Suppose

"We dance round in a ring and suppose, but the secret sits in the middle and knows." ~Robert Frost

The word suppose is a pretty simple one to understand. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines it as "to lay down tentatively as a hypothesis, assumption, or proposal." An example might be, suppose I quit sitting on the couch and took a walk. Or possibly, suppose I stopped complaining about my job and did something to improve my lot.

There are many supposes out there each of us carry. Suppose I did this or suppose I did that? But suppose you actually did something about it? Suppose you actually got out and walked more? Suppose you took a class to improve your knowledge? Suppose you loved a little more and complained a little less? Suppose you quit supposing and did?

To paraphrase a quote by the great boxer Muhammad Ali, "Suppose you view the world the same at fifty as you did at twenty; then you have just wasted thirty years of your life." So much will be passed by if we never act upon our goals or dreams.

Getting oneself to create movement towards a goal is easy to talk about. The difficult part is actually creating that movement. But once you start with the slightest move, the momentum will build and help sustain your movement towards achievement.

You walk a little more, you read a little more, you even love others a little more. The dream starts to become less of a dream and more of a reality. And once reality is in sight, it grows bigger each day as you move from suppose to will. The suppose in your life will finally be reality.

Suppose it all could really happen? It will when we stop supposing.

Stay inspired my friends.

Giant Smiles

"What sunshine is to flowers, smiles are to humanity. These are but trifles, to be sure; but scattered along life's pathway, the good they do is inconceivable."
-Joseph Addison

How much would you spend on coffee to see a person smile?

A man in Michigan by the name of Dan Dewey has spent $10,000 of his own money to do just that. And it seems this weekly habit causes the line to back up at a local Starbucks each and every Thursday at 10:30 a.m. Others may at first be put off by the long wait until they learn he is there to buy coffee for patients undergoing chemotherapy at St. Joseph Mercy Oakland Hospital in the town of Pontiac, Michigan.

All of this began in 2007 when his father was a patient at the same hospital. It just so happened that every Thursday at the same time, his father was undergoing chemotherapy and Dan was there each time. One particular trip, with his father sitting in treatment, Dan offered to get his father a coffee from Starbucks.

As Dan recalls, “I took a look around. There were several other people there, and they couldn’t go anywhere. So I said, ‘Anybody else want a coffee? He’s buying; I’ve got his wallet.’”

This became a weekly event in which Dan would get coffee for his father, other patients and staff in the cancer unit. When his father had completed his treatments, Dan asked his father if he should continue coming back to get coffee for others. His father replied, “Yeah, go ahead."

Dan says he will never forget his father's words and while his father passed away the following year at age 87, his memory inspires his son to comfort other cancer patients with his weekly trip to the cancer treatment facility which has become known as “Dan’s Coffee Run.”

Those that know Dan also note that Dan Dewey does not have a lot of money, but it does not stop his generosity. He does get fan mail and some donations from those that have never met him. There are the occasional gift cards and letters from those he has never served coffee to but have undergone cancer treatment as well.

But it is the coffee and friendly nature of Dan that rewards him with new friends and lots of smiles. And more importantly as Dan says, "I feel like I’m having coffee with my dad every Thursday morning. That’s all I need.”

Many times all it takes is a friendly gesture, a little conversation and a gigantic smile to make all of the difference in a person's life and your own.

Stay inspired my friends!

Break the Isolation

"Sometimes being a brother is even better than being a superhero." -Marc Brown

Not only do I count my biological brothers, but also other men that stand with me when times are tough and when times are good. As men we tend to isolate ourselves and handle things alone. We need to break the isolation and learn to lean on our brothers. In numbers we have strength and the ability to overcome our struggles.

My own brothers have stood by me, lifted me and corrected me when needed. When we stand shoulder to shoulder, we can overcome any obstacle we might face. So break your isolation and stand with your brothers as we walk this journey together.

And stay inspired my friends.

Real Achievement

DESPAIR.COM

We all have our own doubt regarding events that may or may not have happened. A close friend of mine has always questioned whether we actually landed on the moon on July 20, 1969. He doesn't doubt the later landings, but that first one still makes him wonder. When you accomplish anything in life, chances are there will be those that question it. And the picture above is 'tongue-in-cheek' of course regarding accomplishment. I look beyond the obvious statement and note that we can fool others but we can not fool our self.

As hard as you try, you know the truth of your own accomplishments in life.

Which leads us to being truthful about self. I have known people that repeat an untruth about themselves for so long that they begin to believe the legend. The stage is theirs and the audience becomes them self as well. It soon becomes a problem knowing what is the real truth and what isn't. But deep inside, you really know which one it is.

The truth eventually catches up with you.

The paper walls that you built will crumble around and leave you naked before all. And it is in the depths that you must rebuild the truth within yourself before anyone else will ever return as an audience. Which means you will be on stage, all alone, no audience.

Accomplishment becomes a label that others put on you. It is not something we place upon ourselves. You will know accomplishment inside and be able to pursue even more when it is truthful. Others may question it at first, but eventually they will see it for real in your purpose and action.

Be truthful to yourself and your accomplishments will shine on their own.

Stay inspired my friends!

The Right Target

“Fear is a habit; so is self-pity, defeat, anxiety, despair, hopelessness and resignation. You can eliminate all of these negative habits with two simple resolves: I can!! and I will!!” -Unknown

The message is simple, if you believe you can never succeed, you will never succeed.

We doubt, we worry and we spend energy holding up that target on our life. I am not immune to it and neither are you. I can work my hind end off and produce wonderful results, but find myself at times doubting the work. Being self critical has certainly held me back at times. It has probably held you back at times also. The energy expended on those negative habits drains your ability to do so much more in life.

You can liken it to the picture shown above by imagining your "self doubt" as a bullseye or target. Both hands firmly grip it and steadfastly position it in front of you. Your arms may weaken, but you hold onto that target ever tighter.

Now imagine if you simply threw it to the ground. Two free hands that could accomplish so much more are now available.

It is not easy to do because self doubt can be part of the "yin and yang" in our lives. Self doubt will keep you grounded in stagnation. And all too many times we let it take over and become a heavy rock in our wagon to carry through life.

What we must do is set aside the target of self doubt and believe in you. Free yourself to do greater things and let your dreams and goals become the target.

Stay inspired my friends.

