Condition yourself

We are constantly being conditioned by

The kind of books we read;

The kind of movies and TV programs we see;

The kind of music we listen to;

The kind of company we keep.

One ounce of action is worth a ton of theory.

When you don’t know where you are going, any road will you take you there.

Great minds have purposes, others have wishes.

Desires become strong when they are supported by:

Direction

Dedication

Determination

Discipline

Dead lines.

Goals are dreams with a deadline and an action plan.

Steps to turn a dream into reality:

Have a definite, clear written goal.

Have a plan to accomplish and write it down.

Read the first two twice a day.

The men who try to do something and fail are infinitely better than those who try to do nothing and succeed.

Goals are more easily achieved if they are broken into small ones.

Life is hard by the yard,

But by the inch,

It is a clinch.

Where the vision is one year, cultivate flowers.

Where the vision is ten years, cultivate trees.

Where the vision is eternity, cultivate people.

Be Humorous

Humor

A sense of humor makes a person likable and attractive.

Learn to laugh at yourself because it is the safest humor.

Laughing at yourself gives you the energy to bounce back.

A funny bone could be a lifesaver. Besides it makes life’s adversities easier to handle.

An injury is forgiven more easily than an insult.

When humor involves making fun of or ridiculing others, it is neither a good taste nor it is innocent.

Hurting others feeling is cruel.

Mutual trust and confidence are the foundation of all friendship.

Relationships should never be taken for granted. Once relationships are established, they need to be nurtured constantly.

Practice does not make man perfect but only perfect practice makes man perfect.

Show self restrain in the face of temptation, choose happiness in the face of hurt, show character in the face of obstacles are all valuable traits to possess.

If permit ourselves to tell a lie once, it is a lot easier to do it a second and a third time until it becomes a habit.

Our thoughts lead to actions, actions leads to habits, and habits form character.

Show Courtecy

Courtesy

Courtesy is nothing more than consideration for others.

Courtesy is an offshoot of deep moral behavior.

It costs nothing but pays well.

Courtesy can be warm smile or a thank-you.

It enhances other persons self worth.

Little phrases like “please, thank you, I am sorry” take a person a long way.

Being courteous will bread courtesy in return.

Practice as much as you can.

Treat others with respect and dignity.

Politeness is the hallmark of gentleness.

Politeness and courtesy are the signs of being cultured.

Avoid gossips

Avoid gossips

Don’t gossip.

Small people talk about other people.

Mediocre people talk about things.

Great people talk about ideas.

Next time you indulge in gossip, ask yourself

Is it truth?

Is it kind and gentle?

Is it necessary?

Am I spreading rumors?

Do I say positive things about others?

Do I enjoy and encourage others to spread rumors?

Does your conservation begin with, ’don’t tell anyone?’

Can I maintain confidentiality?

Turn your promises into commitments.

Be grateful but don’t expect gratitude.

Be dependable and practice loyalty.

Cheat me once, shame on you;

Cheat me twice, shame on me.

Forgive the other person but don’t forget their name.

Practice honesty, integrity and sincerity.

Be understanding and caring.

In relationships we all make mistakes and sometimes we are insensitive to the needs of others, especially those very close to us. All this leads to resentment and disappointment.

Being understanding is far more important than money and the best way to understood understands.

It is better to treat a friend with kindness while he is living than display flowers on his grave when he is dead.

ARGUMENT INTO A POSITIVE DISCUSSION

TO TURN AN ARGUMENT INTO A POSITIVE DISCUSSION

During an argument use words like

It appears to me . . .

I may be wrong . . .

And ask questions like

Why do you feel that way?

Can you explain a little?

Can you be more specific? to defuse arguments.

WHILE YOU ARE DISCUSSING ABOUT SOMETHING WITH SOME ONE

Steps to opening discussion

Be open minded.

Don’t be dragged into argument.

Don’t interrupt.

Listen to other person point of view before giving your own.

Ask questions to clarify.

Don’t exaggerate.

Be enthusiastic in convincing, not forceful.

Be willing to yield.

Be flexible on petty things but not on principles.

Don’t make it a prestige issue.

Give your opponent a graceful way to withdraw without hurting his pride.

Use soft words but hard arguments.

Avoid argument

How to avoid argument

When you make a mistake accept it and move on.

