Posted on by BWThomas

Do we need to get out of our comfort zone and be comfortable with being uncomfortable?

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

If you’re serious about achieving what you desire and deserve, you have to constantly ask yourself, “Is this an act of self-love or is it an act of self-sabotage?” The key to a successful, fulfilled life is self-love. Debbie Ford

How we spend our days is how we spend our lives. I had an epiphany the other day. I’d set a goal, and then completely forgot about it. I set the goal of self-publishing my third children’s book on my grandson’s third birthday. It doesn’t seem like a goal to forget, and it would have been a nice gift to give him on his birthday, which just passed.

I had a day of goal setting, and thought it would be nice to publish the third book on his third birthday. I didn’t set up the steps to make it happen, or place the goal where I would see it every day, and it didn’t happen.

Getting off track with our goals is easier than we think. We start to veer off course, and if we don’t correct ourselves, a goal we could have reached becomes a wish, a hope, a dream, or a prayer, but not a reality. There’s always an excuse if we want one, and we often don’t recognize self-sabotage when it enters our lives.

It doesn’t take long to derail our good intentions, lose our good practices, or get off track with something we want to do. It seems I always need to be getting myself back on track. A little more sleep in the morning, a little more TV in the evening, and the progress I’ve been making almost comes to a standstill.

My Dad used to say, “Some people can’t work for themselves because they aren’t tough enough bosses.” Many of us don’t slack when we are accountable to someone else, but when we are accountable only to ourselves, when it is something we want to do for ourselves, we don’t think we count enough to make it happen. Is this self-doubt rearing its head again? Do self-doubt and self-sabotage go hand in hand?

A person’s potential is sabotaged by self-doubt more than by all external constraints combined. Brian Tracy

We need to be as gentle with ourselves as we would be with anyone else, and we also need to be as hard on ourselves as we would be with anyone else. No one cares if I complete my next writing project, and it doesn’t seem I care that much either. I like working on my projects, but completing them is another thing. When they are complete, they are out into the world, in a sense, are no longer mine, they can no longer be as great as I’d imagined, and they can be judged.

I wonder if self-doubt is ever fully dealt with; it rears its head at times we don’t expect, and it makes us second-guess things we thought we’d settled in our minds. We say we want to grow and develop, but do we really, or is that what we tell ourselves as we sink into the couch to watch one more movie or episode of something we find more compelling than our creativity?

Would we be comfortable if we hit a new level of success, or would that cause an identity crisis? How do we get comfortable, or is it getting comfortable being uncomfortable that we need to master?

When we say we want something and then work to prevent it from happening that is self-sabotage. Alyce Cornyn-Selby

There is no doubt that our preferred method of self-sabotage is procrastination. Alyce Cornyn-Selby

Give up getting in your own way. Give up offering justifications. Give up explaining why you are unable to. Quit undermining yourself. Akiroq Brost

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Thank you for reading my books, and a special thank you to everyone who leaves a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link and purchase an item, I receive a small percentage of the sale through the Amazon affiliate program.

Posted on by BWThomas

A rich life is not all about money.

Don’t let money run your life. Let money help you run your life better. John Rampton

Do we have enough for our needs and most of our wants? Are we rich enough in material blessings? How do we stack up in non-material blessings?

Do we have harmony in our relationships?

Freedom from fear, failure, and disappointment, because we know we have resilience and can handle what comes even if it brings us to our knees.

Do we have the hope of an achievement, and are we shining a light in someone else’s life?

Do we trust the process of life, believing the bridge will be there if we need it?

Are we willing to be generous, share our blessings of time, money, and knowledge, and lift others?

Do we have something we love to do, not all aspects of it, but enough, and do we add value to other people’s lives?

Do we have an open mind on all subjects so we are in a state of learning?

Do we have self-discipline and can delay gratification? Is our plan unfolding through visions, strategies, and tactics?

