Failure to Success

"I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed." -Michael Jordan

All of my life I have had failures of one varying degree or another. I have tried to be the best at everything I do and fallen short many of those times. But what all of my failures have prepared me to be the success that I am in areas I never would have thought possible.

You have the same ability to learn from failure and succeed solely because you did fail. If you let failure take over and prevent you from ever trying again, then failure has won. But if you allow failure to be another learning experience, a lession understood; it will allow you to use failure to succeed.

Never let yourself get down because of failures. Get back up a thousand times if you have to. And remember that success will come to you.

Stay inspired my friends and you can also start reading different types of articles I've written at Street Articles.

New Books, New Stories

"Life without love is like a tree without blossoms or fruit." -Khalil Gibran

As the days pass, I will begin to build up to the announcement of my new book. The manuscript is with the publisher and potentially a few edits and changes to make, are all that stand between now and publication. This book marks a slight shift from the past couple of books, CHANGED LIVES and LIVE THE JOURNEY.

In my new book called LOVE IS, the intent is to take you through a series of stories that will give you new perspective on what love is. There is a wide variety of good and many not so good definitions of what love is on display and talked about these days. This book should bring it all back to an easy and healthy way to know and understand what love really is.

Yes, I still use my own life experiences to illustrate what love does in life, the lessons learned, and the power of love in our lives. I also bring it around to one of the greatest love stories ever told. You will recognize it and in my book I attempt to break down the meaning of each sentence for you.

The name of that love story will have to wait, but if you think about it, you'll know which one I'm talking about. If not, once the book is out, you can read and find out what a huge impact love, the right kind of love, can have on your life.

Stay inspired my friends and if you are looking for a great read today, check out @DavidSpell new book Street Cop II (Reloaded). Read stories from a 30+ year career to find out what serving and protecting really means.

Sweeping The Street

As we continue sharing some older posts, last weekend my wife and I fixed up the area around our mail box. With the dirt and mess, we ended up having to sweep the street. It reminded me of a favorite of mine by the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

If a man is called to be a street sweeper
He should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted
Or Beethoven composed music
Or Shakespeare wrote poetry

He should sweep streets so well
That all the hosts of heaven and earth
Will pause to say
Here lived a great street sweeper
Who did his job well

~Martin Luther King, Jr~

This is one of my favorite quotes that I share with you today. You can make a difference every day simply by doing what you do, to the best ability that you can.

Street Cop

"If you run, you'll only go to jail tired." ~Unknown

Just recently I finished reading a new book by David Spell called STREET COP. It is one of those books that tells the tales from nearly 30 years of life in law enforcement. A life you thought you may have understood a police officer goes through. But this one is more personal and brings you right into the action. And it is that action for which I'm thankful for people like David Spell.

Each day we get up and go to work, the store or any of a hundred different things. The visible life of police officers is the one in which we see them involved in catching speeding cars or showing up at our fender benders. The life that some may criticize as 'interference' in your daily life.

What we fail to see and maybe choose not to see is one in which bad guys do bad things, ugly things, to other people. The bad guys rob, beat up their wives, sell drugs to our children and they shoot and kill in bloody messes. It is these same bad guys that are confronted every day by good guys just like David Spell.

Each day, the good guys are chasing down these bad guys and keeping you and I safe. It is only in their spare time do police officers get the chance to try and slow us down on the roads. It is only in their spare time do police officers get the chance to help write up an incident report from your little fender bender.

You may wonder why police officers are so careful when pulling you over as well. One police officer is quoted as saying, "In God we trust, all others we run through NCIC (National Crime Information Center)." When you read STREET COP you will see just how much danger they put themselves in. And this goes on each and every day, "TO PROTECT AND SERVE" isn't just a line from a movie.

Grab hold of David's book today and see what happens as we go about our daily life. And than thank a police officer next time you see one. Thank your 'lucky stars' they are out there chasing down the bad guys and the occassional dog.

Sweeping Streets

If a man is called to be a street sweeper
He should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted
Or Beethoven composed music
Or Shakespeare wrote poetry

He should sweep streets so well
That all the hosts of heaven and earth
Will pause to say
Here lived a great street sweeper
Who did his job well

~Martin Luther King, Jr~

This is one of my favorite quotes that I share with you today. You can make a difference every day simply by doing what you do, to the best ability that you can.