The best way to win an argument is to avoid it.

An argument is one thing you will never win.

Arguments results form inflated ego.

Arguing is like fighting a loosing battle.

The more arguments you win, the fewer friends you have.

Appriciate Heartfully

HOW TO APPRECIATE

In order to be effective appreciation must meet certain criteria. They are

It must be specific.

It must be immediate.

It must be sincere.

Don’t qualify praise with a but.

Don’t wait for a receipt after appreciation.

If you are appreciated by some one receive it graciously with a ‘thank you’.

TUNE YOUR MIND

Develop a mind set that brings happiness.

Look for positive in every person and in every situation.

Resolve to be happy.

Set your own standards judiciously.

Develop an immunity to negative criticism.

Learn to find pleasure in every little thing.

Remember all times are not same. Ups and downs are part of life.

Make the best of every situation.

Keep yourself constructively occupied.

Help others less fortunate than yourself.

Forgive yourself and others and don’t hold guilt.

In order to be a good listener:

Encourage the speaker to talk.

Ask question. It shows interest.

Don’t interrupt.

Don’t change topic.

Show understanding and respect.

Pay attention. Concentrate.

Be open minded. Don’t let preconceived ideas and prejudices prevent you from listening.

Concentrate on the message not on the delivery.

Recognize nonverbal communication, such as facial expressions, eye contact, etc. They might be communicating a different message from the verbal.

Listen to feeling and not just words.

Nothing great is ever achieved without enthusiasm.

Pleasing personality

Pleasing personality

A pleasing personality is apparent in the way a person walks and talks, his tone of voice, the warmth in his behavior and his definitive level of confidence.

A pleasing personality is a combination of a person’s attitude, behavior and his definitive level of confidence.

Wearing a pleasant expression is more important than anything else you wear.

When you are good to others, you are best to yourself.

Show consideration, courtesy and politeness. Thoughtfulness shows a caring attitude.

Excessive talking does not mean communication. Talk less; Say more.

A fool speaks with out thinking and wise man thinks before speaking.

Criticism

Some suggestions for giving criticism that motivates others:

Be specific, rather than saying things like “you always” or “you never”. Vague criticism causes resentment.

Maintain your cool but be firm.

Criticize in private not in public.

Give the opportunity to the other person to explain his side.

Show them how they benefit from correcting their mistakes.

Criticize the performance, not the performer.

Close on a positive note with an appreciation.

Be a volunteer. It builds self-worth.

Helping others as you would expect others to help you gives a feeling of gratification.

The process of giving without any expectations or getting anything in return raises one’s self esteem.

Motivation shall come from inside

MOTIVATION

Internal motivation is the inner gratification, not for success or winning, but for fulfillment that comes from having done it.

It is a feeling of accompliplishment, rather than just achieving a goal.

Internal motivation is lasting, because it comes from within and translates into self-motivation.

Motivation needs to be identified and constantly strengthened to succeed. Write down your goals.

Keep them in front of you and read them morning and evening.

Important internal motivators are recognition and responsibility.

A few steps to motivate others are

Give recognition

Give respect

Make work interesting

Be a good listener

Encourage goal setting

Provide opportunities for growth

Through a challenge

Help, but don’t do for others what they should do for themselves.

Everyone who’s ever taken a shower has an idea. It’s the person who gets out, and does some thing about it who makes a difference.

CHARACTER

Our character can be judged by everything we do or don’t do, like or don’t like.

Our character is revealed by

The kind of company we keep or avoid.

How we treat others, especially our subordinates,

the elderly and disabled.

Our choice of books, music and movies,

Accept the mistakes

MISTAKE

The best way to handle a mistake is

Admit to it quickly

Not dwell on it

Learn from it

Never repeat it

Not assign blame or make excuses.

The kind of jokes we tell or laugh at.

Be a volunteer.

It builds self worth.

Helping others as you would expect others to help you gives a feeling of gratification.

The process of giving without having expectations is getting any thing in return rises one’s self esteem.

Prioritizing requires discipline to do what needs to be done rather than taking actions based on our moods and fancies.

THERE IS NO FREE LUNCH.

Risk must be taken

RISK

But risks must be taken, because the greatest hazards in life are to risk nothing.

The person, who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, and is nothing.

A man is hero not because he is braver than anyone else, but because he is brave for ten minutes longer.