Painting a Life

"Painting is silent poetry, and poetry is painting that speaks." -Plutarch

From time to time, I take time off from work as many of you do, to get some much needed maintenance done around our home. I grew up on a farm and have a hard time hiring others to come in and do this kind of work. Doing the work myself is a release from the normal kind of job I get paid to perform. So it is both 'therapy' and 'enjoyable' to perform this kind of work; plus it saves money...always a good thing.

One big project I completed not long ago was painting our previous house. There were tall and short ladders, lots of paint and dodging rainy weather kept me quite busy. Yet the work progressed and slowly became a work of art so to speak. Okay, so maybe it was not a Van Gogh or Picasso painting but I did have a canvas and used both brushes and paint. I like to think of it as a minimalist painting style. I would also like to think that Dali might have been amused by the bizarre connection between a painted work of art and a house painted.

Yet painting itself is not just the applying of color to a surface such as a house or canvas. Painting is also what each of us do in creating our life. The actions and thoughts we create each day paints the type of life we have.

The canvas is your life while the paint and brushes are your actions and thoughts. If negativity pervades your mind, then your life's picture will probably contain darkness and depressing images. A positive one will create a life full of color and wonder. The images created are yours and no one else can paint the picture for you.

No one but Leonardo da Vinci could paint the Mona Lisa.

No one but Monet could have painted Water Lilies.

And no one but you can paint your own life. Only you have the ability to make your life what you want it to be.

Paint a wonderful life for yourself and those around you. Even if the picture has already been started, you have the ability to repaint; to reshape the life that has already sprung forth from you. Grab your ladders, paint cans and brushes. Your canvas is awaiting you.

Stay inspired my friends!

Start and Run

Start by starting." -Meryl Streep

Okay, so you have made that decision to create change in your life. Your dream has been transformed into a set of goals. There are pieces of paper hung in those places to remind you of the vision. You are really going to do it this time you have reminded yourself a multitude of times.

You click on the 'START' button and all of a sudden you have choices. You had thought it was as simple as starting. The act of starting is a big step towards your goal, but the goal doesn't just happen. There are going to be decisions to make, changes to the plan and needed help along the way.

Think of the different choices presented to you;

- NEW DOCUMENT
- OPEN DOCUMENT
- SET PROGRAM ACCESS AND DEFAULTS
- UPDATE
- PROGRAMS
- SETTINGS
- SEARCH
- HELP AND SUPPORT
- RUN
- LOG OFF
- SHUTDOWN

And get the SHUTDOWN and LOG OFF options off your list now.

These are the options that say quit or end the journey towards a goal. It doesn't mean an end to life, it means you have decided not to pursue your dreams any further. That is why there is a HELP AND SUPPORT option available to you. A place to go that will help give you direction and assistance along the way. We each need help once in a while and don't be afraid to use it.

There are PROGRAMS that will work with you along the way and when you can not find your way, then the SEARCH feature of your life is available. Use those people in your life that build you up with real advice. Surround yourself with positive people and learn from the success of others.

You can UPDATE your goals along the way as well. You will OPEN the DOCUMENT that describes your goals. You read these constantly and try never to close it. When the time to update the goal comes, create a NEW DOCUMENT with the updated goals. Save and never lose the document; make copies and read them often.

As you get things figured out, you can SET PROGRAM ACCESS AND DEFAULTS that put those things into an automatic mode so that your energy can be focused on the goal. Just don't forget that even these items need to be reviewed and updated on a regular basis.

Finally, an important choice you can make.

The choice is to RUN towards a vision. You have been talking and dreaming of it for so long. Now is the time to reach out towards that thing you want.

It all "starts by starting" and you are on your way.

Stay inspired my friends!

Your Windmill Effect

"Your spirit is like the wind; you can not see it but you can see where it has been." -Unknown

So many people have so many different characteristics and ways about them. There are the funny, always have a joke for you type of people. There are the serious and very business kind that march in a very definite manner. We even know some of the downtrodden, "woe is me" people in life that only the bad things in life happen to them. The opposite exist as well, the ever upbeat person that never lets anything bother them type of person.

Whatever type you are, each of us has a spirit about us that can not be seen.

It is the "something" about us that others have felt after an encounter. Think of the last time you spent around one of these types of people. Did you feel "downtrodden" or "upbeat" after the encounter? Maybe you came away with needing to be more serious about life or maybe not so seriously?

But we will be impacted by everything that happens around us.

The spirit or nature of another person will have touched us and left its mark in our life. How you conduct your life, how you express yourself; your spirit will come through and leave its mark as well upon others. While it is said that only you can determine your own attitude, which is true. You can be influenced by others and their attitudes.

You can also influence others with your attitude...with your spirit.

Think about what your true spirit is and look behind to see what is left in your wake. Same as the wind blows through a windmill, we do not see the wind. What we do see is the effect it had upon the windmill. Our spirit will go unseen, but how it affects others can be seen. Understand what your spirit is and have a positive effect upon others.

Stay inspired my friends!

Even the Smallest

"Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies." ~Mother Teresa

As we watch the Major Baseball playoffs, it reminds me of a story regarding a pitcher named Roy Halladay. Roy became only the second person to ever throw a no-hitter in post season play on October 5, 2010. It was quite an accomplishment when you look at the history of baseball. More amazing is that on May 29 of that same year, Halladay had also pitched the 20th perfect game ever in Major League Baseball history.

As they say, "27 up, 27 down" to complete the game.

So what can pitching a no-hitter in baseball have to do with living a great life. Most certainly having that level of talent brings adulation and money, lots of money that helps make life comfortable. But it is the person behind the talent, their character, that makes a great life. And Roy Halladay did something beyond just receiving acclaim for his accomplishments.

After pitching the perfect game earlier that year in May, he arranged to commemorate the accomplishment. Halladay went and presented 60 Swiss-made Baume and Mercier watches he had purchased to everyone in the clubhouse. Each were presented in boxes bearing the inscription: "We did it together. Thanks, Roy Halladay." To top it off, on the back of each watch was engraved the date of the game, the line score, and the individual recipient's name.

Those sixty people were not just his fellow ball-players. They were the coaches, the trainers, and people that others might have considered to be insignificant participants to his accomplishment.

But not to Roy.

Roy understood and acknowledged that even the smallest of us have a large impact on success in life. While you toil away at something in life, you may feel insignificant. Just know that even the smallest flower along the roadside serves a grand purpose. The nectar a bee consumes, which creates food for the hive yet sustains the bee to carry on the pollination of other plants. The smallest flower is involved in the circle that will carry life forward.

