If it’s alright, I will continue to write.
After more than 340 posts on this blog, including nearly 50 Sunday Series, I might think there would be writer’s block. Not so and I think it comes down to two things, well maybe three, (there’s that magic number again).
1) Awareness – paying attention to being in the moment and all that is positive around me.
2) Encouragement – those who give me feedback and offer ideas, thank you.
3) Reading/Listening/Caring – books, videos, CD’s, the realization of others and their gifts.
At the top of the list is really item #3 – food for my head – and the steady diet which has changed my life. There are so many topics, ideas, quotes, conversations, interviews and lessons to write about, I sometimes struggle to chose from all that information I can share. When you are immersed in great words and ideas I guess it’s a good problem to have.
For instance do I wrap a blog around the calendar quote I saw at the dry cleaner just the other day – “Those who make no mistakes will soon be working for those who do.” Pretty good line, it would be easy to come up with a few hundred words about mistakes, life and success.
Or maybe the line I saw in a book review which included a great life lesson – “always hire attitude over ability”. That’s a good one because that’s something you can’t teach and attitude is where the magic begins.
Or what about the line I read from the Philosophy of Successful Living by Jim Rohn – “formal education gets you a job, but self-education is what makes you rich.” Yes! Learn and cash in.
Or maybe the interview I listened to yesterday with Capt. “Sully” Sullenberger, the pilot of the New York Hudson miracle, who offered up this little ditty – “If leaders treat followers with respect they’ll get the greatest possible gift in return, trust. How true.
And then there is this one from Simon Sinek’s book, Start with Why, on why you should never assume:
“On a cold January day a forty-three year old man was sworn in as chief executive of his country. By his side stood his predecessor, a famous general, who fifteen years earlier, had commanded his nation’s armed forces in a war that resulted in the defeat of Germany. The young leader was raised in the Roman Catholic faith. He spent the next five hours watching parades in his honor and stayed up celebrating until three o’clock in the morning.”
It’s the inauguration of John F. Kennedy…right? Wrong. It’s January, 1933, try Adolph Hitler. Never assume you already know, it might just kill you.
Finally, (only because we’re heading to the 500 word count, not because I’m short on ideas or inspiration), there’s this excerpt from yesterday’s Wall Street Journal article about whether money can buy happiness:
“the latest research shows wealth alone doesn’t provide any guarantee of a good life. What matters a lot more than a big income is how people spend it. For instance giving money away makes people a lot happier than lavishing it on themselves.” And what about material goods over life experiences? “People think material purchases offer better value for the money because experiences are fleeting. But when they looked back at their purchases they realized that experiences actually provided better value. If you’ve climbed the Himalayas, that’s something you’ll always remember and talk about, long after all your favorite gadgets have gone to the landfill.”
Great experiences… maybe even those that are free, like reading a decent blog every now and then.
Write on! If you don’t mind, I will.
Until next time, thanks for taking the time,
Mark
Mark Brodinsky, Author, Blogger, Financial Services
Author: The #1 Amazon Best-Seller: It Takes 2. Surviving Breast Cancer: A Spouse’s Story
(http://www.spouses-story.com/)
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Great reminders!