First thought

What do you think about the very first thing in the morning?

Your thoughts during the first half-hour of the morning will greatly influence the entire day. You may not realize this, but it is nevertheless a fact.

If you set out with worry and depression, and bitterness of soul toward fate or man, you are giving the key note to a day of discord and misfortunes.

If you think peace, hope, and happiness, you are sounding a note of harmony and success. The result may not be felt at once, but it will not fail to make itself evident eventually.

Control your morning thoughts. You can do it.

The first moment on waking, no matter what your mood, say to yourself:

"I will get all the comfort and pleasure possible out of this day, and I will do something to add to the measure of the world's happiness or well-being. I will control myself when tempted to be irritable or unhappy, I will look for the bright side of every event."

Once you say these things over to yourself in a calm, earnest way, you will begin to feel more cheerful. The worries and troubles of the coming day will seem less colossal.

Then say:

"I shall be given help to meet anything that comes today. Everything will be for the best. I shall succeed in whatever I undertake. I cannot fail."

Do not let it discourage you if the moment you leave your room you encounter a trouble or a disaster. This usually happens. When we make any boasts, spiritually or physically, we are put to the test. The occult forces about us are not unlike human beings.

When a schoolboy boasts of his strength, and says he can "lick any boy in school," he generally gets a chance to prove it. When we declare we are brave enough to overcome any fate, we find our strength put to the test at once.

But that is all right.

Prove your words to be true. Regard the troubles and cares you encounter as the "punching bags" of fate, given you to develop your spiritual muscle. Go at them with courage and keep to your morning resolve.

By and by the troubles will lessen, and you will find yourself master of circumstances.

--- Ella Wilcox Wheeler

Happiness is Important

"Are you bored with life? Then throw yourself into some work you believe in with all your heart, live for it, die for it, and you will find happiness that you had thought could never be yours."

--- Dale Carnegie

I think this quote kind of speaks for itself.  If you're not doing this now, think about what you would like to do. How can you move closer to your vision? 

What will you need to get started?  A plan?  How will you work your plan? What steps can you take each day, that will help you get closer to your goal?

Roads

Where are you going?  Is there a clear path or are you a trailblazer, building your own? Life is like that - sometimes it clear which road to follow and at other times, we must decide on our own. 

When you are going somewhere, you will know what to do.  Good luck on the journey, enjoy each moment!  If you need to change direction or pick another path, do so with confidence. 

Greatness is here to stay

Are you ready for a great day today?  A great week? 

Today's quote speaks to the optimist in you.  What exactly is an optimist?  According to the dictionary:

1. a person who tends to be hopeful and confident about the future or the success of something.

"only an eternal optimist could expect success"

2. a person who believes that this world is the best of all possible worlds or that good must ultimately prevail over evil.

Being an optimist doesn't mean you can't have frustrating moments or feel down sometimes.  What it does mean is that you can see past the doom and gloom with the expectation of brighter moments and days ahead.

I Approve of Myself

For the next month, say over and over to yourself, “I APPROVE OF MYSELF.”

Do this three or four hundred times a day, at least. No, it’s not too many times. When you are worrying, you go over your problem at least that many times. Let “I approve of myself” become a walking mantra, something you just say over and over and over to yourself, almost nonstop.

Saying “I approve of myself” is a guaranteed way to bring up everything buried in your consciousness that is in opposition.

When negative thoughts come up, such as, “How can I approve of myself when I am fat?” or “It’s silly to think this can do any good,” or “I am no good,” or whatever your negative babble will be, this is the time to take mental control. Give these thoughts no importance. Just see them for what they are — another way to keep you stuck in the past. Gently say to these thoughts, “I let you go; I approve of myself.”

Even considering doing this exercise can bring up a lot of stuff, like “It feels silly,” “It doesn’t feel true,” “It’s a lie,” “It sounds stuck up,” or “How can I approve of myself when I do that?”

Let all these thoughts just pass through. These are only resistance thoughts. They have no power over you unless you choose to believe them.

“I approve of myself, I approve of myself, I approve of myself.” No matter what happens, no matter who says what to you, no matter who does what to you, just keep it going. In fact, when you can say that to yourself when someone is doing something you don’t approve of, you will know you are growing and changing.

