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Displaying blog entries 61-70 of 104

Morning Coffee

Monday, January 24, 2011
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor sprits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat."
- Theodore Roosevelt


BETTER TO ATTEMPT AND FAIL...

In an old "Peanuts" cartoon, Sally is making a list while Charlie Brown looks on. Sally says, "I'm making a list of all the things I've learned in life..." In the next panel she continues with, "Well, actually, I'm making two lists." Charlie asks, "Why is one list longer than the other?" Holding up the much longer list, Sally explains, "These are the things I've learned the hard way!"

It's easy to chuckle a little at the part about "learning things the hard way," isn't it? We've all done that. There's really a more revealing message though in this simple cartoon.

The short list of things we've learned generally contains lessons that required no effort, or lessons we learned passively, while just listening. For instance, we learned simple courtesies from our first grade teacher. We learned historical names and dates from our history teacher. We learned to tie knots from our scout leader. Our parents taught us to share. The list goes on.

The important list, the one that's much longer, contains the things we've learned from experience. These lessons are endless, and no matter how trifling the lesson, we learned one every time we took action. We dared to try a two-wheel bicycle and crashed - several times. We tried out for the school play - and made fools of ourselves in front of friends.

By attempting - at the possible expense of our pride, our self-esteem, or our physical well-being - we either succeeded or failed (and learned a lesson). It is our actions that produce results and teach us those valuable lessons. Teddy Roosevelt said it right: "Far better to dare mighty things..."

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Morning Coffee

Monday, January 3, 2011
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -
I took the one less travelled by,
And that has made all the difference."

- Robert Frost, "The Road Not Taken"


PLAYING FOLLOW THE FOLLOWER?

Every morning a telephone operator in a small town received a phone call in which she was asked the time of day. One day, the operator asked her mysterious caller why he called every day to ask the correct time.

His answer? "I'm responsible for blowing the town whistle every day at noon, and just want to be sure I'm right on the second when I do it." With a chuckle, the operator replied, "Here at the telephone exchange, we set our watches and clocks by the town whistle!"

Watch children in a schoolyard and you'll notice the same thing. Children watch the child they perceive to be the leader, and then mimic his or her actions. They never realize that the other child is following the lead of still another.

So how will your day play out? Have you made original choices for the day, or will you be playing follow the follower? Either way, by bedtime tonight you will have been awake for about 16 hours and involved in some activity. Why not end the day with thanks - knowing that whatever you accomplished was by choice - not chance?

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Morning Coffee

Monday, December 27, 2010
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"Who exactly do you want to be? What kind of person do you want to be? What are your personal ideals?
Whom do you admire? What are their special traits that you would make your own?

It's time to stop being vague. If you wish to be an extraordinary person, if you wish to be wise,
then you should explicitly identify the kind of person you aspire to become."

- Epictetus


WHERE DO YOU WANT TO GO TODAY?

Microsoft uses that slogan to convince you that with their software you can head in any direction you please. Earl Nightingale, one of the great motivational speakers, said it better. "Imagine that you are the captain of a great ocean-going vessel," he suggests. "Before even leaving the harbor, you lay out plans for your voyage. Using maps, you choose a destination, then employ your navigational skills to arrive safely".

"Without a chosen destination and a map to help you arrive," he continues, "you are akin to a ship without a rudder. If you get out of the harbor at all, you'll probably end up a derelict on some deserted beach."

On this verge of the year 2011, I hope you've decided on a destination for the year and have looked carefully at the map that will take you there. A word of caution is in order. Be careful not to choose too many destinations, meaning don't set too many goals for the year. Including more than a handful of worthy objectives can leave you with maps and navigational instruments strewn all over your desk - resulting in chaos, lack of focus, and questionable navigation.

It's better to have four clearly defined targets for the year, accompanied by a masterful plan for their achievement, than to have only a list of 25 hoped-for achievements. Anthony Robbins suggests the following agenda for achieving your most worthy objectives.

First, write down a "dream inventory" - a list of everything you want to accomplish in 2011. Next choose the four most important major goals. For each of the four make a list of the benefits you will enjoy when you achieve them. Then list all the resources you currently possess which would be of benefit to achieving your major goals, i.e. experience, knowledge, skills, positive attitude, friendliness, perseverance, etc.

