"We cannot tell what may happen to us in the strange medley of life. But we can decide what happens in us -- how we can take it, what we do with it -- and that is what really counts in the end."

-- Joseph Fort Newton

"The greatest thing a man can do in this world is to make the most possible out of the stuff that has been given him. This is success, and there is no other."

-Orison Swett Marden

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Affirmware

"Finally - a Simple, Computer-Based Training System that teaches you step-by-step How to Create the Life of Your Dreams”...

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Click Here Now => http://www.pivotalpersonalbest.com/thought_affirmware.htm

Five Best To-Do List Managers

The humble to-do list hasn’t changed much over the years, but the methods we use to manage it have. Here’s a look at five of the most popular tools for helping you manage your to-do list.

Whatever you are, be a good one.

Abraham Lincoln

"Action makes more fortune than caution."

Luc De Clapiers
1715-1747, Essayist

"We cannot achieve more in life than what we believe in our heart of hearts we deserve to have."

-- James R. Ball

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Are you stuck in the destructive habit of procrastination & indecision?

Do you feel like you are "spinning your wheels" and no matter what you do you just can't get yourself to move forward and "just do it.

If procrastination and indecision is what stands between your dreams
and their realization, then these easy strategies can help you to
"flip the switch" in your mind.

http://www.consultpivotal.com/Ainaction.htm

"Pressure is a word that is misused in our vocabulary. When you start thinking of pressure, it's because you've started to think of failure."

Tommy Lasorda
American Baseball Manager

"Use what talents you possess;
the woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best."


-- Henry Van Dyke
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In-home Behavior Modification Growing in Popularity

Unique in-home programs can now help people to quickly end chronic depression & panic without drugs, wipe out food addictions, build self-esteem, quit smo king, get organized, increase sales, keep more earnings, eliminate pain, and much more. See a method being used in 92 countries & learn how easy transforming can really be.

http://www.pivotalpersonalbest.com/thought_inhome.htm

Networking - wing it and you'll flap in the breeze

It is the inevitable topic of conversation at a networking event: Tell me about your job.

When I explain my life's work -- teaching leaders to achieve their dreams through powerful public speaking -- my conversation partner often shrugs and says, "Oh, I could never deliver a speech. I get too nervous."

My response: "What do you think you are doing right now?"

Make no mistake, when you network, you are delivering a series of minipresentations. If you don't know how to put your best foot forward in these business-critical situations, you can forget about building your business or advancing your career.

Master networkers realize that attitude and preparation are vital ingredients for success. How do these pros set themselves up as winners in the networking arena? Let's examine a dynamic dozen techniques:

"Most people think that making decisions is hard, especially financial decisions, so they end up burying their heads in the sand, hoping someone else will make their decisions for them. The thing to realize is that by not making decisions, we are really making decisions anyway. We are really deciding that we will continue to do what we have done up until now."

Clayton J. Moore

The Parable of Brother Leo

A legend tells of a French monastery known throughout Europe for the extraordinary leadership of a man known only as Brother Leo. Several monks began a pilgrimage to visit Brother Leo to learn from him. Almost immediately, they began to bicker about who should do various chores.

On the third day they met another monk going to the monastery, and he joined them. This monk never complained or shirked a duty, and whenever the others would fight over a chore, he would gracefully volunteer and do it himself. By the last day, the others were following his example, and from then on they worked together smoothly.

When they reached the monastery and asked to see Brother Leo, the man who greeted them laughed. "But our brother is among you!" And he pointed to the fellow who had joined them.

Today, many people seek leadership positions, not so much for what they can do for others but for what the position can do for them: status, connections, perks, advantages. They do service as an investment, a way to build an impressive resume.

The parable about Brother Leo teaches another model of leadership, where leaders are preoccupied with serving rather than being followed, with giving rather than getting, with doing rather than demanding. Leadership based on example, not command. This is called servant leadership.

Can you imagine how much better things would be if more politicians, educators, and business executives saw themselves as servant leaders?

Michael Josephson
www.charactercounts.org

Lighthouse wisdom

"Darkness reigns at the foot of the lighthouse"
~ Japanese Proverb

Since Ancient times, Lighthouses were used to mark dangerous coastlines, hazardous shoals and reefs, often in inaccessible locations.

They exist because storms exist.

They symbolize safety, guidance and Integrity.

Sometimes in our lives, we find ourselves in difficult places. But the truth is that it is not about you. It is about the bigger picture.

It is about understanding the purpose of being a Lighthouse.

As Lightworkers, we are the Light in the dark. The Lighthouse Call is the opportunity to shine your Light for others. Maybe the only light they will see is coming from YOU

This is the work you came to do and it is not going to be forever in a place you don't want to be. This is the Mission of a true Lighthouse

Humanity Healing Team
www.humanityhealing.net
www.humanityhealing.ning.com

"The world we are experiencing today is the result of our collective consciousness, and if we want a new world, each of us must start taking responsibility for helping create it."