Thoughts have no power over us unless we give in to them. Thoughts are only words strung together. They have NO MEANING WHATSOEVER. Only we give meaning to them. Let us choose to think thoughts that nourish and support us.

Everyone Is Capable

Your Team Members Do Not Have To Be Perfect!
By Mike Marino, Jr.

I would like to say that, the biggest room in the world is the room for improvement. I believe everyone wants to constantly improve. I believe each one of us is created as perfection; however, the results we create are excellent, so there is lots of room for improvement in what we do.

The associates I hired in my bicycle and lawn mower shop like myself, were never perfect; however, they were excellent. Working with them as they improved taught me new ways to show forgiveness, understanding, and patience.

My first employee was in a wheelchair from an auto accident that happened when he was sixteen. I hired him to answer the telephone and talk to customers who came into the store. My second employee had one arm.

Word spread that I hired people with physical challenges. The placement officer at a local community college with a rehabilitation school called on my business about hiring people with physical and mental limitations.

One day the placement officer asked me to interview a young man who was having trouble finding a job. He told me that David was a little shy, did not talk much and was afraid to go on interviews. He requested that I grant David an interview just for practice. He plainly told David that I had no positions open at the time and the interview was just for practice.

When David came in for the interview, he hardly said a word. I told him what we do at the bicycle Shop and showed him around. When the interview was over I told him I would keep his application on file. Then I took a few minutes to coach David on how to apply for a job. I told David to keep showing up (figuratively) because the number one thing an employer wants in an associate is dependability.

David was very quiet (he was evaluated as a slow learner in school). Every ten days or so, for weeks after the interview, David walked into the bicycle shop and stood by the front door. He never said a word, just stood by the door. I would tell him kindly, "I really do not have any positions open at this time." I wished he would go away but he kept showing up!

The shop was a very labor-intensive place to work, with students unloading trucks, assembling bicycles and lawn mowers, making repairs and waiting on customers. I usually had seventeen employees at one time, mostly high school and college students.

David continued to keep coming by about every ten days. He never said a word.

One day, shortly before Christmas, a large tractor-trailer backed up to the shop, packed with 250 new, unassembled bicycles. It had to be unloaded right away or the driver would leave, and it might be a long time before I could get him back for the delivery.

It was raining. Some of my student workers (without physical limitations) chose not to brave the weather to get into work, so I was short handed. The place was crowded with shoppers. Frustrated customers were waiting to be served. A line formed at the counter.

It seemed everything was going wrong and on top of it, David came in the front door and just stood there.

Hmm... What would you do in this situation? Tell David to leave or get in here and help?

Let's find the answer and much more:
http://motivateus.com/stories/your-team.htm

Endless Train of Thoughts

Does your mind often feel like a busy station? 

The next time it feels like there’s an endless train of thoughts, try this: Get off the train of thoughts.  Just as you can sit on the platform and watch the trains come and go, in the same way, watch your thoughts come and go.

Just sit and watch, and you'll most probably find that all the trains have departed from your mind. Anonymous

Laughing

Laughter has a beautiful way of easing the burdens you carry on a daily basis. It allows you to relax for a minute, enjoy yourself before you get back to the business of being so serious.

We need to learn how to relieve stress in a positive way; laughter can do this.

Who's Problem Is It Really?

A man feared his wife wasn't hearing as well as she used to and he thought she might need a hearing aid. Not quite sure how to approach her, he called the family Doctor to discuss the problem.

The Doctor told him there is a simple informal test the husband could perform to give the Doctor a better idea about her hearing loss.

Here's what you do," said the Doctor, "stand about 40 feet away from her, and in a normal conversational speaking tone see if she hears you. If not, go to 30 feet, then 20 feet, and so on until you get a response."

That evening, the wife is in the kitchen cooking dinner, and he was in the den. He says to himself, "I'm about 40 feet away, let's see what happens." Then in a normal tone he asks, 'Honey, what's for dinner?"

No response.

What happens next?

Remember this has to do with our perception. Let's read a bit more:
http://motivateus.com/stories/perception.htm