And if we have greatness in our life, we need to remember and acknowledge all the other people that helped us accomplish it. For without many others your life can not be sustained for very long. Without the smallest flowers, the bee has less to draw upon. In time, the bee can no longer sustain its grand work. Even the largest depend upon the small; life is pretty grand in that respect.

So know that your life is never too big to have done so on your own. Nor is your life too small not to have an impact on the life of another person. Not all of us can pitch a no-hitter, but each of us can make a difference in the life of another. And when we impact the lives of other people, its as good as having a "27 up and 27 down" great life.

Stay inspired my friends!

It Will Be Fine

"What it all comes down to, is that everything's gonna be fine, fine, fine."
-Alanis Morissette

Despite all that you have gone through this past year.

Despite all that you will go through in times to come.

Everything will be fine.

Keep your head up and know that it is a journey filled with learning and lots of living.

So stay inspired my friends.

Developing a Vision

"Envisioning the end is enough to put the means in motion." - Dorothea Brande

Main Entry: vi·sion
Pronunciation: \ˈvi-zhən\

1 a: something seen in a dream, trance, or ecstasy ; especially : a supernatural appearance that conveys a revelation b: a thought, concept, or object formed by the imagination
2 a: the act or power of imagination b (1): mode of seeing or conceiving (2): unusual discernment or foresight, a person of vision c: direct mystical awareness of the supernatural usually in visible form.
3 a: the act or power of seeing : sight b: the special sense by which the qualities of an object (as color, luminosity, shape, and size) constituting its appearance are perceived through a process in which light rays entering the eye are transformed by the retina into electrical signals that are transmitted to the brain via the optic nerve.

Creating and having a vision is the most powerful way to keep your focus on what you really want in life. It keeps you motivated to achieve that goal. By taking the time to visualize the end result of a goal will provide you with a particular kind of clarity, inspiration and direction to achieve it. Many people will experience anxiety and frustration by not having this vision.

But how do you develop this vision?

Begin by knowing what you want either short term or long term. Just where is it that you see yourself one year from now and five years from now? Are you looking for greater wealth; are you looking for greater health? What is in that 'minds eye' picture of your life? And be specific about the details of what you want.

Now write it down because visions become clearer and more real when you physically place it on paper, which reinforces the memory. Take this paper and make copies; place them on your bedroom mirror, bathroom mirror, car dash and in all the places where it will serve to remind you.

Read if often so you can see yourself already in possession of that life. This well defined vision will help you focus; it creates a purpose and becomes a measurement for success.

Some steps to achieving your vision I've learned;

1) Believe you will become who you want to be. Believing in yourself is the first and most important.

2) Learn what to do after you believe you will become who you want to be. I've heard it said that it is like trying to go to "New York City", but you don't really believe "New York City" exists. How will you get to a place you don't think exists?

3) Think good thoughts, block out negativity. Your thoughts and beliefs can be very fragile.

4) Success is created from within. It does not come from a place or live outside of us. Once you believe you will be successful, it's just a matter of creating it.

Your vision can be reality. Step forward and grab hold of it.

Stay inspired my friends!

Floating on Time

"Death leaves a heartache no one can heal, love leaves a memory no one can steal." -Irish

On Sunday, my wife and I were able to witness a moment of transition for a husband, a family and friends that lost a wonderful woman by the name of Belinda. She loved the ocean and the peace it brought her. She would lay for hours upon her raft, floating in the emerald gulf waters. All of us would laugh, wondering when the day would come that she floated all of the way to Cuba on that raft.

This day would be that day in which she floated forever upon the currents of time. Her husband Mark would take her ashes out into the deep and allow the waters to carry her for eternity. Some may call it letting go, but I say it is a "locking in" of the memories. Those that we love, while no longer with us physically, they live on in our hearts, in our minds, in our memories.

These things we do in honor of our loved ones both honors them but more importantly establishes more lasting memories. Those are the memories that will keep us connected long after the pain of losing them leaves us. Those are the memories that will forever live on through us, through our children and generations of family.

Let your love of family and friends live forever.

Stay inspired my friends.

We Can

“It isn't all over; everything has not been invented; the human adventure is just beginning.” -Gene Roddenberry

How much would you pay for an old pickup? Take a close look at the picture and imagine plunking down 140,000 U.S. dollars for a 1958 Chevrolet Cameo pickup truck. What if I told you it only had 1.3 miles on the odometer? That's correct, less than two miles and sat inside a building for basically fifty-five years.

Sure, it has a little bit of dust on it and the windows might need to be cleaned, but would you turn down an opportunity to own a small piece of history. Most times we only get to read about these types of things in books and old text books. It is living proof of what mankind has been able to build with the prevailing technology of their time. It might be easy to say "big deal" given what we know and have today.

But go back to the 1950's and think about those things we did not yet have.

- Cordless phones, Mobile phones, Cell phones or Home computers
- ATM's and ATM cards, you had to go to the bank or write a check
- Zip codes, believe it or not not until 1963
- VCR's, DVD's, CD's, MP3 players, iTunes or renting movies
- Cable TV, Satellite TV, even color TV was in its infancy
- Flight to the moon and the space shuttle

Now think about all the great things human innovation did come up with in the 1950s.

- First electric power from U.S. reactor,
- Introduction of Coast-to-coast TV
- Automation of the auto industry begins
- Proposed structure of DNA announced
- Solar batteries unveiled
- First supersonic flight by a military aircraft
- Vertical take-off and landing of jet aircraft
- All transistor radios introduced
- Discovery of cold fusion
- First U.S. satellites
- Stereo record technology developed

So when you look at an old 1958 Chevrolet Cameo pick up truck, with dirty windows and fading paint, think of the human innovation that went into building it. Then consider the issues we face today and know that human innovation still exists. We can solve and change the world with the dreams and innovation that exists in each of us.

We can constantly improve the world we live in. We can.

Stay inspired my friends!

Enduring the Typhoon

“The greater the obstacle, the more glory in overcoming it.” -Molière

Sure enough, that is right where I had flown into, sitting in a 24th floor hotel just on the north side of Hong Kong. It was early on a Saturday evening as we drove from the airport to the hotel. The streets were dry, the winds seemed a bit strong and strangely there was very little traffic.

After traveling for eighteen plus hours, it took me a while to come to the realization that I had arrived just prior to a storm. A storm called Typhoon Usagi that would eventually cause the death of twenty-five people and pack 100+ mile per hour winds. I had entered into the path of an obstacle that was not standing still but about to overrun me.

The choices were clear at this point; run or endure.