Continue by listing the three most successful times in your life. Under each, write down a description of how you felt and acted during those times, i.e. felt invincible, presented a professional image, smiled a lot, wasn't afraid to try a new approach, etc. Next write down the type person you would have to be to achieve your goals, i.e. must be prepared for presentations, must always have confidence, must put others' needs first, must organize my time, etc. Follow this with a list of "What prevents me from achieving this right now." Write down your fears, your lack of action, etc.

Finally, write down the steps you must take to achieve each of the four major goals. This would be a list of each and every task that must be completed in order to produce the maximum results. By breaking down the objective into individual steps, it becomes more manageable.

Notice that achieving a major goal requires major planning. Have you already done your homework and feel completely prepared? Hopefully so. If not, take the first week of the coming new year to build a plan for your future. It's well worth the effort!

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Morning Coffee

Monday, December 20, 2010
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

Today's true story is all the inspiration you will need!


Small World!

The brand new pastor and his wife, newly assigned to their first ministry to reopen a church in urban Brooklyn, arrived in early October excited about their opportunities. When they saw their church, it was very run down and needed much work. They set a goal to have everything done in time to have their first service on Christmas Eve.

They worked hard, repairing pews, plastering walls, painting, etc. and on Dec. 18 were ahead of schedule and just about finished. On Dec 19 a terrible tempest - a driving rainstorm - hit the area and lasted for two days. On the 21st, the pastor went over to the church.

His heart sunk when he saw that the roof had leaked, causing a large area of plaster about 6 feet by 8 feet to fall off the front wall of the sanctuary just behind the pulpit, beginning about head high.

The pastor cleaned up the mess on the floor, and not knowing what else to do but postpone the Christmas Eve service, headed home. On the way he noticed that a local business was having a flea market type sale for charity so he stopped in.

One of the items was a beautiful, hand-made, ivory colored, crochet table cloth with exquisite work, fine colors and a cross embroidered right in the center. It was just the right size to cover up the hole in the front wall. He bought it and headed back to the church.

By this time it had started to snow. An older woman running from the opposite direction was trying to catch the bus. She missed it. The pastor invited her to wait in the warm church for the next bus 45 minutes later. She sat in a pew and paid no attention to the pastor while he got a ladder, hangers etc. to put up the tablecloth as a wall tapestry. The pastor could hardly believe how beautiful it looked and it covered up the entire problem area.

Then he noticed the woman walking down the center aisle. Her face was like a sheet. "Pastor," she asked, "Where did you get that tablecloth?" The pastor explained. The woman asked him to check the lower right corner to see if the initials EBG were crocheted into it there. They were. These were the initials of the woman, and she had made this tablecloth 35 years before, in Austria.

The woman could hardly believe it as the pastor told how he had just gotten the tablecloth. The woman explained that before the war she and her husband were well-to-do people in Austria. When the Nazis came, she was forced to leave. Her husband was going to follow her the next week. She was captured, sent to prison and never saw her husband or her home again.

The pastor wanted to give her the tablecloth; but she made the pastor keep it for the church. The pastor insisted on driving her home - that was the least he could do. She lived on the other side of Staten Island and was only in Brooklyn for the day for a housecleaning job.

What a wonderful service they had on Christmas Eve. The church was almost full. The music and the spirit were great. At the end of the service, the pastor and his wife greeted everyone at the door and many said that they would return. One older man, whom the pastor recognized from the neighborhood, continued to sit in one of the pews and stare, and the pastor wondered why he wasn't leaving. The man asked him where he got the tablecloth on the front wall because it was identical to the one that his wife had made years ago when they lived in Austria before the war and how could there be two tablecloths so much alike?

He told the pastor how the Nazis came, how he forced his wife to flee for her safety, and he was supposed to follow her, but he was arrested and put in a concentration camp. He never saw his wife or his home again for all the 35 years in between.

The pastor asked him if he would allow him to take him for a little ride. They drove to Staten Island to the same house where the pastor had taken the woman three days earlier. He helped the man climb the three flights of stairs to the woman's apartment, knocked on the door, and saw the greatest Christmas reunion he could ever imagine.

A true story

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Morning Coffee

Monday, December 13, 2010
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"It is a simple procedure to calculate the number of seeds in an apple.
But, who among us can say how many apples there are in a seed?"
- Dr. Wayne Dyer


WANT ABUNDANCE IN YOUR LIFE?

Who among us would answer "NO" to that question? Yet abundance often seems beyond our reach. We see it in others, but do not believe it is in us. We see ourselves as the apple (limited), rather than the seed (limitless).

