly create and maintain successful organizations and societies. When you build a company or an organization based on fairness and justice for every member, you have built a power that will long endure. The best way to secure the commitment and unending cooperation of others is through the simple application of the Golden Rule. It is the most successful and long-lasting management theory ever developed. When you treat others as you would like to be treated were you in their situation, you will inspire loyalty and enthusiastic cooperation. Set high standards for yourself and others, treat them well, let them do their jobs, and they will perform miracles for you. THE HABITUAL PROCRASTINATOR IS ALWAYS AN EXPERT CREATOR OF ALIBIS. If you are so inclined, you can always find dozens of reasons why something can’t or shouldn’t be done-and precious few why it should or could. It is far easier to rationalize that it’s too difficult, too expensive, or too time-consuming than to accept the idea that if we are willing to work hard enough, smart enough, and long enough we can accomplish anything. Instead of making a commitment, we make up an alibi. If you find that you frequently invent excuses for why you didn’t do something or have a million reasons why something didn’t work out as planned, it’s time for a reality check. Stop explaining and start doing! A WISE MAN WATCHES HIS FAULTS MORE CLOSELY THAN HIS VIRTUES; FOOLS REVERSE THE ORDER.We all have within us the potential for greatness or for failure. Both possibilities are an innate part of our character. Whether we reach for the stars or plunge to the depths of despair depends in large measure on how we manage our positive and negative potential. It is doubtful that, if left unchecked, your virtues will rage out of control. Unfortunately, the reverse is not true about your faults. Left unattended, faults have a way of multiplying until they eventually choke out your good qualities. The surest way to control your faults is to attack them the moment they appear.THOSE WHO CREATE GOOD FELLOWSHIP AMONG OTHERS WILL NEVER BE SHORT OF FRIENDS. If you have a friend who goes out of his way to help cement friendships between others, consider yourself fortunate indeed. In today’s frantic, mobile, throwaway society, such individuals are exceedingly rare. With the demands placed upon us by our careers, our families, and the hectic pace of daily life, most of us have little time for ourselves, and even less for our friends. Yet we know that friendship freely given and gratefully received is one of life’s greatest gifts and catch more friends than you can count. EVERY TIME YOU INFLUENCE ANOTHER PERSON TO DO A BETTER JOB, YOU BENEFIT THAT PERSON AND YOU INCREASE YOUR OWN VALUE. Someone once said that no one can really motivate anyone else; all we can do is motivate ourselves and hope it catches on. You will probably never know how much you influence others with your behavior. When you always go the extra mile, you will influence those in your circle of friends and acquaintances, your family, your co-workers, and even your bosses to do more and better than they have done before. Your value to yourself and others is greatly enhanced by your ability to influence others to be happier, more productive people. There are no salary caps or career limits for those who lead others to great heights of success. Such people are simply too valuable. CHANGE YOUR MENTAL ATTITUDE, AND THE WORLD AROUND YOU WILL CHANGE ACCORDINGLY. Your world will become what you choose to make it. You can reach great heights of success, or you can settle for a miserable life that is devoid of hope. The choice is yours. When you choose a positive course, you set in motion an unstoppable force that will allow you to have a fulfilling career, the love of your family and friends, good physical and mental health, and all of the other true riches of life. To change your world, you must change it from the inside out. You must begin with yourself. When you choose the course that puts your life on a positive track, you will change your life for the better, and you will also positively influence the people with whom you come in contact. OPPORTUNITY WILL NOT INTEREST ITSELF IN THE PERSON WHO ISN’T INTERESTED IN IT. In a free and democratic society, the number of opportunities for achievement is virtually limitless. In every business or profession, there are innumerable opportunities to invent new products, to improve manufacturing and administrative processes, and to offer better service than the competitor down the street. But every opportunity will soon drift away unless someone seizes it and puts it to work. Anytime you are faced with a difficult problem, stop for a moment and ask yourself: "What is the opportunity hidden in this problem?" When you find an opportunity, you will be