Too many people spend money they earned… to buy things they don’t want… to impress people they don’t like. Unknown

Do we have the capacity to understand people? Do we have easy communication with them, understand what makes them tick, and motivates them?

Do we have economic security, financial freedom, and freedom of choice, time, and purpose?

If we can tick off a few of the questions, and others need work we are a work in progress. Shouldn’t we always be a work in progress, because progress is what we are after as we build our lives with purpose, faith, and gratitude?

What does a rich life mean to us? A rich life can’t be all about money because if we have no one to share it with how rich is that? Do we have friends, and people around us we love and care about? Are we loving, generous, and kind to those around us? Do we encourage, uplift, motivate, and notice a step in the right direction?

When we think of someone, do we call them, and do our best to help without enabling them? Is someone’s life better because we are in it? If we are rich in more ways than just money, aren’t we rich indeed?

It is the loving, not the loved, woman who feels lovable. Jessamyn West

If we command our wealth, we shall be rich and free; if our wealth commands us, we are poor indeed. Edmund Burke.

Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune. Jim Rohn

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Posted on by BWThomas

The courage to be disliked, is this something we all need to develop?

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

Flatter me, and I may not believe you. Criticize me, and I may not like you. Ignore me, and I may not forgive you. Encourage me, and I will not forget you. Love me and I may be forced to love you. William Arthur Ward

The courage to be disliked doesn’t sound like something we want. But too many of us suffer from people pleasing and it is impossible to please everyone. It takes courage to please ourselves and be the person we think we should be, do what we can, and make peace with what we can’t, knowing everyone won’t be happy.

I finished listening to the book, “The Courage To Be Disliked” by Ichiro Kishimi and Fumitake Koga, it is a book on Adlerian psychology. I’ll have to listen to it several times to take in everything, and I have the hard copy for reference. One of the big ideas in the book is all our problems are interpersonal, our relationships are where most of our problems lie, but also where we get the most happiness from, and one of the big relationships we need to master is with ourselves.

One surprising thing mentioned was neither, to rebuke or praise our children, but instead to thank them when they do something right. Why wouldn’t we want to praise our little grandson for going to the potty instead of in his pants? What about when he doesn’t make it to the potty? Praise is judgment but gratitude is not, and gratitude and respect are how we want to be dealt with. I’ve never thought of praise as, “the passing of judgment by a person of ability on a person of no ability, or lesser ability.”

Our dependency makes slaves out of us, especially if this dependency is a dependency of our self-esteem. If you need encouragement, praise, pats on the back from everybody, then you make everybody your judge. Frederick Salomon Peris

My grandson helps do something and he gets praise, but my husband does the same thing and he gets thanks, would it be better if we give thanks to everyone helping us regardless of age and ability? When we praise or rebuke, we use a carrot or a stick as manipulation tools. In equal relationships, we use gratitude and respect, but in unequal ones, we use praise and rebuke. Encouragement helps people shoulder their responsibilities and take responsibility for their lives.

This is giving me a lot to think about and when I think about Mom and Dad’s parenting there was not a lot of praise for doing what needed to be done. We were part of the family and had chores from an early age and we heard, “Many hands make light work.”

If we get used to hearing a lot of praise from an early age, we may always crave praise, which is someone else’s judgment, instead of relying on our judgment, is this how we become people pleasers?

If we can build relationships where we are equal but not the same it seems this might go a long way toward fixing some of the inequalities and injustice in society. We told our children from an early age, you can be equal or you can be special, but you can’t be both. Do we live in a society where specialness is desired over equality leading to a lot of problems?

Often people ask how I manage to be happy despite having no arms or legs. The quick answer is that I have a choice. I can be angry and not having limbs, or I can be thankful that I have a purpose. I chose gratitude. Nick Vujicic

Gratitude is riches. Complaint is poverty. Doris Day

According to my principles, every master has his true and certain value. Praise and criticism cannot change any of that. Only the work itself praises and criticizes the master, and therefore I leave to everyone his own value. Carl Philipp Emanuel Back

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Posted on by BWThomas

Being creative is its own reward.

