Refusing to Accept Failure
Sir Edmund Hillary was the first man to climb Mount Everest. On May 29,
1953 he scaled the highest mountain then known to man-29,000 feet straight up.
He was knighted for his efforts. He even made American Express card commercials
because of it! However, until we read his book, High Adventure, we don't
understand that Hillary had to grow into this success. You see, in 1952 he
attempted to climb Mount Everest, but failed. A few weeks later a group in
England asked him to address its members.
Hillary walked on stage to a thunderous applause. The audience was
recognizing an attempt at greatness, but Edmund Hillary saw himself as a failure. He moved away from the microphone and walked to the edge of the platform. He made a fist and pointed at a picture of the mountain. He said in a loud voice, "Mount Everest, you beat me the first time, but I'll beat you the next time because you've grown all you are going to grow... but I'm still growing!"
Brian Cavanaugh, T.O.R.
"The Sower's Seeds"
Everybody Has a Dream
Some years ago I took on an assignment in a southern county to work with
people on public welfare. What I wanted to do was show that everybody has the
capacity to be self-sufficient, and all we have to do is to activate them. I asked
the county to pick a group of people who were on public welfare, people from different racial groups and different family constellations. I would then see them as a
group for three hours every Friday. I also asked for a little petty cash to work with
as I needed it.
The first thing I said after I shook hands with everybody was, "I would
like to know what your dreams are." Everyone looked at me as if I were kind of
wacky.
"Dreams? We don't have dreams." I said, "Well, when you were a kid what
happened? Wasn't there something you wanted to do?"
One woman said to me, "I don't know what you can do with dreams. The rats
are eating up my kids."
"Oh," I said.
"That's terrible. No, of course, you are very much involved with the rats
and your kids. How can that be helped?"
"Well, I could use a new screen door because there are holes in my screen
door."
I asked, "Is there anybody around here who knows how to fix a screen door?"
There was a man in the group, and he said, "A long time ago I used to do
things like that, but now I have a terribly bad back, but I'll try."
I told him I had some money if he would go to the store, buy some
screening, and go and fix the lady's screen door.
"Do you think you can do that?"
"Yes, I'll try."
The next week, when the group was seated, I said to the woman, "Well is
your screen door fixed?"
"Oh, yes," she said. "Then we can start dreaming, can't we?" She sort of
smiled at me. I said to the man who did the work,
"How do you feel?"
He said, "Well, you know, it's a very funny thing. I'm beginning to feel a
lot better." That helped the group to begin to dream. These seemingly small
successes allowed the group to see that dreams were not insane. These small steps
began to get people to see and feel that something really could happen.
I began to ask other people about their dreams. One woman shared that she
always wanted to be a secretary. I said, "Well, what stands in your way?" (That's
always my next question).
She said, "I have six kids, and I don't have anyone to take care of them
while I'm away."
"Let's find out," I said.
"Is there anybody in this group who would take care of six kids for a day
or two a week while this woman gets some training here at the community college?"
One woman said, "I got kids, too, but I could do that."
"Let's do it," I said. A plan was created and the woman went to school.
Everyone found something. The man who put in the screen door became a
handyman. The woman who took in the children became a licensed foster care
person. In 12 weeks I had all these people off public welfare. I've not
only done that once, I've done it many times.
- Virginia Satir
Things to Remember
I find what I look for in people. If I look for God, I find God. If I look
for bad qualities, I find them. I, in a sense, select what I expect, and I receive it.
A life without challenges would be like going to school without lessons to
learn. Challenges come not to depress or get me down, but to master and to grow
and to unfold thereby.
In the Father's wise and loving plan for me, no burden can fall upon me, no
emergency can arise, no grief can overtake me, before I am given the grace
and strength to meet them.
A rich, full life is not determined by outer circumstances and relationships. These
can be contributory to it, but cannot be the source. I am happy or unhappy
because of what I think and feel.
I can never lose anything that belongs to me, nor can I posses what is not
really mine.
To never run from a problem: either it will chase me or I will run into
another just like it, although it may have a different face or name.
To have no concern for tomorrow. Today is the yesterday over which I had
concern.
To never bang on a closed door: Wait for it to open and then go through it.
A person who has come into my life has come either to teach me something,
or to learn something from me.
- Unknown
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