The idea of running was actually not much of an option as airline flights were being canceled, trains were already scooting out of the area and getting on a boat didn't seem to make sense. So endure the storm is what it would be. The high winds, the water coming through the seals of my window and knowing that my meetings would be canceled.

All of us will encounter a storm at one point or another. Many times, the storm will come to us and we'll have to make a choice. Either we run or we endure.

When we overcome, push through or defeat our obstacles, the outcomes will be greater than you could imagine.

Stay inspired my friends!

Tornado of Kindness

“Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for kindness.” Seneca

You have probably heard the expression, '...that kid is going to grow up to be a hell raiser' when referring to a young child. It is reference to a child that always seems to be getting him or herself into a lot of trouble. It could even refer to someone older and again always seems to have 'trouble' surrounding them.

Most of us never get to see exactly how that person's life turns out. Families and friends close to that particular person get a front row seat to all of it though. Each of us probably know someone like that, either a young person or an older person that seems to fight life every step of the way.

I have always held that in every person there is a seed of goodness. Something that exists in the heart which can stir their emotion. In the hardest of troubled minds, we can not always find that goodness. The person themself may have buried it so deep that they are unable to find it.

It could be that you bury goodness for one reason or another. But if we feed and cultivate that seed of goodness, it can grow into something bigger. By leaving it unattended, the goodness will wither and harden. Granted it is an over simplification of why there are just simply 'not very nice' people in this world.

To keep goodness in your heart and to help others, we have to extend kindness at times. The smile to another, holding of a door, letting the other driver into the lane or kind words to another will nurture goodness. Not only will it grow in you, but it will grow in others. Take time to be nice once in a while.

Stay inspired my friends!

“Each time you step off your path and give someone an act of kindness...then your road to happiness just got a little smoother.” -Donna A. Favors

History is the Judge

“Those that fail to learn from history, are doomed to repeat it.” - Winston Churchill

A few years ago I took a trip to visit the Chickamauga National Military Park in the state of Georgia. It is a somewhat forgotten piece of American Civil War history. Taking the tour of the battle fields and listening to what happened among the trees of those north Georgia hills is truly amazing. It was the last major battle that the southern Confederate forces won during our Civil War in the 1860s.

As you listen, you hear stories of courage and determination from both the northern and southern forces. The men that fought those battles died with valor for a cause that each believed in. The generals and politicians each had opposing views of what was right and just for our country.

Those differences are similar to current events and many of the same arguments can be seen. Historians still judge the events from past wars such as our own Civil War. And history will be the judge of our present day conflicts and disagreements. What we do though is continue to move forward with the decisions we make and try to learn from that history.

Your own life is a reflection of the decisions you make. Those decisions will be influenced by your own history and perception of events. Study and learn from your historical experience. You will grow and improve your life if you do.

Stay inspired my friends!

Your Crisis

"A crisis will reveal who we really are in life. Pressure squeezes out the reality of us. But it also allows us to learn and change what is revealed." -Dean Sweetman

It will happen eventually. There will be a time when crisis comes into your life. Money, relationship, health or any number of things could give rise to stop you in your tracks. Each will have varying degrees of pain or suffering for different people.

Who you are as a person will come to the surface when it happens. Are you good at handling each crisis. Can you see through it and find a way to overcome? Or will you crumble either in desperation or anger, only to worsen an already bad situation?

I have seen people crumble in the face of pain. I have crumbled in the face of pain. What I eventually came to was a decision point. It was the proverbial "fork in the road" point of life that presented me with two choices. They are basically the same two choices each of us face.

One is to sit and do nothing, forever wallowing in despair until our time is over. The second one is to stand up and get moving on with life. Changing our life in order to overcome our current circumstance and to better prepare ourselves for any future challenges that may come along.

It may sound simple. A "left or right", "yes or no", "stay or go" answer is all that is needed. But it can be the hardest choice you'll ever make.

Choose to move on, find ways to inspire yourself. The road is littered with those that gave up. Choose not to be one of them.

Stay inspired my friends!

Overcoming Your Fear

"So I will find my fears and face them or I will cower like a dog." ~Bright Eyes "Another Travelin' Song"

So many times we are confronted by our own fears. We encounter them and we are stopped in our tracks. The path we are on, the one that we felt was finally going to take us to a greater life becomes complicated by fear.

When it comes to fear, another lyric from the song above also says, "I'm not surprised but I never feel quite prepared." We travel our path of life and learn not to be surprised by obstacles. We learn that these things are going to happen. We even learn from past events to ready ourselves for these moments. Yet somehow we end up feeling never "quite prepared" for that moment.

But when the moment arrives, will you cower from it or will you stand up and overcome the fear? And why should we overcome fear? There are four reasons why we should overcome fear.

1. Fear Limits Our Full Potential
2. We Can Never Fully Run Away From Fear
3. Fear Is A Waste of Our Energy
4. Fear Is All In Our Mind

There are probably a hundred other reasons to overcome your fears. My belief is that the most important reason is because fear 'limits' our life. It prevents us from fully enjoying and having a greater life.

Overcome your fear and achieve more in your life and stay inspired my friends!

Sing Away

“Some days there won't be a song in your heart. Sing anyway.” -Emory Austin

There are days we simply do not wish to sing, struggling to engage in the dance of life or to love all that we have. Those days come and those days go.

How you choose to live those days is yours to make. You can take the path of despair letting the day pass like a floating soap bubble being popped. Lost and nothing to show for the time spent. A day lost in the short span of our lives. A lost opportunity to experience the greatness that life has to offer.

The other choice is to grab hold of each and every day. To dance through our problems with a joyous step. To love all that happens and all around you. To sing of the joys that do exist in your life. To live a life full of wonder and expectation for what this day and the next will bring.

Stay inspired my friends!

Not Impossible

"A rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it, bearing within him the image of a cathedral." -Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Our ability to imagine is one of the greatest gifts we as humans have been given. The brain has a science all to itself in which I am sure someone much smarter than I could explain all of this. But in simple terms, millions of neurons contain varying bits of information we have collected over our lifetime.

Much of this information can be reconstructed in an ordered fashion as we learned the information. Such as retrieving '2', '3' and knowing that adding them together equals '5'. Or maybe knowing that 'light', 'switch', 'up' should result in the light turning on. Very basic, but you get the idea that we tend to reassemble all of these bits of data back into a learned pattern.

What if we took all those random bits of information and put them together?

This is what imagination is all about. Taking things learned and mixing them up. Looking for different possibilities. Some would say that much of what we imagine has already been imagined. Could be, but not to you. When you imagine something new, it is new to you, a first time acknowledgement.

