Day 10, Inspiration from Benjamin Franklin

Early to bed and early to rise, make a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.

Benjamin Franklin

What is Success:

       1: Success is not limiting yourself.
       2: Success is turning frustration into opportunities.
       3: Success is doing what you feel is right in your heart despite public opinion.
       4: Success is work.
       5: Success is knowing when to move on.
       6: Success is spawned from the desire to help others.
       7: Success is not about being an only child or about getting attention from parents.
       8: Success is living usefully.
   
        These are what i call the 8 rules of and for success. They are in the book, and i think that if someone were to take heed to all of these, they would be the most successful person ever. I would go into detail, but i could go on and on about each of them for days, so i am just going to write a little synopsis of what i learned.
     You determine your life. If you want to be successful, you cannot rely on anyone else but yourself to get you there. Yes, you may have some in's, and you may have this or that, but in the end, it is solely up to you to make what you want out of life. It is up to you, YOU only, to determine what you are going to get out of life. What is success? Success isn't a monetary value, it isn't what or how much you own. Success is your idea of what you want out of life, and succeeding in achieving that. What do i want, well this goes back to a previous post that your welcome to read. My idea of success is to be happy, healthy, and living life to the fullest. So it is up to me to start now, go for my goals, ambitions, and life adventures, and not only try and achieve them, but persevere in my decisions and actions, and get more than i anticipated out of life.

Life is what you want it to be, so stop waiting for others, and live life to the fullest.

Day 9, Perseverance, Persistence, and Determination

Don't be afraid to give your best to what seemingly are small jobs. Every time you conquer one it makes you that much stronger. If you do the little jobs well, the big ones will tend to take care of themselves.

~Dale Carnegie

     When thinking back on your life, what things have you given up on? What things did you put to the back burner because they were either too hard, or you gave up on them? I am pretty sure all of us have many of these things. I know I do at least. 

Persistence: the act of holding firmly and steadfastly to a purpose, state, goal, or undertaking despite obstacles, warnings, or setbacks.

Determination: the quality of mind which reaches definite conclusions; decision of character; resoluteness.

Perseverance: Persistent Determination

    Its funny that when you think of all of those terms, you don't realize that you only need to achieve one, perseverance. I have noticed in my life, that i like to start things, then i get bored, distracted, busy, and every other excuse in the book i can think of. See, right there!! I do it every day. I use excuse after excuse, making up anything to say that i had some sort of reason for my stopping. Yes, sometimes there are legitimate reasons for stopping, but for 95% of the time, its that i didn't persevere. Throughout my life, I have dreamed big. And when i mean big, i mean HUGE! I would like to thank my mother for that! She is probably one of the most, if not the most inspiring person i know. My entire life, i have been told, that if i work hard at something, and give it my all, then i will succeed. 

   I don't mean to brag, but i have a great family! I have had so many amazing influences in my life of perseverance. Whether it was my mom starting a new business quite often, my dad doing also, all of my random little business i started, and tons others, all of them have given me an outlook that if you really want something, you can achieve it. No matter what it takes, you give it not only 100%, but more like 250%, and you will succeed. In the book it talks about Walter P. Chrysler is a great historic example. He bought his first car in 1905, where immediately after he got it, he took it apart, and put it back together again, with rumors of him doing it multiple times. After that, he decided to start a car company. Anyone ever heard of Chrysler?? 

   The first step in this is determining what you are want, and how you are going to do it. So my goal is this, in ever thing that i decide i am going to do, i am going to write it down, read it daily, and do at least one thing each day to achieve it. No more procrastinating, no more excuses, no more doing a half decent job. From here on, it is 250% into everything that i am doing in my life.

Day 8, Using Humor Effectively

A sense of humor is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

     Okay, so today is going to be a great day! Today i have a mid term in animal science, and what is the theme for today? Its Using Humor Effectively. So today has to be enjoyable because i am going to try my hardest to use the principles and rules of humor all day. My goal is to make at least 5 people laugh! Not just chuckle, but bust a gut. I love making people laugh and smile, thus why i do all my crazy voices all the time. My favorite voice by far is either my southern gay man,  herbert the pervert from family guy, or gollum from lord of the rings . So between those two, plus maybe 3 or 4 of my others, i am going to try my hardest to make some people smile, laugh, and brighten their day. On a stressful day like mid-term day, hopefully it will relieve a little of my stress too!

Day 5, Positive Mental Attitude

Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same.

Francesca Reigler 

"A positive mental attitude is seeing the benefits, opportunities, and good in situations rather than the setbacks, problems, and bad. More important, it is focusing on this positive and using it to your advantage. Having a PMA is asking how something can be done rather than saying it cant be done. It is the driving force behind persistence and perseverance."

Bo Bennet

     So before i even thought about looking for inspirational books, I had my own personal inspiration-er. My mother always taught me to look on the positive side of things. No matter how bad a day your having, no matter what kind of trouble, stress, whatever it may be that is making your day crummy, there is something good that has happened, and there is a positive side to everything. Lets say your car breaks down. Well, instead of cussing and complaining because it made you late for work, a meeting, or a family get-together, which made you late for this, that, and so on, try and find something positive to get out of it. Maybe there was a horrible accident right where you would have been that day. Maybe because you were 15 minutes late, you missed the night out with your friends, and instead spent time with your family, in which someone needed you. 

