I have been reading Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich and it really has a ton of great information in it. Being that it was written in 1937, I am sure that at the time it was groundbreaking stuff but what amazes me is that the principles and ideas contained in it are still greatly important today.
The book details 13 steps to riches but the first chapter, which isn’t one of the thirteen steps, might be the most important part of the whole book. He begins with “thoughts are things” and that single idea sets the stage for his following 13 steps. It is so powerful and yet so rare in today’s world. Many people seem to think that the answers they are seeking in life can only come from outside sources and don’t even consider that they may come from inside their own mind.
Hill writes, “As you read, the answer you may be seeking to the questions which have caused you to ponder over the strangeness of life may be found in you your own mind, through some idea, plan or purpose, which may spring into you mind as you read.” How awesome is this concept? This statement to me says so much to the power of the individual and how we have the ability to change our life if we so choose.
I will not read this book and forget about it. I will read it, re-read it, study it and file it in my brain housing group as long as I live. I will also share the information that I learn with those that are seeking it. The information is simply too important to the world to keep it to myself and not share it.
Truly, thoughts are things and our thoughts lead to our feelings which lead to our actions. What is a thought that you will choose to have today to make tomorrow be better then yesterday? After all, today is the only thing that can make tomorrow be different from yesterday.
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
My Attitude and the "Awesome Scale"
It’s been quite a while since my last post and so many great things have happened during that time. A big reason why things have gone so well is because I have started overcoming the greatest obstacle in my life—myself.
For such a long time I believed that everybody else was part of the problem and I was part of the solution and nothing seemed to make sense to me. I understand now that I was the problem and only I can be the solution. What I was doing wrong was choosing not to admit my failures and I was choosing not to find a solution. I can see now why things made no sense to me—my perception of life was way off.
During this time away I’ve come to realize and really know that I am the only person that can make a difference in my life. If I want different results, I must change my actions. If I want to change my actions, I must change my feelings. If I want to change my feelings, I must change my thoughts. If I want to change my thoughts, I must change my programming. I know for certain that I can’t make a difference in the world if I don’t first make a difference in my life.
Realizing all of this, I have decided to start making some major changes in my life. The first area that will make a big difference is my attitude. I am now a big believer in using the “Awesome Scale” to view things in my life. The “Awesome Scale” states that everything that happens to me is awesome; the only thing that changes is the percent of awesomeness. Great, fantastic or wonderful things that happen to me sit on the 90-100% area of the scale. Unfortunate and not necessarily happy things that occur sit at the .01-10% area of the scale. The key is to realize that no matter how tough things are, they are still awesome because I can make the choice to overcome these obstacles and make them a learning experience. If things are tough in life but you are able to learn from it, that’s awesome and we can always learn something form every experience in life.
Positive change isn’t necessarily an easy thing to accomplish in life and I recognize this. What makes it much easier is knowing that if I am not where I want to be, I have to change the things in my life that aren’t working and do things that do work. For me, this starts with my attitude and it’s made a big difference already. Ultimately I know that in order to accomplish great things in life, I need to possess a great attitude. With a poor to mediocre attitude I will only be able to accomplish poor to mediocre things in life---and that is not awesome enough for me.
I’ve stated that my attitude was one of the things that were part of my problem and not part of my solution. What is something in your life that you know is part of the problem that can be changed to being part of the solution? Feel free to comment and let me know what you think.
For such a long time I believed that everybody else was part of the problem and I was part of the solution and nothing seemed to make sense to me. I understand now that I was the problem and only I can be the solution. What I was doing wrong was choosing not to admit my failures and I was choosing not to find a solution. I can see now why things made no sense to me—my perception of life was way off.
During this time away I’ve come to realize and really know that I am the only person that can make a difference in my life. If I want different results, I must change my actions. If I want to change my actions, I must change my feelings. If I want to change my feelings, I must change my thoughts. If I want to change my thoughts, I must change my programming. I know for certain that I can’t make a difference in the world if I don’t first make a difference in my life.
Realizing all of this, I have decided to start making some major changes in my life. The first area that will make a big difference is my attitude. I am now a big believer in using the “Awesome Scale” to view things in my life. The “Awesome Scale” states that everything that happens to me is awesome; the only thing that changes is the percent of awesomeness. Great, fantastic or wonderful things that happen to me sit on the 90-100% area of the scale. Unfortunate and not necessarily happy things that occur sit at the .01-10% area of the scale. The key is to realize that no matter how tough things are, they are still awesome because I can make the choice to overcome these obstacles and make them a learning experience. If things are tough in life but you are able to learn from it, that’s awesome and we can always learn something form every experience in life.
Positive change isn’t necessarily an easy thing to accomplish in life and I recognize this. What makes it much easier is knowing that if I am not where I want to be, I have to change the things in my life that aren’t working and do things that do work. For me, this starts with my attitude and it’s made a big difference already. Ultimately I know that in order to accomplish great things in life, I need to possess a great attitude. With a poor to mediocre attitude I will only be able to accomplish poor to mediocre things in life---and that is not awesome enough for me.
I’ve stated that my attitude was one of the things that were part of my problem and not part of my solution. What is something in your life that you know is part of the problem that can be changed to being part of the solution? Feel free to comment and let me know what you think.
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