When you act upon the imagination, you may find someone has already thought of it. But it wasn't thought of the same way you did. Take your imagination and run with it. Try the impossible that may have been said repeatedly was impossible. Achieve what others may say is unachievable.

Imagine all of the possibilities...

Stay inspired my friends!

The Comfort Zone

Comfort Zone: "a behavioural state within which a person operates in an anxiety-neutral condition, using a limited set of behaviours to deliver a steady level of performance, usually without a sense of risk."

Each of us have one of those things we call our "comfort zone" in which we stand. We can even see that our abilities should allow us to stretch our boundaries.

What can you find outside of your comfort zone will never be found until you step out. Taking a chance to stretch beyond you ability will present you with new and greater things. You see, it is said that we exist in one of the following conditions.

- We want to maintain our current comfort zone.
- We are dissatisfied with current conditions and want to move to another comfort zone.
- We were suddenly thrust from our comfort zone and want back in.
- We need to make decisions without supporting facts.

The comfort zone can be a decision making tool.

There are many different reasons for either staying or wanting to move beyond or to another comfort zone in our lives. But nothing can be done without a decision. Even staying in one place requires a decision to keep things the same.

So how do you break habits; how do you step out of your comfort zone? Here’s a few suggestions on how to do it from Adrian Savage:

Understand the truth about your habits. They always represent past successes. You have formed habitual, automatic behaviors because you once dealt with something successfully, tried the same response next time, and found it worked again. That’s how habits grow and why they feel so useful. To get away from what’s causing your unhappiness and workplace blues, you must give up on many of your most fondly held (and formerly successful) habits. and try new ways of thinking and acting. There truly isn’t any alternative. Those habits are going to block you from finding new and creative ideas. No new ideas, no learning. No learning, no access to successful change.

Do something—almost anything—differently and see what happens. Even the most successful habits eventually lose their usefulness as events change the world and fresh responses are called for. Yet we cling on to them long after their benefit has gone. Past strategies are bound to fail sometime. Letting them become automatic habits that take the controls is a sure road to self-inflicted harm.

Take some time out and have a detailed look at yourself—with no holds barred. Discovering your unconscious habits can be tough. For a start, they’re unconscious, right? Then they fight back. Ask anyone who has ever given up smoking if habits are tough to break. You’ve got used to them—and they’re at least as addictive as nicotine or crack cocaine.

Be who you are. It’s easy to assume that you always have to fit in to get on in the world; that you must conform to be liked and respected by others or face exclusion. Because most people want to please, they try to become what they believe others expect, even if it means forcing themselves to be the kind of person they aren’t, deep down.

You need to start by putting yourself first. You’re unique. We’re all unique, so saying this doesn’t suggest that you’re better than others or deserve more than they do. You need to put yourself first because no one else has as much interest in your life as you do; and because if you don’t, no one else will. Putting others second means giving them their due respect, not ignoring them totally. Keeping up a self-image can be a burden. Hanging on to an inflated, unrealistic one is a curse. Give yourself a break.

Slow down and let go. Most of us want to think of ourselves as good, kind, intelligent and caring people. Sometimes that’s true. Sometimes it isn’t. Reality is complex. We can’t function at all without constant input and support from other people. Everything we have, everything we’ve learned, came to us through someone else’s hands. At our best, we pass on this borrowed existence to others, enhanced by our contribution. At our worst, we waste and squander it. So recognize that you’re a rich mixture of thoughts and feelings that come and go, some useful, some not. There’s no need to keep up a façade; no need to pretend; no need to fear of what you know to be true

There is much you probably want to achieve in your life. By stepping "out of the ordinary" into areas of discomfort, your world will expand. With that expansion will be greater opportunity and success.

Stay inspired my friends!

Huge Small Changes

"It is not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory." ~W. Edwards Deming

I get inspiration from a lot of different places and in a lot of weird ways as well. Today it comes from a cartoon called Speed Bump by cartoonist Dave Coverly. It shows two sperm traveling and one telling the other, "eh, you go on ahead...I don't like change." It may take you a moment to get it, but change is what will happen when the one tail meets up with its destination.

Even at the earliest stages of life, change is happening to us. To think that the one that did meet its destination and accept change is actually us. We are the product of what was a fight to experience change. As tiny as life creation starts, such a huge impact it has on everything.

One might argue that a biological force of nature doesn't do so by choice. But since we are a product of that biology, we are also instilled with that same force which drives us forward. What happens is that the driving force exists inside, but we become too smart for our own good. We can overcome our reluctance by getting out of our own way thus allowing ourselves to achieve great things.

Then again, we each have free will to choose not to move forward. We can sit still and let life pass us by. We can choose to fall back and let others move forward to meet with change. When we do though, we leave so much undiscovered, so much unfullfilled not only for others but for ourselves.

Think back to my beginning story of the two sperm. One decides to stay back, only to live a short and lonely life; very short as a matter of fact. The other moves boldly forward to meet with its future. A long and great life filled with expectation and excitement.

Our ability to change doesn't begin and end at conception. It can happen at any point in our lives. We only have to choose to move forward with it; to push through and meet up with our own future.

Stay inspired my friends!

What is in a Jar

"Go for it now. The future is promised to no one." -Wayne Dyer

A Saturday morning in fall, the sun starting to spread its warmth across the landscape and breakfast at the kitchen table comes to life. The coffee is done brewing, a short glass of orange juice and two slices of toasted bread are before you on the table. The butter melts across the browned grains and you wonder which type of jam to use this morning.

It is a great morning to relax.

Where did you get that jam or jelly? It is very likely that you got it from the heart of a man whose passion was birthed in that jar. If you listen closely to the opening of the jar, you will hear the love escape from it. You see this is a story of a man that loves a woman into something special to share with others.

This man, Big Papa, cared for his wife as she battled sickness. Every day he would come home to care and tend to her. For many of those hours she would sleep but he kept attentive to every breath she took.

In all those hours he found a passion for canning. The jams, the pickles, the various things that one can; pun intended. With each jar, a piece of their love went into each. Big Papa lost his wife but their love and passion fills each jar.

All of us have the ability to bring a passion to life.

The passion you bring to your life can create great things from the sorrow or pain that life sets at our door step. We could simply sit at an empty table and do nothing or we could get up and make toast and coffee. All we need is a jar of jam to open on that Saturday morning in the fall.

Stay inspired my friends!

If you are interested in meeting Big Papa in person, visit him at Suwanee Days if you are in the Suwanee, Georgia area this Saturday (09/21).