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt. Sylvia Plath

What an interesting weekend! On Saturday I attended Breakthrough To Writer’s Success put on by the Mississauga Arts Council and hosted the last event of the day, the Self-Publishing Panel.

When we are part of things where we feel out of our league but others think we belong is intimidating, but wonderful. The keynote address was by Eric Walters, who has written 120 books, won over 100 awards, and presented to more than 1.5 million students worldwide. He is a writer who does a lot of research for his books. When he talked about climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, desert sand storms, and co-founding a children’s program in Kenya we were inspired to reach higher.

A woman asked if she could have the seat next to me. She has had the most incredible life as a singer, and event planner, and now wants to write a book. I was amazed sitting beside someone so accomplished I had a little advice to offer as a self-published author.

If we call ourselves writers but haven’t written anything in four years, can we still call ourselves writers? It’s a good question and the woman who was asked this returned to the questioner and told him she started writing again. We have to watch we don’t talk about our writing more than we write.

We can spend our time going to events, book clubs, and writer’s groups without getting any writing done. I’ve done this with art and writing, often I would find myself going to bookstores, buying books on art or writing instead of doing art or writing. It is great to have a library of art and writing books but unless we practice the craft, we don’t progress, and that idea was pushed throughout the day. Writers write and thinking about writing is not writing, it is a faster or slower process for some of us, but persistence is important.

To practice any art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow. So do it. Kurt Vonnegut

Life is a journey, and where it will take us we cannot know. Inspiring his students by writing about them and where they lived started Eric Walter’s writing journey, and what a journey it has been. The singer I sat beside started as a cast member of, “Jesus Christ Superstar.” It isn’t so much where we start, but where we end up that inspires others. What people overcome, what they learn, and what keeps them going is inspiring.

We are where we are, we’ve done what we’ve done, but the future spreads before each of us, and what we do with it is up to us. Serendipity, luck, and faith play a role, but if it is to be, it is up to me, is also important. Twenty or thirty years will go by whether we do anything or not. We are told, “We can do anything,” but do we believe it? Are we willing to get out of our comfort zone?

If there is something we want to do we haven’t done yet, what is holding us back? If we don’t have what we want and someone tells us no; how is that worse? What if it takes ten no’s to get to yes? What if it takes twenty? What is the worst thing that can happen if we work hard to make our dreams come true? If all our dreams are on the other side of our comfort zone, don’t we have to get out of our comfort zone if we want them to come true and lead a more interesting life?

I’m not advocating giving up day jobs or security, family is still the most important thing, but we still need to grow and develop. Creativity feeds our soul, and finding ways to bring it into our lives is worth it.

Make visible what, without you, might perhaps never have been seen. Oprah Winfrey

A creative life is an amplified life. It’s a bigger life, a happier life, an expanded life, and a hell of a lot more interesting life. Elizabeth Gilbert

There is no doubt that creativity is the most important human resource of all. Without creativity, there would be no progress, and we would be forever repeating the same patterns. Edward De Bono

Thank you for reading this post. Please come back and read some more, and have a blessed day filled with gratitude, joy, and love.

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Thank you for reading my books, and a special thank you to those who leave reviews on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link and purchase an item I receive a small percentage of the sale through the Amazon affiliate program.

Posted on by BWThomas

Is controlling our anger one of the most powerful practices we can aspire to?

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

We are not punished for our anger; we are punished by our anger. In other words, anger is its own karma. Eknath Easwaran

Is unexpressed anger toxic? Is this what leads to a lot of problems in our lives? Is anger management part of our lives, we will get angry and can’t always change what makes us angry, sometimes we have to continue to live with who or what makes us angry.