So, what's the first step on the road to abundance? Wayne Dyer thinks it is giving thanks - for what you already have. That might include good health, a new baby on the way, loving parents, a career you enjoy, or money in the bank. You do have a few things going for you - right?

Just as the potential of the seed in the apple is limitless, so is your ability to attract abundance. By focusing on what you already have, you begin to deny what you don't. Your attention is drawn away from the scarcity in your life - and towards the abundance that already exists in your world.

You may be thinking that when you achieve abundance, you will finally be complete. Therein lies the surprise - that you are already complete. You are never going to get it all, because you have it all already. That's right. If you are not currently thankful for the good in your life, having more of it will make no difference.

The secret to abundance then lies within you. Place your thoughts squarely on what you already have, be grateful, and it will expand beyond your wildest dreams. Believe you have nothing until you get more, and you will spiral endlessly downward in despair at how unjustly the world is treating you.

Want abundance in your life? Think about it!

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Morning Coffee

Monday, December 6, 2010
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"If you want to learn something new, concentrate on getting that 'right feeling' that is true to yourself.
Take the risk of letting go the precious little control you've struggled to gain, letting go enough
to immerse yourself in what you are doing. Then - do it!”

- Drs. Tom Rusk & Randy Read


THE SEARCH IS OVER!

Have you ever read Shel Silverstein's wonderful book, "The Missing Piece and the Big O"? It's a whimsical fable that has touched readers of all ages. It chronicles the search most of us have undertaken at one time or another in our lives to find the one person who can make us whole.

As the "Missing Piece" searches, it encounters other "parts." Some of them fit, but cannot roll. Others have too many pieces missing - while still others have too many pieces. The missing piece continues the futile search until one day it meets the "Big O" - a whole (not a part) with no pieces missing.

Thinking it had, at last, found its whole, the Missing Piece exclaims, "I think you are the one I have been waiting for - maybe I am your missing piece . . . I was hoping that I could roll with you." The Big O replied, "But I am not missing a piece . . . perhaps you could roll by yourself."

How often have we all felt that we needed someone else to be whole (or to roll) - not realizing that we are all in fact already the "Big O." We are already self-contained, have the ability to roll in any direction we like, and need nothing else to achieve every dream we've ever had. Then, unexpectedly, we find that there are others who are also "Big O's," with whom we can share our own "wholeness."

If I've lost you with this mysterious tale, go by the library or pick up a copy of this unusual story. Trust me - you'll understand. It's the type of book you can give to a loved one who may be feeling like a "Missing Piece."

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Morning Coffee

Monday, November 29, 2010
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"'Lucky' is what others will call you after your hard work produces results."
~ Og Mandino


WHAT ABOUT THE PROVERBIAL GRINDSTONE?

Ever hear your parents or grandparents tell you to "Keep your nose to the grindstone" when explaining the secret to success? If so, they probably ended your education right there . . . leaving you totally in the dark about the meaning behind the expression.

Looking deeper, there were probably three key words: "Keep," "nose," and "grindstone." "Keep" meant "keep on keeping on!" It was another way of saying, "Be persistent," or "Never, never, never quit!" Results in any legitimate pursuit are the result of total commitment to the outcome.

The second keyword - "nose" - referred to staying close to the matter at hand. Picture yourself at the grindstone, with your face - and nose - close to the turning stone. By keeping a close eye on the grinding process - by being completely focused - few errors can occur which, in turn, assures a successful outcome.

The final word - "grindstone" - refers to the work (or job) itself. You must first choose your objective, i.e. sharpening the blade at the grindstone, before applying any effort. You must choose a worthy objective before applying either persistence or focus.

Success is inevitable when you apply the grindstone principle. It's a cryptic message, yet so simple. Apply it to all aspects of your life and others will surely call you "lucky!"

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Monday Morning Coffee

Monday, November 22, 2010
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"The quality of mercy is not strain'd,
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath: it is twice bless'd;
It blesseth him that gives and him that takes."

~William Shakespeare


GOBBLE! GOBBLE!

Remember when you were a teenager leaving the house on a date? Your parents' last words as you went out the door were, "We'll leave the light on for you". Think about that. So what if they did or didn't leave the light on? Their words were really more of a verbal hug. They cared about you - wanted you to know it - and applied the hug with kind words.