Hearing a Whale

"Praise does wonders for our sense of hearing." -Arnold H. Glasow

We have been told over and over again by health professionals and our mothers, never to use a cotton swab to clean your ears. The ear wax itself helps protect the lining of our ear canal, and excessive build-up can lead to blockage, or hearing loss as the result of poor ear hygiene.

What if you were a Blue Whale, without any ability to maintain good ear hygiene?

Yes, whales have ears and yes, whales experience wax build-up in their ears. So much that scientists at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History collected that wax from inside the skull of the dead whale back in 2007 and preserved it. The column of wax was nearly a foot long. Those same people studied the contents of that ear wax and it revealed quite a bit.

If you think about it, a whale traversing the oceans collects samples of the water quality and what is in it over those many years of its life. Each layer found within that ear wax correspond to six months of the whale's life and if you examine the chemical compounds found in those layers, you will figure out what and when the whale was exposed to certain pollutants.

As I read the story, it became more apparent to me just how many pollutants we as humans take in each day. The pollutants I am referring to are of the verbal kind; negative words, comments and jabs at our life. We are subjected to a constant barrage of bad news, complaints and generally destructive commentary. As adults, we have bulit up a certain amount of ear wax to shield us.

But what about young children?

The words we say to children that fill there minds with self-defeating teachings. Words such as, "you will never" or "why can't you be better" and many worse things that harm their formative years. These pollutants collect in our minds and collect over the years as we grow older. The crud builds up in our ears and eventually cause problems of balance and the ability to hear what is good.

It can be much more difficult to clean those many years of harsh words from our minds then it is to simply clean the wax from our ears. But it can be done if you truly want. It begins by speaking great words to yourself, by believing in oneself and knowing each of us have place and purpose in life. Greatness exists within and you have to believe it first before anyone else will.

Clean the ear wax from your life that has been holding you back. Hear the great things that your life can be and listen more clearly.

Stay inspired my friends!

21 Considerations

"What we plant in the soil of contemplation, we shall reap in the harvest of action." -Meister Eckhart

1. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.
2. Marry a man/woman you love to talk to. As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important as any other.
3. Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.
4. When you say, 'I love you,' mean it.
5. When you say, 'I'm sorry,' look the person in the eye.
6. Be engaged at least six months before you get married.
7. Believe in love at first sight.
8. Never laugh at any one's dreams. People who don't have dreams don't have much.
9. Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it's the only way to live life completely.
10. In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling.
11. Don't judge people by their relatives.
12. Talk slowly but think quickly.
13. When someone asks you a question you don't want to answer, smile and ask, 'Why do you want to know?'
14. Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
15. Say 'bless you' when you hear someone sneeze.
16. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.
17. Remember the three R's: Respect for self; Respect for others; and Responsibility for all your actions.
18. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.
19. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
20. Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.
21. Spend some time alone.

Take time to adjust things in your life. Be of good cheer and attitude, life will reward you many times over and stay inspired my friends.

Open a Door

"Hope is the dream of a waking man." -Aristotle

It is interesting to note that when things are going good, we will optimistically look to the future and all of the possibilities that exist. We will consider that building a great life and having success is achievable.

Yet when times are tough, all we tend to do is focus on what is going wrong and how life will never get us to where we want to be.

It is during those tough times when we most need to understand that a door exists through which possibility stands waiting for you. Hope and vision for whatever life has in store for you is through that door.

So even though you might be in a tough place currently, continue to hold onto your dreams. Know that possibility is on the other side of that door. A door that can be opened if only you make the choice to turn the handle and walk through it.

Stay inspired my friends!

Bathe Daily

"People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing. That's why we recommend it daily." -Zig Ziglar

A day comes along and you decide that a change is needed in your life. You are tired of retracing the same steps and begin looking for a different way. So you attend one of those seminars given by a great motivational or spiritual speaker. It could be Anthony Robbins, where "one decision can change your life forever."

Maybe it is Joel Olsteen that "changes your life in 28 days."

The next day you read the writings of Andy Andrews in order to "master the seven decisions" in your life.

It could be the unique perspective of someone like Kyle Maynard that touches a part of your life.

Or even my own readers that experience "raising the BAR" each day.

There are so many different speakers. Each are great motivators to help teach and inspire you to do great things in your life. I have either listened to, read or attended to hear each of them and many others. I enjoy listening to their different perspectives and the stories each presents. Like Dr. Wayne Dyer or Deepak Chopra; you can find inspiration and motivation in many different forms.

The books that you can find out there from the Alchemist to Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, so much exists. And not every word of advice or presentation will work for you. There are some that you may completely disagree with. But know that it is not a matter of finding a perfect match. It is a matter of finding what works in your life.

To blindly follow a single idea is not the best choice you can make. We as humans have the gift of decision and choice. By examining many different views and ideas, we can formulate a reasoned and valued choice for what works in our own lives. If you don't, chances are you will miss hearing or reading something that could be the one thing that makes a difference in your life.

The point is to keep learning and keep motivating yourself. One seminar will be great and sustain you for a week or two. But then you need to 'recharge' that motivation. It could be another seminar, another DVD or a daily read (hint - hint, my books) or any of the other great books out there.

Motivation and attitude eventually become habit, but to help you along, remember to "bathe" daily in motivation. It will help keep you moving towards your dreams and goals.

And it will help you stay inspired my friends.

What Price

"For greed all nature is too little." -Lucius Annaeus Seneca

When is too much not enough in life?

In the 1987 movie Wall Street, the main bad guy Gordon Gekko pronounces "Greed, for lack of a better word, is good. Greed is right. Greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures, the essence of the evolutionary spirit." Greed is about never being satisfied with what one has. It is always wanting and expecting more. It is an insatiable hunger.

When put that way, we see those same descriptors are the driving forces behind success, behind achieving your goals in life. So when we become selfish, to the exclusion and detriment of others, greed becomes a negative force in our life. And greed doesn't happen just when it comes to wealth. We can become greedy with relationships, work, in nearly any facet of our lives. When we become selfish in one area of our life to the exclusion of others, we have developed a level of greed.

There are unpleasant effects on our inner emotional lives when it comes to greed. Anxiety and restlessness will be felt when we focus solely on the craving for more or that one desire. What results is a false assurance that once we obtain that desire it will put us at ease or make us satisfied. But greed only creates that vicious circle in which "...all nature is too little."

What becomes of us when greed succeeds?