What made me think about this in part was watching someone erupt at a soccer game in a way that the situation didn’t seem to warrant. A few days later I learned they were going through something they couldn’t control and in that moment their anger at the game made sense to me.

Can we deal with our anger in ways that don’t destroy our lives? Misplaced anger has been part of our history since Cain and Abel. When Cain’s gifts were not acceptable to God but his brothers were, he slew his brother. Life is not fair and it makes us angry but often we don’t take our anger out on who causes us to be angry, we take it out on someone who can’t defend themselves, or we repress it and take it out on ourselves.

Resentment is one of the most destructive forces in our lives. It is cold anger that has settled into the center of our being and hardened our hearts. Resentment can become a way of life that so pervades our words and actions that we no longer recognize it as such. Henri J. M. Nouwen

You don’t have to chase anger out of you. You allow it to be in you, you embrace it tenderly, and then anger will subside, and the danger is overcome. During the practice you have helped anger, and it will be transformed slowly. This practice enables you to acknowledge your anger with a smile. Thich Nhat Hanh

One of the reasons I think we have freedom of speech is because angry speech is one way to dissipate anger, and if it isn’t dissipated it will present itself in another way. We might hate it when a protest of one kind or another, that we aren’t a part of, or sympathizer to, interrupts our day, but letting protesters protest may lead to more peaceful relationships than pent-up anger.

The question then becomes how can we handle our anger so it doesn’t become toxic? Is the vitriol that comes out during elections good for society and repressing it would be bad? Is this why some leaders become so powerful, they tap into our anger, and good ones use this power for positive change, but what of malevolent ones? Who gets to decide what is a positive change and what is malevolent?

If we can’t find ways to control and dissipate our anger is it a weapon others will find a way to use against us? How can we harness the power of anger and have it be a force for good in our lives? If we can see undesirable situations as a reflection of our faults and shortcomings will this help us become better and not bitter? We all have to face disappointment and anger in our lives and is how we deal with it one of the most important decisions in our lives?

It is easy to fly into a passion – anybody can do that – but to be angry with the right person to the right degree, and at the right time, and for the right purpose, and in the right way – that is not within everybody’s power and is not easy. Aristotle

An angry man is allowing power to rise against him and enslave him, but when he learns to control these tremendous sources of power, he can use them to meet the most formidable challenges of the day and to make his greatest contribution to those around him. Eknath Easwaran

I have learnt through bitter experience the one supreme lesson to conserve my anger, and as heat conserved is transmuted into energy, even so our anger controlled can be transmuted into a power which can move the world. Mahatma Gandhi

Thank you for reading this post, and I hope you will return and read more. Have a blessed day filled with gratitude, joy, and love.

To subscribe, comment, and see archives or categories of posts click on the picture and scroll to the end.

Thank you for reading my books, and a special thank you to those who leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link and purchase an item I receive a small percentage of the sale through the Amazon affiliate program.

Posted on by BWThomas

Oh Canada! Our home and native land. Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much.

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

I have one love – Canada one purpose – Canada’s greatness, one aim – Canada’s unity from the Atlantic to the Pacific. John Diefenbaker

Oh, Canada! Our home and native land.  What can we each do to build Canada? Alone we can do so little but together we can do so much, what can we do, and if we work together what can we accomplish?

We live in a time when it seems grumbling is becoming a national pastime. We can all see the problems, but who is looking for, and at solutions?

John A. McDonald got a railroad built but he wasn’t perfect so we almost don’t dare mention his name. Could we build a national railroad now, with all the impact studies required?

We live in a time when taxing cow farts is how we deal with climate change. Is this what passes for a big idea these days?

Solutions are created at one level and problems at another level, and we will continue to progress and deal with the problems produced if we want progress to continue. We might not all agree on what progress looks like isn’t this one of the problems we face?

Laying a railroad from sea to shining sea was a big idea, going to the moon was a big idea, and creating a health care system so people didn’t need to die from lack of medical care was a big idea. Solving climate change is a big idea but also it’s just a bunch of small things we all must do, and no one will get credit for solving the problem.