far ahead of your competitors. IF YOU DO A JOB ANOTHER’S WAY, HE OR SHE MUST TAKE THE RESPONSIBILITY. IF YOU DO IT YOUR WAY, YOU MUST TAKE THE RESPONSIBILITY. The "loneliness at the top" that senior officials often feel comes from the certain knowledge that they alone are responsible for the failure or success of the organization. They may share their authority with associates, but not their responsibility. When a sports franchise suffers a losing season, the general manager and the coaches are held accountable. They, not the individual players, are responsible for the failure of the team; the team merely followed orders. When you become the leader, when you set the course, you must accept responsibility for the outcome. HIGH WAGES AND THE CAPACITY TO ASSUME RESPONSIBILITY ARE TWO THINGS THAT BELONG TOGETHER. It’s been said that a leader’s job is to inspire others to high levels of achievement, while a manager’s job is to protect the assets of investors. The most successful people are those who recognize the similarities and differences between leadership and management responsibilities, fulfilling both with equal skill and aplomb. When they do, they realize the rewards that are commensurate with their efforts. When you cheerfully accept responsibility for your own actions and do your job in a way that protects the interests of your employer, you will soon be entrusted with more and more responsibilities. And those who have the capacity to assume responsibility-for the success of the project or organization-will always be paid the highest salaries. ACT ON YOUR OWN INITIATIVE, BUT BE PREPARED TO ASSUME FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR ACTS. One of the primary differences between those who achieve greatness in their lives and those who manage only to "get by" is that successful people learned early in life that they were responsible for their own actions. No other person can make you successful or keep you from achieving your goals. Taking the initiative means assuming a leadership role, a position that singles you out for praise-and for criticism. The good leader is the one who shares the credit for success with others and assumes full responsibility for failures or temporary setbacks. When you accept responsibility for your actions, you gain the respect of others and are well on the way to creating your own future. THE BEST JOB GOES TO THE ONE WHO CAN GET IT DONE WITHOUT PASSING THE BUCK OR COMING BACK WITH ALIBIS. We often discover that people we view as "overnight successes" have in fact labored for years in obscurity before they were finally recognized and rewarded for their contributions. Success is a cumulative effort; the journey to the top in any field is usually long and requires careful planning. If you want to climb the first rung on the ladder of success, you must always take the initiative to get the job done, even when you find it less than challenging or even unpleasant. Eventually, you'll earn your reward. You will become the boss, the leader, because you have developed the habit of taking the initiative to get the job done. You will get the best jobs because you've proven that you are dependable by accepting responsibility for your actions and your future. THOSE WHO WILL NOT TAKE A CHANCE SELDOM HAVE ONE THRUST UPON THEM. Success always involves risk. You must take a chance by investing your time, money, and effort. It pays to be thoughtful and deliberate in your analyses of opportunities, but don’t let timidity hold you back. Because you have worked hard to develop those things you must risk, it is natural for you to place a high value on them. But what use are they if you do not put them to use? You will recognize opportunity only to the extent that you are willing to consider risking your time, money, and effort. Being confident gives you the courage to face risk and act when opportunity arises. No one on earth is going to force success upon you; you will find it only to the degree that you actively seek it out. ARE YOU WAITING FOR SUCCESS TO ARRIVE, OR ARE YOU GOING OUT TO FIND WHERE IT IS HIDING? If you are waiting for success to seek you out, you are headed for a big disappointment. Success is rarely forced upon anyone, and it will never overtake you unexpectedly. You must prepare for it and actively seek it out if you ever plan to achieve any measure of success in your life. Constantly be alert to changes in your business or profession. Subscribe to trade magazines and professional journals, join industry associations or professional societies, and get to know the experts in the field in order to keep abreast of new developments. IF IT ISN'T YOUR JOB TO DO IT, PERHAPS IT IS YOUR OPPORTUNITY. Someone once observed that the reason we often fail to recognize opportunities is because they come disguised as problems. When