The cycle of never having enough can become destructive in your life and many times does. It leads to creating a second secret life in which you try to maintain a public appearance but that second life is feeding your greed. That second life gets nurtured more and more becoming a larger part of who you are. Eventually the second secret life can no longer be hidden. It is found out and all that you had will start to unravel in various forms.

We have seen and read it hundreds of times; the benevolent money manager has been skimming funds to feed his/her greed or any number of other greed fueled lives. Sex, money, sports, exercising, even religion can all develop into greed or addictive behaviors to the exclusion of everyone else in your life. Eventually it can fall in upon itself from the weight of selfishness.

So what price are you willing to pay for unlimited success? Will you find enough in your life once you have achieved success? Will you fall prey to the greed of success?

These are not easy questions to answer. And merely focusing on the negative light of greed, maybe you can focus on the positive force of generosity. Allow the light chase out the darkness of greed. When we focus more on being self-less, when we serve others, then success will fuel the non-greedy forces in your life.

A vessel filled will never contain all the world. But a vessel that continually pours into others will always have room for more. And that is your life; a vessel meant to pour into the lives of others.

Stay inspired my friends!

And for your amusement, here is an example of greed gone too far.

Bridge the Divide

“Whenever you're in conflict with someone, there is one factor that can make the difference between damaging your relationship and deepening it. That factor is attitude.” -William James

There are many times in our lives when we will encounter conflict with another person. Usually it is someone that you know, a co-worker, friend or family member. It is those times which will test you and your commitment to making the relationship work.

Take the story of 'The Two Sisters' by H.E. Bates and their growing independence from each other but a yearning to keep themselves close. The wants of each can be in conflict with each other and result in hurt feelings and separation.

But each has the ability to determine their own attitude and not allow pain to develop in the relationship. Each can let a good attitude rule the day, to be happy for each other in their decisions and adjust accordingly.

So many times an issue can develop between two people that creates a canyon-wide divide in their lives. Many years can pass before they each are willing and can fill in that divide which keeps them apart. If they do repair and come back together they each find that the time lost is more precious then what had caused the divide in the first place.

Rise above the situation in your life and allow your life to be deepened with greater fullness. Do not allow that which will eventually be deemed petty to take away your time with others. Be happy in each other and happiness will be returned to you.

Stay inspired my friends!

Change the World

"No matter what people tell you, words and ideas can change the world." -Robin Williams

Are there ways that you can make a change in this world, ways to make things better for others and for yourself? The answer is yes and it does not require you to have millions of dollars or legions of people.

The only thing it requires is you.

Using your ears to listen closely to hear what your heart believes.

Using your eyes to see the possibility of what your heart is revealing to you.

Using your voice to speak what your heart believes in such a way that others will listen.

Using your actions to show others what your heart will do for them.

Change starts inside of you and flows outward to touch the hearts of others. Change starts with you.

Stay inspired my friends!

Courage to Journey

"Courage is the discovery that you may not win, and trying when you know you can lose." -Tom Krause

Amazingly we find out in life that there are no guarantees. We are suddenly shocked to find that a great relationship, great job, great car, great home, lots of money and excellent health are a given. The dreams we have for success and accomplishment sometimes do not happen.

What we do find out is that life is just life, happening all around us and only giving us opportunities to achieve our dreams. We also find out that life creates challenges to confront and confound our efforts.

Either way, we have to keep trying.

We need to have the courage to step out into that world every day and work towards our dreams. It means overcoming the hurdles placed in front of us; of combating those things which could keep us from achieving those dreams.

It also means never being satisfied with partial success. When we achieve a small amount of success, there is a tendency to "rest upon the laurels", which means to be satisfied with a small degree of success and refrain from any further effort.

We must also be aware of the hidden courage that exists within each of us. It is the courage one needs to pursue our dreams. We go forward with the unspoken knowledge that we may never achieve it.

It is this hidden courage that keeps us moving forward.

What you will find is that most of us do attain our dreams. The results may not look exactly as we first envisioned. Just know it is the journey that becomes the accomplishment. If you give yourself the courage to take that journey, then you will achieve great things.

Stay inspired my friends.

Storms Revealed

"Storms reveal what a sunny day conceals." -Jill Sweetman

When the day begins, I get into my car and drive off down the road to work. In the breaking morning light, I look to the sky in order to get a sense of what the weather is going to be like. Since I was raised on the farm, I've learned to appreciate and curse what awaits over the horizon.

I may look to a weather forecast and judge what kind of day it might be, but I would rather wait upon the change. If the day starts out sunny and mild, the expectation of a great day sets the mood for many of us. We tend to be more pleasing to others and in our attitude.

When things are going well such as family, work and other aspects of our lives; our true ability to weather a storm is easily concealed. There is an old phrase that goes, "when the going gets tough, the tough get going." In many respects that phrase is about determination to overcome. But when the going gets tough, when the 'storms' in your life occur, our true nature is revealed.

Think again of the morning drive into work. If storms are filling the early day with rain, wind and miserable conditions, do you allow your spirits to be dampened. When you do, it will translate into stress, shortness with others and just a lousy attitude.

If you learn to accept the rain and adjust your own reaction to it, the drive isn't so bad. Your own attitude can bring a certain 'sunshine' into the gloominess of a rainy day. Very easy for me to state the obvious, but you need to examine your own attitude when things are bad.

When things are going well, it is easy to be positive about things. Yet when things are going not so well in your life, this will be the true measure of your inner attitude.

Stay inspired my friends.

You Wanna Be Like Me

"There is no duty we so much underrate as the duty of being happy. By being happy we sow anonymous benefits upon the world." -Robert Louis Stevenson

My single thought for the day. Stay inspired my friends!

Inspired Streetsweepers

"If a man is called to be a streetsweeper, 
he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven played 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 streetsweeper who did his job well." 

-Rev. Martin Luther King-

We each have inside the yearning to be the greatest at something. We want to be remembered for greatness that will carry our name in the memory of history for others to read about. We want to be remembered like those individuals who remain in the minds and teachings of people well into the future.

Yet we can not all achieve that level of notoriety nor does it mean true success if we do. Success means doing the very best at what we do with our lives; how we live our lives; and what we do for others. Success means trying to be the very best 'streetsweeper' that one can be.

It does not mean that you should not strive for the most majestic of things. What it means to say is that regardless of what you do in life, do it the best way possible.

I will never be the greatest writer to live nor will historians mark my passing. But the words that I do write are done with the best effort I can muster. The words I write will impact people and change their lives in small and big ways. You have the same abilities to impact others and to impact life with how you live your life.