Solving homelessness is a big idea, and if we let home builders build they can solve the problem, but they have to build on some of the best farmland in Canada, so everyone is not on board, and who pays to house the homeless?

Our hopes are high. Our faith in the people is great. Our courage is strong. And our dreams for this beautiful country will never die. Pierre Trudeau

What are the big and small ideas Canada needs over the decades and centuries to come? Part of what we all need to do is keep our families strong so they are not part of the burden. If every family looks after their responsibilities to the children they bring into the world can this go a long way toward solving the brokenness we see on our streets? Individual responsibility is the cornerstone of our society and every society. We can change ourselves, but what we want to do is get those people over there to change, that’s hard, and only if we can appeal to other people’s self-interest is it likely to work.

What makes a good society, and what makes a bad one? Can we keep the good and mitigate the forces that create a society we don’t want? But, we don’t all agree on what a good society looks like, and we don’t agree on how to go about building it.

We are sorting out a lot of things in Canada. We have differing ideas, and I believe, we will figure it out to the extent possible. I think fondly of the cows on the farm, farts and all. We have challenges ahead of us, but we have challenges behind us we figured out. Why should we think we can’t face what is ahead and continue to build Canada, a home for all who live here and a beacon of hope to the world, a country that deals with challenges, missteps, promises, and potential?

Happy Canada Day!

If you are depressed you are living in the past. If you are anxious you are living in the future. If you are at peace you are living in the present. Lao Tzu

A river cuts through rock, not because of its power, but because of its persistence. Jim Watkins

Knowing is not enough, we must apply. Willing is not enough, we must do. Bruce Lee

Thank you for reading this post, please come back and read some more, and have a blessed day filled with gratitude, joy, and love.

To subscribe, comment, and see archives or categories of posts click on the picture and scroll to the end.

Thank you for reading my books, and a special thank you to those who leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link and purchase an item I receive a small percentage of the sale through the Amazon affiliate program.

Posted on by BWThomas

Don’t worry, be happy, but do your due diligence and pick a leader.

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be. Unknown

“It’s okay, don’t worry.” Our two-year-old grandson says to us.” Does he know what he is saying? It is some of the best advice because what does worry do? If we have a problem we need to fix worrying about it doesn’t help.

If we don’t look after the things we need to look after worrying about what we didn’t do won’t help. If we take care of everything worrying won’t help. Often, I worry about things that aren’t in my control which is not an effective use of mental energy.

We worry about the weather, the economy, and how our cities and countries will be run, but when we have the hard task of deciding who will lead them do we get out and make the difference we can make?

If we manage our lives effectively does that mean we will worry less? Isn’t that what all the books are telling us to do? Take care of what you can today and don’t worry about tomorrow because if we look after today, tomorrow will look after itself.

Too often I spend my time thinking about what someone else should be doing or not doing instead of cleaning my doorstep. It’s time to vote for a new mayor in Mississauga, and I have no idea who to vote for. One candidate came to our door and spoke to me. He asked if he could put a sign on the lawn and I said yes.

Putting his sign on the lawn doesn’t mean he has my vote, it means he’s contacted me. But as the days get closer to the election I seem no closer to knowing who to vote for. Everyone seems to be in the same boat at an event on Saturday. We probably have a competent group running to be Mayor but which one will make the best Mayor?  It’s my job to cast my vote, and everyone else’s to cast theirs and whoever gets the job will guide us forward.

Choosing one’s leaders is an affirmation that the person making the choice has inherent worth. Linda Chavez

We are lucky, people want to take on the often thankless job of leadership. No leader will make all the people happy. We know in our own lives we don’t always make the best decisions, we don’t always act in the best way, but what we do is not scrutinized by everyone.