a customer, a colleague, or your boss has a problem, it may create a valuable opportunity for you. It isn't important to the person with the problem how your company is organized or whose responsibility it is to solve the problem; he or she only wants the situation resolved. The next time a customer, a colleague, or your boss asks for your assistance in something that falls outside your area of responsibility, instead of referring them to someone else, offer to help. Look at the situation from the other person's point of view. How would you like the situation handled if the roles were reversed? Take the initiative to find the answer, solve the problem, or keep the project moving forward. SOME INDIVIDUALS APPEAR TO BE “ALLERGIC” TO HONEST WORK, BUT OPPORTUNITY IS EQUALLY ALLERGIC TO THEM. In any business, profession, or occupation, there comes a time when you have to deliver. You may fake it for a time, pretending that you're giving an honest effort, but eventually you will be measured by your deeds, not by your words. If you are more of a talker than a doer, make a vow today-right now-to change your behavior. You may be able to drift through life if you never do more than you are required to do, but you will never know what you might have achieved if you had only been willing to give a little more. The greatest opportunities always go to those who have an affinity for hard work, not an allergy to it. WHEN YOU GET YOURSELF UNDER COMPLETE CONTROL, YOU CAN BE YOUR OWN BOSS. We all have moments when we allow others to cause us to react emotionally, especially in anger. Often we regret our response later, and we vow we will never allow ourselves to behave in this fashion again. The next time you feel the anger rising, remind yourself that no one can make you angry or emotional without your consent-indeed, your active participation is required. Those who have learned to manage themselves are the individuals who are destined to be leaders. They are chosen to manage others because they have demonstrated that they can manage themselves. They are people of character. IF YOU CAN'T MANAGE YOUR OWN MENTAL ATTITUDE, WHAT MAKES YOU THINK YOU CAN MANAGE OTHERS?
DON’T BE SATISFIED WITH BEING GOOD AT YOUR JOB. BE THE BEST, AND YOU’LL BE INDISPENSABLE. Experts have consistently found that after a certain point, money ceases to be a motivator. Even though you may not yet have reached that point, if you are honest with yourself, you will probably find that money is only one of many considerations. When asked if they would continue doing what they do even though it didn’t pay well, most highly successful people reply, "Absolutely. I wouldn’t change a thing. I love what I’m doing." One of the surest ways to climb the ladder of success is to choose a job that you would do even if you didn’t earn much at it. When you are working because you like what you do, the money will follow. You will become such a rare commodity that others will compete for your services-and pay you handsomely for them. YOU MUST GET BUSY DOING SOMETHING ABOUT GOING THE EXTRA MILE. It’s well and good to feel as though you have changed the attitude with which you render extra service, but if that service is in truth no more than anyone else’s, then you aren’t doing yourself much good. You need to examine your co-workers and competitors to understand just what it is that will make you stand out. If there are job performance standards, exceed them. If you’re fulfilling a contract, make sure you offer more than you promised. You cannot confine extra-mile service to your work alone. You must make it part of your philosophy for dealing with every person you encounter. Imagine how others will be delighted to find that you are the type of person who not only does what is promised but even delivers more. The true benefit of going the extra mile is in teaching yourself to strive always for better and greater achievement in all that you do. Why is it that often those who believe they would be the best managers of others-if they were only given the opportunity-haven't learned to manage themselves properly? Before you can ever have any hope of managing others effectively, you must first learn to set an example for others to follow. It is simply impossible for you to inspire others to high levels of achievement if you cannot inspire yourself to do the same. Don't make the mistake that many others make by saying, “When they make me a manager, I'll show them I can manage.” The first move is yours. You must first prove yourself worthy. FM RECRUITMENT SERVICES PTY LTD Making a Difference Ph- +61 2 9858 5473 Monday-Friday 6:00AM-8:00PM Office Mobile- 0403 640 120 Monday-Sunday PO Box 117 Eastwood NSW 2122 Australia Corporate Member Recruitment & Consulting Services Association LTD |
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