It Couldn't Be Done - Edgar A Guest

Somebody said that it couldn't be done,

And I with a chuckle replied,

That "maybe it couldn't," and I would be one

Who wouldn't say so til I tried!

So I buckled right in with the trace of a grin,

On my face - if I worried I hid it.

I started to sing as I tackled the thing,

That couldn't be done, and I did it!

Somebody scoffed, "Oh you'll never do that!

Well, at least, no-one ever has done it!"

So I took off my coat, and I took off my hat,

And the first thing they knew I'd begun it!

With a lift of my chin and a bit of a grin,

Without any doubting or I'll quit it,

I started to sing, as I tackled the thing,

That couldn't be done, and I did it!

There are thousands to tell me it cannot be done.

There are thousands who prophesy failure.

There are thousands who point out to me, one by one, 

The dangers that wait to assail me.

And I'll just buckle in, with the trace of a grin.

I'll just take off my coat and go to it.

I'll just start to sing, as I tackle the thing,

That "cannot be done," and maybe, I'll do it!

I think and I am - John Lees

If I think I am beaten, I am.

If I think I dare not, I won't.

If I prefer to win, and I think I can't,

Then it's almost certain I won't!

If I think I'll lose, I'm lost.

For out in the world I find,

Success begins first with my will;

It's all in my state of mind.

If I think I'm outclassed, I am.

When I begin to think high, I rise.

I know to believe in my efforts before

I'll ever reach for a prize!

A battle may not always go,

To the faster or stronger one,

But sooner or later, I'll most likely win,

A time I believe I can

My Wage - J B Rittenhouse

I bargained with life for a penny,

And life would pay no more,

However I begged at evening,

When I counted my scanty store.

For life is a just employer,

He gives me what I ask,

But once I have set the wages,

Why, I must bear the task.

I worked for a menial's hire,

Only to learn, dismayed,

That any wages I asked of life,

Life would have willingly paid.

Posture Affects Performance

Video: - Amy Cuddy - Posture Determines Performance

Our non-verbals DO affect how we think and feel about ourselves and how we PERFORM.

The position we put our bodies in can affect our mind.

Our PRESENCE is a mixture of how

Passionate

Confident

Authentic

Comfortable

Captivating

Enthusiastic

we are............

 

Our body posture can change our minds;

our minds can then change our behaviour;

and our behaviour then changes our outcomes!

 

It is not "Fake it till you make it."

 

It is "PROJECT it until you BECOME it."





SuperBetter

Jane McGonigal and her SuperBetter game designed to give more
Physical,
Mental,
Emotional and
Social Resilience.

The Game That Could Increase Your Life by 10 Years.

If I Had My Life Over - I'd Pick More Daisies

There have been many versions of this poem. The earliest one apparently was attributed to Nadine Stair. It appears first. What follows is, according to Benjamin Rossen, a copy of the earliest verifiable publication of this material. It can be found in the Reader's Digest, October 1953 issue, where it was attributed to Don Herold (1889-1966), author and humorist.

Nadine Stair

If I had my life to live over, I'd dare to make more mistakes next time. I'd relax, I would limber up. I would be sillier than I have been this trip. I would take fewer things seriously. I would take more chances. I would climb more mountains and swim more rivers. I would eat more ice cream and less beans. I would perhaps have more actual troubles, but I'd have fewer imaginary ones.

You see, I'm one of those people who lived sensibly and sanely, hour after hour, day after day. Oh, I've had my moments, and if I had to do it over again, I'd have more of them. In fact, I'd try to have nothing else. Just moments, one after another, instead of living so many years ahead of each day. I've been one of those persons who never goes anywhere without a thermometer, a hot water bottle, a raincoat and a parachute. If I had to do it again, I would travel lighter than I have.

If I had my life to live over, I would start barefoot earlier in the spring and stay that way later in the fall. I would go to more dances. I would ride more merry-go-rounds. I would pick more daisies.

Don Herold

Of course, you can't unfry an egg, but there is no law against thinking about it.

If I had my life to live over, I would try to make more mistakes. I would relax. I would be sillier than I have been this trip. I know of very few things that I would take seriously. I would be less hygienic. I would go more places. I would climb more mountains and swim more rivers. I would eat more ice cream and less bran.

I would have more actual troubles and fewer imaginary troubles. You see, I have been one of those fellows who live prudently and sanely, hour after hour, day after day. Oh, I have had my moments. But if I had it to do over again, I would have more of them - a lot more. I never go anywhere without a thermometer, a gargle, a raincoat and a parachute. If I had it to do over, I would travel lighter.

It may be too late to unteach an old dog old tricks, but perhaps a word from the unwise may be of benefit to a coming generation. It may help them to fall into some of the pitfalls I have avoided.