    A positive mental attitude can conquer all. Also, nobody likes to be around a Debby downer, so don't be one. It really is as simple as saying, i am going to be happy, putting a smile on your face, and going about your day. Yeah it may take a while, but hey, it will work. I have first hand experience with this. I woke up one morning in a terrible grumpy mood. I was late for class, i didn't feel good, i was having struggles with a friend, and it was just an all around bad start to the day. BUT.... I threw on a smile and started my day. Even though i may not have been happy, i at least put a smile on hoping it would make me happier. Well, it worked!! I was walking down the sidewalk on campus when a cute girl stopped me, said hi and that i looked super happy and approachable, and we chatted for a sec, then she proceeded to get my number. And all of this, was just because i put a smile on. Well, at that point I didnt just have a smile on, i had a permanent grin. That made my entire day, and at that point in time i realized something.. That just smiling, simple ol' smiling can have a huge impact on your day. 

    Has that happened since, no. But I now know that your outlook on life is all about your attitude. You can either make the worst of a situation, or you can make your best. Either way its up to you. Nobody made you be angry, tired, sad, or depressed. You made yourself sad and depressed. In another book i am reading,"Unlimited Power" by Anthony Robbins, he talks about how you can change your state of mind in an instant by doing simple things in your daily life. Keep doing them, and after the recommended 21 days that it takes for something to be a habit, you now know how to change your state of mind. He helps you understand that certain things can effect you certain ways. And going on in the book he makes you realize that is all about your mental attitude, and that you can change it. Putting a smile on is just one really easy, simple, yet effective way of brightening your day. Who knew! 

    This day in the book has been one of my favorites. It really is as simple as putting a smile on your face, surrounding yourself with positive happy people, rubbing your happiness off on your not so happy friends/family/classmates, and in the end, you have hopefully made an impact on someones life just by being happy yourself. 

Every thought is a seed. If you plant crab apples, don't count on harvesting Golden Delicious.

Bill Meyer

Day 4, General Life Purpose

Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification, but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.

Hellen Keller

What is your life purpose the author asks?
Well, my life purpose is dedicated to making a difference in the lives of teenagers. I am going to school to become an Ag teacher and a farmer. Not to mention hopefully one day a husband and father, and leader. I feel that my purpose here in life is to be tested, and to see what kind of person i really am. I am striving to become a leader. I would like to be the person that everyone turns to for advice and knowledge, as well as wisdom. One day maybe even run for office. My goal in life for quite a while has been to be Secretary of Agriculture for the Untied States Government. How am I going to do that being a teacher, i have not a clue. I want people to benefit from me. Not being selfish, but i really love talking to people, and helping them. I think that that is one of the main reasons for me wanting to become a teacher.

        On a more here-now note, at this point in my life, college, i am getting my education, and preparing for what i talked about previously. Im not married, i dont have a family, and at this point in time, i am really not trying to make a difference in the lives of everyone i meet. If i were on a scale, and on one end it was a self centered person and on the other end it were say Gandhi or Mother Teresa, i'm probably leaning towards the self centered side. I dont think that i am per-say self centered, but college is a time for you, and going for your goals, and getting an education for you to provide for a family in life. So college is pretty self centered. Yes i can do things at school and in the community, and i am trying my hardest to. I have joined clubs, and even a professional fraternity for Agriculture Education majors that focuses on leadership and service. My goal now, is to start working my way towards the other side of the scale.

          I know i still have 3 years of college left, so it may take a while, but i am positive i can do it. Like i said before, in the words of Henry Ford, "if you think you can or you think you can't, your right."

Day 3, Inspiration from Henry Ford

If you think you can do a thing or think you cant do a thing, your right.

Henry Ford

The power of a positive mind is amazing. Henry ford said it right, its all about your mindset. If you keep telling yourself you cant do something, then you wont be able to do it. But if you tell yourself you can, then you can. There are no limitations to life, that cannot be overcome somehow. Henry ford built a steam engine when he was only 15, and that was in 1878. What was i doing when i was 15.. I was in school, just floating on by. Making it day to day. So my new goal is to make every day count, and when i find myself saying i cant, to say i can, and give it my all for all its worth.

Day 2, Remembering and Using Peoples Names

The secret of a good memory is attention, and attention to a subject depends upon our interest in it. We rarely forget that which has made a deep impression on our  minds.

Tryon Edwards

Okay, so this is probably one of the hardest things for me. While at college, I meet new people every single day, and rarely do i remember their names. So this is very informative and helpful. What the book talks about is using different techniques to remember names. Whether it is associating them with an object or someone else you know with their name, or remembering a certain feature about that person. It means a lot to a person if you remember their name. So my new goal is to implement these strategies and try and remember every person i meets name!

Day 1, Why Success?

Nothing in this wold can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the wold is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and Determination alone are omnipotent.

Calvin Coolidge

Ok, so day 1. Today i going to define my idea of success.
Success to me: In life, i want to be happy. I want to have a family, with a beautiful wife and kids. I would like to make a difference in the lives of people. I am planning on becoming a teacher. Right now I am getting more and more excited every day to be one. There are endless ways to make a difference in young adolescents. I dont want to worry about my finances. I would like to make six figures, and achieving that will be difficult as a teacher, but i am positive i can find some way of doing so. Becoming a teacher and a farmer, well, they both are quite low-income jobs, but they are what i love. I love teaching people about what i love, farming and agriculture. So what better way than becoming an Agriculture Teacher. I want my name to be one of those names that when mentioned, people say, "that is one great man that has made a difference in the lives of millions." I guess my outlook on success is this: I want to be financially stable and happy, with a happy loving family, and making a difference in the lives of the people that I surround myself with every day.