Take that 'thing you do' and do it the very best you can. It will impact the lives of others and inspire them to something greater. In the end there will be those that do say, "here lived a great person who did his job well."

Stay inspired my friends.

Courage to Sit

“Courage is the discovery that you may not win, and trying when you know you can lose.” -Tom Krause

In most of the stories you read about a person exhibiting courage, you read that this person or that person "stood up" in an act of courage. But sometimes courage is shown by simply sitting down.

With the 50th Anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 March on Washington D.C. (August 28, 1963), many stood up in courage but there were many that sat down with just as much courage.

The most notable person we can look to is Rosa Parks. On December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, Parks refused to obey bus driver James F. Blake's order that she give up her seat in the colored section to a white passenger, after the white section was filled. Yes, we actually had colored and white sections in most every part of life. That is what segregation means.

Many had the courage to break through segregation.

Rosa Parks quietly refused to give up that seat in which she sat. It was a courageous act that did get her arrested, but it helped to launch the civil rights movement here in the United States. And yes, Rosa was no stranger to politics and knew very well what she was doing. She had been a secretary with the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP since 1943.

There were many that tried to create a much more innocent myth that Rosa's unwillingness to get up was due to aching feet. “No” she would say, “the only tired I was, was tired of giving in.”

One act of courage in which one person sat for change sparked a nation to greater change. It would give others the example to act courageously and so many did. And you could be the one that sits or stands in courageous manner. You can be the one that takes one small act and changes a nation.

It may not seem quite so big at the time when you decide to take your seat on the bus. Moses lifted a crooked stick and parted a sea. David had a small sling-shot and brought down a giant. You help pay for a single mother's groceries one day and the possiblity of greatness happening is put into motion.

Act with courage in everything you do and realize that possibility isn't as hard as we think.

Stay inspired my friends.

Getting Back Up

"Our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time we fail."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson

There have been many times in which I have fallen and wondered if I could ever get back up. It would be so easy to just stay down and not get back into the swirl of life. When each of us get knocked down, we have different methods and abilities to bounce back up. A vivid example of getting knocked down and back up again recently happened on the baseball field.

A baseball player for the Atlanta Braves named Jason Heyward was hit by a 90-mph pitch thrown in a recent game. The ball hit him in the jaw breaking it and requiring surgery. When you watch the replay, he reacts and slowly lowers himself to the ground. Medical personnel check on him and he eventually gets up and walks off the field.

I suspect that I would probably lay there longer and maybe even ask for a stretcher. Then again, maybe I am tougher than I give myself credit for. Maybe all of us are tougher than we think. It is very likely that we could get up and walk off the field to regroup and come back into the game at some point.

We can also recover from taking a hit in life. We can get back up and regain our life, making it better than it was before. What it takes is giving yourself a little more credit of your abilities. You can do a lot more than you believe. You can move larger mountains than others say you can. Just get back up.

Stay inspired my friends.

You can watch the scene as it unfolds for Atlanta Braves outfielder Jason Heyward, but if you are a bit squeamish, you may not want to watch.

How Many Lifetimes

"The truth is, I need 10 lifetimes to scratch the surface of the things I'd love to do."
-Bear Grylls

It is a great quote that I came back across recently. I found the context of it in a Mens Journal article I had read a couple of years ago. The man, Bear Grylls is one of those ultimate adventure guys most men would like be. Bear writes about surviving life in one of his latest books called A Survival Guide For Life; a great read for anyone.

Knowing all that he has done and hearing he would need ten lifetimes to do even more, just how many lifetimes would it take me?

We only get one life to live and the point is to make the most of that one lifetime. It certainly is not a competition of who had the most adventures. It is about how you live the adventure which is your life.

Are you doing everything you can to live a great life? Are you making an impact on the lives of others? Are you doing things that make life better for others? Are you living or just waiting?

It doesn't mean that you have to climb Mt Everest at age 23 or climbing cliffs, parachuting from helicopters, paragliding, ice climbing, or a hundred other things.

But you could!

You could also become involved in a charity that assists disabled, disadvantaged, abused or neglected young people. Possibly help a friend get a job. You could then take that once-in-a-lifetime trip to Ireland and drive on the left-hand side of the road. You can be a family man filling your kids with a lifetime of memories. Anything you choose to do is an adventure. Just fill your life with many of them.

Stay inspired my friends.

Risk Reward

"Fear stifles our thinking and actions. It creates indecisiveness that results in stagnation. I have known talented people who procrastinate indefinitely rather than risk failure. Lost opportunities cause erosion of confidence, and the downward spiral begins." -Charles Stanley

Are you a risk-taker?

Really think about that question and ask it of yourself again. What you will realize is that all of us are risk-takers. From our very beginning, we are born into an unknown future of which living it is risk in itself. As a teenager we want to drive a car for the feeling of independence. But driving has the risk of accidents. Even with independence is the risk of failing to support one self properly.

Going to college and selecting a major subjects us to possibly making a wrong choice. Marriage and there is a risk of divorce. Risk can be defined in almost every decision we make in life. So in most respects, all of us are risk-takers whether we believe we are or not. What defines the outcome of risk is how we respond to it.

Does risk rule you or you rule it?

So if risk is around us in most everything we do, how is it that some people take additional risks while others play it safe? There are at least two reasons that can answer this question.

One is that we the need for security keeps many of us from taking risks. As human beings, we have a need to want to stay with the familiar and predictable. We like things we can control and understand well. It was Helen Keller who said "Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing."

Secondly, fear and doubt keep us from taking risks. For a dreamer, these two things are their worst enemy. The Irish author, Gareth O’Callaghan has this advice, “Do not fear risk. All exploration, all growth is calculated. Without challenge people cannot reach their higher selves. Only if we are willing to walk over the edge can we become winners.”

How do we overcome the safety from and fear of risk?

Well, you can start by asking yourself these three questions:

- What would I do if I were being more courageous?
- How will inaction cost me one year from now if I do nothing?
- Where is my fear of failure causing me to over-estimate the size of risk, under-estimate myself and holding me back from greater achievement?

Whatever answers come into your mind, be aware that your answers are trying to point you to a greater future. Only you can create that future by taking bolder, more decisive and courageous actions. There will always be risk involved, just know that our human condition is created to overestimate the size of risk and to underestimate our ability to handle them.

As written by Lao Tsu in the 6th century BCE, “You are capable of more than you think.”

Stay inspired my friends and "Fortes fortuna adiuvat" or “Fortune favors the brave.”