If I had my life to live over, I would pay less attention to people who teach tension. In a world of specialization we naturally have a superabundance of individuals who cry at us to be serious about their individual specialty. They tell us we must learn Latin or History; otherwise we will be disgraced and ruined and flunked and failed. After a dozen or so of these protagonists have worked on a young mind, they are apt to leave it in hard knots for life. I wish they had sold me Latin and History as a lark.

I would seek out more teachers who inspire relaxation and fun. I had a few of them, fortunately, and I figure it was they who kept me from going entirely to the dogs. From them I learned how to gather what few scraggly daisies I have gathered along life's cindery pathway.

If I had my life to live over, I would start barefooted a little earlier in the spring and stay that way a little later in the fall. I would play hooky more. I would shoot more paper wads at my teachers. I would have more dogs. I would keep later hours. I'd have more sweethearts. I would fish more. I would go to more circuses. I would go to more dances. I would ride on more merry-go-rounds. I would be carefree as long as I could, or at least until I got some care - instead of having my cares in advance.

More errors are made solemnly than in fun. The rubs of family life come in moments of intense seriousness rather that in moments of light-heartedness. If nations - to magnify my point - declared international carnivals instead of international war, how much better that would be!

G.K. Chesterton once said, "A characteristic of the great saints is their power of levity. Angels can fly because they can take themselves lightly. One 'settles down' into a sort of selfish seriousness; but one has to rise to a light-hearted self-forgetfulness. A man falls into a 'brown study'; he reaches up at a blue sky."

In a world in which practically everybody else seems to be consecrated to the gravity of the situation, I would rise to glorify the levity of the situation. For I agree with Will Durant that "joy is wiser than wisdom."

I doubt, however, that I'll have much affect with my creed. The opposition is too strong. There are too many serious people trying to get everybody else to be too darned serious.

My rituals determine my success

Tony Robbins Video

Ordinarily I make progress once I validate what is possible.

I achieve recognition of what is possible and what I am capable of through a daily ritual.
 

The thing that I do daily will determine my success.

I am clear about WHY this ritual is important!

I condition my mind daily, to build momentum.
 

To get ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN.

Work on a daily basis to fill myself with ABSOLUTE CERTAINTY!!

Alice Herz-Sommer - positive in a concentration camp

My mother taught me some valuable lessons. She died, along with my father in the concentration camp, but her lessons live on.

1) To KNOW things - study; find out things; practice things; get skillful and knowledgeable.

2) To BE THANKFUL - everything is a present; focus on the best things; I know about the bad and I see the good.

3) To BE HAPPY - meet the world with joy; I lay for two years on the frozen bare dirt with my son and I laughed - what five and a half year old would not laugh under those circumstances?

How hard is my life? I can rise above my petty notions as she rose above monumental hardships - because she found what was good in it and knew that "people complain. Complaining changes nothing."

"I know about the bad, and I see the good."

Alice Herz-Sommer - Everything is a Present

I can choose to be optimistic

Alice Herz-Sommer at 107

Alice Herz-Sommer at 108


Alice Herz-Sommer on her son

How to have the best year ever.... Jim Rohn

I welcome all experiences! I never know which experience will turn something on.

I'm aware that to build a wall to keep out disappointment will also keep out happiness.

Look at my PHILOSOPHY + ATTITUDE + ACTIVITY = MY RESULTS.

Ask of myself to MAKE MEASURABLE PROGRESS in REASONABLE TIME.

Not that I am wrong - I have messed up!

I can go anywhere from here.

I have bought the wrong program; gotten the wrong results.

Get another program. Try something else.

"Truth will set me free" to amend my progress.
Awareness precedes progress.

Day that turned my life around -

Disgust - enough is enough;

Decision - inspiration, I will do what it takes;

Desire - I want this so bad I can taste it, it is happening;

Resolve - I promise myself I keep going UNTIL it is done.

These are the catalysts for change.

ASK:
WHY
do the work; put in the effort? Look for and activate MY drivers.
WHY NOT
see what I can do; what I can see; heights I can reach?
WHY NOT ME
with self-compassion, unconditional self-acceptance; setting goals; going forward?
WHY NOT NOW
get it together; it's a great time to start this process; to really get with it and go forward?

Get my cycle moving in an upwards, positive motion, amending what is possible and celebrating what is available.

6 days practice, persistence and patience - 1 day of rest.
Rest too long and the weeds start to take the garden.

Ask myself "What am I avoiding?"

"What do I want?" - MY evolving vision or goal.

"What is a next step that I could choose to take?"

I REPEAT THIS WHOLE PROCESS, WITH FEELING, OFTEN!"

 

Goals and achievement take time - having a goal or vision is like steam in a steam engine;

avoidance is letting it stay as water, for the moment....