Go for an extra mile

GO FOR AN EXTRA MILE

If you want to get ahead in life, go the extra mile.

There is no competition on the extra mile.

Do a little bit more than what you paid for.

The advantages of doing more than you get paid for are

You make yourself more valuable, regardless of what you do and where you work.

It gives you more confidence.

People start looking at you as a leader.

Others start trusting you.

Superiors start respecting you.

It produces pride and satisfaction.

Whenever you do anything, ask yourself,

“How can I add value to what I am doing?”

“How can I give added value to others?”

See this quote :

If a man is called street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare write poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Let us get inspired

Think Positive

Winners have dreams; Losers have schemes.

Winners are the part of the team;

Losers are apart from the team.

Winners use hard arguments but soft words;

Losers use soft arguments but hard words.

Winners make it happen;

Losers let it happen.

The winner says,” Let me do it for you”;

The loser says,” That is not my job”.

Do more than look-observe.

Do more than read-absorb.

Do more than hear-listen.

Do more than listen-understand.

We don’t need to improve 1000% in any one area.

All we need is to improve 1% in 1000 different areas, which is a lot easier. That is winning edge.

They won because they refused to become discouraged by their defeats.

Nothing worthwhile in life comes without a struggle.

A smooth sea never made a skillful mariner.

A burning desire is the starting point of all accomplishment.

Failing is not a crime, but lack of effort is.

People with character accept responsibilities.

They make decisions and determine their own density in life.

Accepting responsibilities involves taking risks and being accountable, which is some times uncomfortable.

Most people stay in their comfort zones and live passive lives without accepting responsibilities.

They drift through life waiting for the things to happen, rather than making them happen.

Accepting responsibilities involves taking calculated, not foolish risks.

Success is not something that runs into by accident.

It takes a lot of preparation and character.

Everyone want to win, but most people aren’t willing to put in the effort and time to prepare to win.

There is no substitute to hard work.

The harder you work, the luckier you get.

Attitude

ATTITUDE

The foundation of success, regardless of your chosen field is attitude.

Opportunity is always under our feet and all we need is to recognize it.

Some of the greatest buildings have strongest foundations.

A person with positive attitude is like a fruit of all seasons.

Dealing with people is like digging for gold. When you go digging for an ounce of gold you have to move tons of dirt. But when you go digging you don’t go looking for the dirt, you go looking for the gold.

Be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.

Talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet.

Make all your friends feel that you appreciate their good qualities and strengths.

Look at the sunny side of every thing.

Think only of the best, work only for the best, and expect only the best.

Be as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.

Forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.

Give every one a smile.

Spend so much time improving yourself that you have no time left to criticize others.

A completed task is fulfilling and energizing; an incomplete task drains energy.

If you want to build and maintain a positive attitude, get into the habit of living in the present and doing it now.

Never leave it to tomorrow, which you can do today.

Past glory and education don’t count for much. We have to continuously sharpen the axe.

Just as our bodies need good food every day, our minds need good thoughts every day.

We need to feed our mind with pure and positive to stay on track.

They are the winners who recognize their limitations, but focus on their strengths.

Self esteem is the way we feel about ourselves.

When we feel good within, our performance goes up and our relationships improve both at home and at work.

Read or listen to something positive first thing in the morning.

After a good night’s sleep we are relaxed and our subconscious is receptive.

Luck

LUCK

He worked by day

And toiled by night.

He gave up play

And some delight.

Dry books he read,

New things to learn.

And he forged ahead,

Success to earn.

He plodded on with

Faith and pluck;

And when he won

People called it luck.

SMILE

A smile costs nothing, but it creates much.

It enriches those who receive it without impoverishing those who give it.

It happens in a flash, and the memory of it may last forever.

None are so rich that they can get along without it, and none so poor that they cannot be richer for its benefits.

It creates happiness in the home, fosters goodwill in a business, and is the countersign of friends.

It is rest to the weary, daylight to the discouraged, sunshine to the sad, and nature’s best antidote for trouble.

Yet it cannot be begged, bought, borrowed, or stolen, for it is something that is worth nothing to anyone until it is given away.

In the course of day, some of your acquaintances may be too tired to give you a smile. Give them one of yours. Nobody needs a smile so much as those who have none left to give.