-- Rosemary Fillmore Rhea

A Movie about Leadership

Leadership means many things to many people. But what are some of the shared qualities that all great leaders have?

What you focus on is what you feel

It is easy to get yourself overloaded and overwhelmed when there is a lot happening in your life.

I'm sure you know this feeling - like there is a never ending list of things to get done in your life.

It can wear you down...if you let it.

...it all depends on what you focus on.

>>>read on.

How to bring yourself out of a slump.

Four steps to getting the results you want in business--and in life

Changing our behaviour to achieve better results is the most important challenge we face in trying to compete in this chaotic world. Maybe you're in a slump or know deep down that you've accepted an average performance when a great one is possible. When you're ready to change--to increase your sales, to take some calculated risks, to improve any and all aspects of your life--you may not know how to begin. What can you do differently to create more positive results in your work and personal life?

... more

He's My Brother

Like the Christmas before, we didn't send Christmas cards; we called my family in Canada. Ginny and I talked to my mom. We spoke to my uncles and aunts. I haven't seen any of them in seven years and Ginny hasn't met them yet at all, but she knows they are family and hopes to meet them one day.

The calls were completed, but I couldn't relax. There was one call I needed to make, I was afraid to. I paced the house. I sat at my computer and wasted time. I needed to call. I couldn't. I should. I couldn't. I was in turmoil.

Five years before, I received an email from my brother. At the time, I had been out of work for several months. Stress ruled my life. The email from my brother was nothing terrible, but it made me angry.

I wrote back. As I typed, my anger grew. Months of frustration flowed into my nasty response. I said things that were not nice, but I hit send anyway. More thoughts occurred to me. I wrote a second nast y email. My fingers hammered the keys as I typed. I basically told my brother to go to hell. I could care less if I ever heard from him again.

The next day I received an email from him. I didn't read it. I just deleted it and then blocked his email address, so I could not receive anything from him.

In the last five years, I know he has tried to get through to me, but I ignored him.

For five years I have lived with this terrible guilt. I thought about contacting him, but was ashamed of myself for what I'd said.

Now was the time.

I picked up the phone and stepped outside. I wanted privacy. Ginny didn't know I was calling my brother. I took a deep breath, blew out a cloud of steam into the cold December air, and dialed his number. Even after five years, I still knew it by heart. A phone rang 3700 miles away in Nova Scotia.

There was no answer. I left a message. "Bob, it's Mike." I paused to take another breath. My hand holding the phone shook. "Bob, I guess I'll start by saying I'm sorry. I said some things I regret. I want to wish you and Delores (Bob's wife) a merry Christmas and hope all is well with you. I realize you may not want to talk to me, but I thought I would try. I want to make it right again. If you want to talk." I left my number.

I walked back into the house and looked at Ginny. "I did it."

She looked puzzled. "You did what?"

"I called Bob."

"Oh, Honey!" She walked to me and put her arms around my neck. "I'm glad. You needed to do it. It's family, Mike, and it's been too long." She kissed me. "You did right, Hun."

The days passed. Christmas came and went. I waited for the call that never came. I prayed for his forgiveness. The phone never rang. Then a week after I called, I received an email. My brother left me a message on my Facebook page. He said he listened to my voice message over-and-over and knew I was sincere. Over the last few weeks, we have been emailing and healing.

Why did I let five years of my brother's life slip through my fingers? Why was I too proud to call and say I was sorry?

If I had the answers, it would never have happened in the first place, but I know I don't want it to happen again.

I wrecked my relationship with my brother. Like a jigsaw puzzle that has been dropped, the pieces are scattered everywhere. It's time to gather them up and try to put it back together. It will take time, but I hope each piece I put back will gain a little more of my brother's trust.

I swallowed my pride. I did it. Five years is too long. He's my brother.

Many people have family problems like I did. Please don't hold a grudge. Don't be the fool I was. Fix it before it is too late.

Michael T. Smith

Michael lives with his lovely wife, Ginny, in Caldwell, Idaho. He works as a project manager in Telecommunications and in his spare time writes inspiration stories. He has recently been published in two Chicken Soup for the Soul Books (All in the Family and Things I Learned from My Cat), in "Thin Threads - Life Changing Moments" and in Catholic Digest. To sign up for Michael's stories go to: http://visitor.constantcontact.com/d.jsp?m=1101828445578&p=oi
To read more of his stories, go to: http://ourecho.com/biography-353-Michael-Timothy-Smith.shtml#stories

"The capacity for hope is the most significant fact of life. It provides human beings with a sense of destination and the energy to get started”

-- Norman Cousins

Jack Canfield: Daily routines for creating the life of your dreams