I have this tree analogy when I think of people in my life, be it
friends, family, acquaintances, employees, co-workers, whomever... They are all placed inside what I call my tree test. It goes like this: LEAF PEOPLE Some people come into your life and they are like leaves on a tree. They are only there for a season. You can't depend on them or count on them because they are weak and only there to give you shade. Like leaves, they are there to take what they need and as soon as it gets cold or a wind blows in your life they are gone. You can't be angry at them, it's just who they are. BRANCH PEOPLE There are some people who come into your life and they are like branches on a tree. They are stronger than leaves, but you have to be careful with them. They will stick around through most seasons, but if you go through a storm or two in your life it's possible that you could lose them. Most times they break away when it's tough. Although they are stronger than leaves, you have to test them out before you run out there and put all your weight on them. In most cases they can't handle too much weight. But again, you can't be mad with them, it's just who they are. ROOT PEOPLE If you can find some people in your life who are like the roots of a tree then you have found something special. Like the roots of a tree, they are hard to find because they are not trying to be seen. Their only job is to hold you up and help you live a strong and healthy life. If you thrive, they are happy. They stay low key and don't let the world know that they are there. And if you go through an awful storm they will hold you up. Their job is to hold you up, come what may, and to nourish you, feed you and water you. Just as a tree has many limbs and many leaves, there are few roots. Look at your own life. How many leaves, branches and roots do you have? What are you in other people's lives? When you are seeking friendship or guidance - be aware of your lifetime, your life will it be filled with the leave, branch and root people. To grow and become the people we need to become, we need the seasons, we need the leaves, we need the branches... don't just brush them away - grow to understand what and why they're there in your life. Seek to grow and learn from them. To all my roots new and old... Thank You! For your support and for being a part my seasons, leaves, branches and especially my roots. Thank you for making me the person I am today. THANK GOD FOR THE ROOTS! Life is an echo. What you send out, comes back. What you sow, you reap. What you give, you get. What you see in others, exists in you. Zig Ziglar Making Good Decisions by Zig Ziglar
If you find it difficult to make decisions, or you worry that your decisions are not good decisions, or you lack the confidence to make decisions in a timely manner... you're not alone! Many people express their concerns about their decision-making abilities. But if you ask them, "What's your routine for making decisions?" they often will tell you they don't have one. Truthfully they do, but they don't recognize it, or they don't like it. Their decisions are based on SOMETHING, and if they stop and think about it they'll discover what it is. However, it's much better to purposefully and thoughtfully develop your decision-making system, and then follow it whenever you need to make decisions. I'll share with you some basic rules I follow: 1. If I'm really tired, I don't make significant decisions (except in emergencies). 2. If someone is pressing me to decide something "right now," unless an immediate decision is critical, I say, "If I have to decide now, the answer is no. After I have had a chance to catch my breath and review the facts, there's the possibility it could be yes." Then I put the ball back in his or her court and ask, "Do you want my decision now, or should we wait?" 3. I like to determine the maximum benefit of a decision, assuming that everything goes my way. Then I ask, "Suppose nothing goes my way? Suppose this doesn't develop and materialize as I expect it to? What is my maximum exposure? What would I lose?" 4. For significant business-related decisions, I run them past my advisors. These people are successful in their businesses and professions and have a considerable amount of knowledge, experience, and wisdom, all of which are musts in the decision-making process. I get their advice and follow their recommendations, with good results in most cases. If the decision is too minor to involve my advisors but I still want input, I get my family together to look at the pros and cons. 5. I like to pray about my decisions. I ask God to help me see the truth of my motives and to lead me in the way I should go. If I'm about to make an unwise decision, I simply don't have peace about that decision, and I consequently act on that feeling of unease. I ask myself, "How will this decision affect all the areas of my life--personal, family, career, financial, physical, mental and spiritual?" Obviously, not all decisions affect all areas, but if the decision involves a financial reward but also carries considerable family sacrifice, for example, I think carefully as to whether what I give up is compensated for by what I gain. One final note: Prioritize your decisions. Some are more urgent than others! In 1962, four nervous young musicians played their first record audition for the executives of the Decca Recording company. The executives were not impressed. While turning down this group of musicians, one executive said, "We don't like their sound. Groups of guitars are on the way out." The group was called The Beatles.
In 1944, Emmeline Snively, director of the Blue Book Modeling Agency, told modeling hopeful Norma Jean Baker, "You'd better learn secretarial work or else get married." She went on to become Marilyn Monroe. In 1954, Jimmy Denny, manager of the Grand Ole Opry, fired a singer after one performance. He told him, "You ain't goin' nowhere son. You ought to go back to drivin' a truck." He went on to become the most popular singer in America, named Elvis Presley. When Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1876, it did not ring off the hook with calls from potential backers. After making a demonstration call, President Rutherford Hayes said, "That's an amazing invention, but who would ever want to use one of them?" In the 1940's, another young inventor named Chester Carlson took his idea to 20 corporations, including some of the biggest in the country. They all turned him down. In 1947, after seven long years of rejections, he finally got a tiny company in Rochester, New York, the Haloid Company, to purchase the rights to his invention, an electrostatic paper-copying process. Haloid became the Xerox Corporation we know today. Wilma Rudolph was the 20th of 22 children. She was born prematurely and her survival was doubtful. When she was 4 years old, she contacted double pneumonia and scarlet fever, which left her with a paralyzed left leg. At age 9, she removed the metal leg brace she had been dependent on and began to walk without it. By 13, she had developed rhythmic walk, which doctors said was a miracle. That same year, she decided to become a runner. She entered a race and came in last. For the next few years, every race she entered she came in last. Everyone told her to quit, but she kept on running. One day, she actually won a race. And then another. From then on, she won every race she entered. Eventually this little girl, who was told she would never walk again, went on to win three Olympic gold medals. Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through the experiences of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened. Remember, the finest steel gets sent through the hottest furnace. A REAL WINNER is not one who never fails, but one who NEVER QUITS! " |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. Archives
October 2014
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