Daily Mood Quotes - January 14, 2012

 

Daily Mood Quote

Day 240 – January 14, 2012

“Keep your dreams alive. Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination, and dedication. Remember all things are possible for those who believe.”

~Gail Devers

Seven months ago, I applied for a job as a columnist for the Pittsburgh Post Gazette. I saw the advertisement on-line, and since I have decided to chase my dream of becoming a writer, I applied. After four months had past, I figured they gave it to someone with a name, or a relative. So I let it go. Yesterday, I got an e-mail saying I didn't make the cut. No big surprise, it's hard to break into any business, including the writing business unless your a name, or you have a relative in the business. I'm not being cynical, just being honest. I have seen and heard so many stories about how people got their jobs and let me tell you it isn't through education, experience or good luck. I wish the Pittsburgh Post Gazette luck with whomever they hire, because giving quality advice is a tough slot to fill. Especially when the truth is put on the back burner for ratings.

“Every accomplishment starts with a decision to try.”

~Unknown Author

Master Chief use to tell me, “if you don't try, then how will you know.” Between you and me, I hated that statement because it meant I was going to try. Now I find myself saying that to my children and regularly to myself, when I get the notion to quit, or when I feel defeated by life. What's that old saying, “pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again.” Back to the drawing board.

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts.”

~Winston Churchill

I have had successes, I have had failures and I can tell without a doubt, the courage to continue matters. A friend once said to me, “if you quit you die” maybe not literally, but eventually courage, determination, resolve, the strength to move forward and try again fade away. You find yourself asking the questions, “why,” or “what happened” and “is it too late?” Know this, as long as you draw breath, it is never to late to find the courage to continue. Success and failure are a part of everyday living and we have the power to control that. For me and the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, the failure would have been, me not trying. Success will come in its proper time and with continued effort. Onward, upward and ever forward...

“Keep on sowing your seed, for you never know which will grow – perhaps it all will.”

~Albert Einstein

Ever heard the saying, “too many irons in the fire?” I have heard that most of my life, it must be a common saying, because everywhere I have ever lived, Minnesota, North Dakota, Pennsylvania and Virginia; I've heard it, I wasn't real sure what it meant, until recently. It goes hand-in-hand with the saying, “never put all your eggs in one basket.” There is a balance to be attained. You have to put yourself out there, let the world know who you are and focus on what your heart says is possible. Don't be shy, apply for all those jobs, talk to all those people, let the world know you are here and you can do it. H.H. Swami Tejomayananda said, “Some are destined to succeed, some are determined to succeed.” Go for it!!!

“There is no chance, no destiny, no fate, that can circumvent or hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul.”

~Ella Wheeler Wilcox

In the movie The Secret of My Succe$$ with Michael J. Fox (Brantley Foster/Carlton Whitfield), a  college graduate who lined up a job in New York, only to be fired the same day he started due to a hostile takeover, suddenly found himself unemployed in a big, hostile, city. Not letting the setback defeat him, he took on New York's business world and ultimately succeeded, his way. It's a movie, but the message stands: Be determined, be resolved and define your destiny. Everyone has one.

How will you define your destiny today?

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Daily Mood Quotes - November 1, 2011

 

Daily Mood Quotes

Day 181 – November 1, 2011

They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.

~Andy Warhol (1928-1987)

How many of us knew that this quote was actually The Philosophy of Andy Warhol? Several years ago in my undergrad program I took a music and art class, my final class project was the life of Andy Warhol. Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, he grew up to be a noted American artist (his work is amazing) and a filmmaker. Many credit him with leading the Pop Art movement in the 1960's. In reading his story, he once said, “I'd prefer to remain a mystery. I never give my background and, anyway I make it all up different every time I'm asked.” I guess it's safe to say, Mr. Warhol did it his way.

You know as I sit here typing this morning, I wonder if maybe that's the key, "doing it his way" or maybe just a different way. We all have a chance to change things, for the better, or worse; for richer, or poorer; in sickness, or health (I know these are the marriage vows, but think about them in the context of daily life). Three years ago, my husband was diagnosed with a life-long, crippling autoimmune illness and was facing the rest of his life sitting in a wheelchair. From doctor to doctor, medication to medication and one frustrating day after another we pushed forward and we found a way to overcome the pain. Just this past summer, with doctor's approval he began walking (this was a full two years into the diagnoses). He could barely walk 300 feet before the pain was too much to handle. His words “It's like standing in a blast furnace with your face, feet and hands in molten metal.” Through strength of mind, force of will, and good doctor care, my husband can now walk three miles a day with minimal pain and his quality of life has increased, while his time in the wheelchair has disappeared. It sits in the corner of our bedroom as a constant reminder and motivator.

The point is, sometimes when the odds are stacked against us, we need to change, or invent a new way of looking at our lives, Mr. Warhol did, often.  It seems much of the problem revolved not around the immune system attacking his nerves, but also how much he used his hands and feet. Common sense says to use them less to decrease the pain, but the reality was that the more he walked and used his hands the better he felt, to a point. There simply is no real way to get around the pain, just reduce it. His career was working against him; he had spent the last 25 years sitting at a computer in a occupation that made that behavior a requisite. Not any more... He still cannot sit in any way, at any angle for more than an hour at a time without blazing pain. Counter-intuitive yes, but true none-the-less. Hey, maybe we should place a computer on a wall...just a thought, it makes us laugh every time we say it.

In the movie Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back, Yoda (played by Frank Oz) said, “No~ No different. Only different in your mind. You must unlearn what you have learned.” and in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones, Yoda said to Count Dooku (Christopher Lee), “Much to learn you still have...my old padawan.”...”This is just the beginning!” You see it doesn't matter where you are in your life, Harrison Ford said, “we all have big changes in our lives that are more or less a second chance.” What you do with that second chance is a choice. My husband chooses not to quit and I stand along side him and we walk three miles a day, together.

Change has a considerable psychological impact on the human mind. To the fearful it is threatening because it means that things may get worse. To the hopeful it is encouraging because things may get better. To the confident it is inspiring because the challenge exists to make things better.

~King Whitney, Jr.

How will you view change today?

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