With Thanksgiving in just a few days, why not take the time to "leave the light on" for someone who may not get many hugs? There's still time, and it's easy.

First, learn who needs hugs. Check with your local fire, police, or sheriff's department. Ask whether they know of three or four families or individuals who could use a hug. Ask also whether they would consider delivering your hugs at the appropriate time. Two groups stand out as needy - the elderly and families with small children. Of course, we're talking about individuals who are experiencing difficult circumstances in their lives, be they physical or financial.

Next, consider what type of hugs you have to offer. Perhaps you might prepare three or four Thanksgiving turkeys with all the trimmings. Live in the country where people heat their homes with a wood stove? Deliver firewood. Live in a cold climate? Add some warm socks or a sweater to your dinner box. It's really not that difficult to come up with ideas that would make a difference to your chosen recipients. If you aren't able to provide "things," consider visiting with some nursing home residents. Brighten their day by listening for a while.

It goes without saying that our country is truly blessed. Although practically invisible to most of us, however, there are some individuals who are being challenged. They need a hug, and we can brighten their lives by way of simple gestures. Make a family project out of it - involve your kids. Do it anonymously. Afterwards, when you get home, we'll leave the light on for you!

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Morning Coffee

Tuesday, November 16, 2010
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"Ideas come from space. This may seem astonishing and
impossible to believe, but it is true. Ideas come from out of space."
- Thomas Edison


STRIKE IT RICH!

From the "Commercial and Financial Chronicle" (December 10, 1932) comes this quote from an article entitled "El Dorado":

"El Dorado, a country rich beyond all precedent in gold and jewels, lies at every man's door. Your bonanza lies under your feet. Your luck is ready at hand. All is within; nothing is without, though it often appears that men and peoples by dumb luck or avarice or force or overreaching strike upon the sea of prosperity. Man individually and collectively is entitled to life in all abundance. What do you seek? Pay the price and take it away. There is no limit to the supply. By a full and powerful imagination anything can be brought into concrete form."

Thomas Edison was a man of 10,000 ideas - a virtually endless supply. Grasping those ideas that he attributed as coming "from space," he created a long string of life-changing inventions. By his "full and powerful imagination" he brought the light bulb into its tangible form.

Inside each of us lies that same power - to see the future through our own imagination, and then cause it to happen by taking actions consistent with its manifestation. As author Wayne Dyer said in his book by the same name, "You'll see it when you believe it." By understanding the power of your own imagination, you are capable of creating your own "El Dorado," both in the physical and the spiritual plane.

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Morning Coffee

Monday, November 8, 2010
by Liz Warren
Monday Morning Coffee

INSPIRATION FOR TODAY:

"A man will find that as he alters his thoughts toward things and other people, things and other
people will alter towards him.... Let a man radically alter his thoughts, and he will be astonished
at the rapid transformation it will effect in the material conditions of his life. Men do not attract that
which they want, but that which they are.... The divinity that shapes our ends is in ourselves. It is
our very self.... All that a man achieves is the direct result of his own thoughts.... A man can only
rise, conquer and achieve by lifting up his thoughts. He can only remain weak and abject and
miserable by refusing to lift up his thoughts."

- James Allen, "As A Man Thinketh"


ACCENTUATE THE POSITIVE!

It's so simple . . . the advice given in the above quote . . . and so true. Each of us has the power to elevate the value and quality of our life, simply by "lifting up" our thoughts, by placing our hands firmly on the wheel of positive thinking. Earl Nightingale gave an example in one of his taped programs. He said imagine that you are the operator of a huge piece of earth-moving equipment. You are perched in a small cab, hands on the wheel, and have the ability to move vast amounts of earth. Would you take your hands off the wheel and let it run itself into a ditch?

Your mind, and hence your thoughts, mirror that steering wheel. Through positive thoughts, you guide your life in a direction that produces positive actions, resulting in positive re-actions from others. Refusing to keep your hands on the wheel will quickly deliver you into life's ditches.

Life today is complex. It brings with it many opportunities for negative thinking. They range from the personal early morning "Hurry up, we're going to be late!" to the mid-day business crisis of "The deal isn't going to close!" Another quote goes like this: "Think you can, think you can't, either way you're right!" Again, it's your choice, isn't it?

The next time you feel frustration and doubt creeping into your vocabulary, think of a time when you felt really good about a similar situation . . . then replace the negative thought with a positive statement. As another wise individual once said, "Our lives are what our thoughts make of it."

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