I MAKE STEAM, WITH FUN!

 

Video How to have Your Best Year Ever! - Jim Rohn

No Better - No Worse

"My Mother taught me something when a teacher was putting me in the back of the class and ignoring me. My Mother said

'You are no better than anyone else.

And no-one else is better than you.

You are as good as anyone else.'

That lesson stuck with me all my life and it is how I have lived my life."

Ralph Davila

Medal of Honour

Consider "Keep On, Keeping On" - Author Unknown

Colonel Sanders went to more than 1,000 places trying to sell his chicken recipe before he found an interested buyer. The fact that I can buy Kentucky Fried Chicken today attests to his perseverance.

Thomas Edison tried almost 10,000 times before he succeeded in creating the electric light. If he had given up, I would be reading this in the dark!

The original business plan for what was to become Federal Express was given a failing grade on Fred Smith¹s college exam. In the early days, their employees would cash their pay-checks at retail stores, rather than banks. This meant it would take longer for the money to clear, thereby giving Fed Ex more time to cover their payroll.

Sylvester Stallone had been turned down a thousand times by agents and was down to his last $600 before he found a company that would produce Rocky. The rest is history!

To truly succeed requires some commitment to my goal.

Often people have quit just short of success.

I’ll have one more go.

When I really believe in what I am doing, I’ll give it what it needs to go forward.

I just might succeed.

There is no such thing as failure, really.

Every action produces an outcome.

It may not always be the outcome I am looking for, but it is an outcome nonetheless.

When I monitor the results of my actions and keep correcting what is not working, I am getting closer to the outcome I am looking for.

Persistence overcomes Resistance.

As was said about President Calvin Coolidge: “Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with great talent. Genius will not. Un-rewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not. The world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”

Keeping going in the face of obstacles can allow a miracle to happen!

That miracle might just be me J

Spend more time on myself, than I do on my job :-)

These three have real value and make valuable points for me.

"Make measurable progress in reasonable time"
"Welcome all experiences - you never know which one will turn everything on. Be careful of walls, they certainly keep out disappointment, but they also keep out happiness"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JfA-qNWLBHo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2AyudSJl_s&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CWOJt1kCYP0&feature=related

What I've Learned - Written by: Andy Rooney

I've learned.... That the best classroom in the world is at the feet of an elderly person.
I've learned.... That when I'm in love, it shows.
I've learned.... That just one person saying to me, "You've made my day!" makes my day.
I've learned.... That having a child fall asleep in my arms is one of the most peaceful feelings in the world.
I've learned.... That being kind is more important than being right.
I've learned.... That I should always say yes to a gift from a child.
I've learned.... That I can always pray for someone when I don't have the strength to help them in some other way.
I've learned.... That no matter how serious my life requires me to be, I need a friend to act goofy with.
I've learned.... That sometimes all I need is a hand to hold and a heart to understand.
I've learned.... That simple walks with my father around the block on summer nights when I was a child did wonders for me as an adult.
I've learned.... That life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer it gets to the end, the faster it goes.
I've learned.... That I am glad God didn't give me everything I asked for.
I've learned.... That money doesn't buy class.
I've learned.... That those small daily happenings make life so spectacular.

I've learned... That under a person's hard shell is usually someone who wants to be appreciated and loved.
I've learned.... That the Lord didn't do it all in one day. So what makes me think I can?
I've learned.... That to ignore the facts does not change the facts.
I've learned.... That when I plan to get even with someone, I am only letting that person continue to hurt me.
I've learned.... That love, not time, heals all wounds.
I've learned.... That the easiest way for me to grow as a person is to surround myself with people smarter than I am.
I've learned.... That everyone I meet deserves to be greeted with a smile.
I've learned.... That there's nothing sweeter than sleeping with my babies and feeling their breath on my cheek.
I've learned.... That no one is perfect until I fall in love with them.
I've learned.... That life is tough, but I'm tougher.
I've learned.... That an opportunity is never lost; someone will take the one I miss.
I've learned.... That when I harbor bitterness, happiness docks elsewhere.
I've learned.... That I wish I could have told my Dad that I love him one more time before he passed away.
I've learned.... That I should keep my words both soft and tender, because tomorrow I may have to eat them.
I've learned.... That a smile is an inexpensive way to improve my looks.
I've learned.... That I can't choose how I feel, but I can choose what I do about it.
I've learned.... That when my newly born grandchild holds my little finger in their little fist, that I'm hooked for life.
I've learned.... That everyone wants to live on top of the mountain, but all the happiness and growth occurs while I'm climbing it.
I've learned ... That it is best for me to give advice in only two circumstances; when it is requested and when it is a life threatening situation.
I've learned.... That the less time I have to work with, the more things I get done.