What if someone scrutinized every word we said, every action we take or have ever taken, and spun our words into saying things we didn’t mean? It takes courage to be a leader and leaders often pay a heavy price.

One of the mistakes we make is expecting more of others than we do of ourselves. We are all flawed humans, so our leaders are flawed as well, but they do the best they can, with the information they know to help the most amount of people. Will everyone be happy, of course not. What do we do with competing interests that are not compatible?

If we are lucky enough to have the chance to vote for our leaders we need to appreciate the privilege and responsibility we have, and we need to appreciate the sacrifices they’ve made to take on the mantle of responsibility.

Don’t worry, be happy, but do your duty and pick a leader, knowing they won’t be perfect, but chances are they will do their best, at great cost to themselves to lead a city, province, or country.

Leadership has a harder job to do than just choose sides. It must bring sides together. Jesse Jackson

The moment we believe that success is determined by an ingrained level of ability as opposed to resilience and hard work, we will be brittle in the face of adversity. Joshua Waitzkin

If there is dissatisfaction with the status quo, good. If there is ferment, so much the better. If there is restlessness, I am pleased. Then let there be ideas, and hard thought, and hard work. If man feels small, let man make himself bigger. Hubert H, Humphrey

Thank you for reading this post. Please come back and read some more. Have a blessed day filled with gratitude, joy, and love.

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Thank you for reading my books, and a special thank you to those who leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link and purchase an item I receive a small percentage of the sale through the Amazon affiliate program.

Posted on by BWThomas

Access your creativity and live a life that inspires you

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have. Maya Angelou

On Saturday, I attended the Cranberry Christmas Market hosted by the Mississauga Arts Council. To be part of the creative community is wonderful, and humbling. At the table beside us, a craftsman was selling wooden spoons and forks made using an axe and knives.

At another table, a gentleman was selling hand-made wooden pens and he included the story behind the wood in each pen. I bought one, and it is from a 250-300-year-old black oak that stood beside the rose garden in the Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington, Ontario. I like the story as much as the pen, but the pen is wonderful to hold and write with. There were hand-crafted items of all sorts, jewelry, soap, hand-dyed yarn, decorative items, knitting, art, and books, and I’m sure I’ve left out some. Choirs entertained us and incredible musicians played chamber music. At our table, we were three authors representing the Mississauga Writers Group.

The craftsmanship in the items on display was amazing; one of the reasons to visit these markets is to get an idea of the array of crafts other people are creating. We might see something we want to purchase, but also items we would like to create. When there is a story behind an item it is more impactful to me, than if it is just the item.

The blankets I knit at Mom’s will be treasured because of the story behind them more than the craftsmanship, but when we make things there is a story behind each one. It might not be a story that would grab someone else, but when we look at the item we will be brought back to what we were doing and our mindset when we made it.

It’s no good being too easily swayed by people’s opinions. You have to believe in yourself. Donatella Versace

Creativity is a gift we give ourselves. I watch my daughter and grandson paint and the object is not what he creates, he loves the doing. Sometimes we think the treasure is the object we create, but the real treasure is what being creative does for us.

On Friday, we had a girls-night at a friend’s house and she showed us slippers she’s knitting for her family. What a lovely thought everyone will be wearing hand-knit slippers, knit by their mom, grandma, sister, or mother-in-law. What a special Christmas this will be, and how precious will those little slippers be as a keep-sake for her twp-and-a-half-year-old grandson? She also showed us a scarf she’s been knitting for her daughter, fine knitting, with beautiful yarn. It is truly a labor of love.

A fellow author at our table crocheted star bookmarks. What a lovely idea and one I might copy. The other author at our table has kept the blankets she made for her children and wishes she’d kept the sweaters knit for them by her mother. Often we are cleaning up, getting rid of what is no longer being worn, and we don’t think of the treasure we put in the bag to be given away or thrown out. We all probably have items we’ve given away or thrown out we’d love to have back, because of the story behind them.

If I’m lucky, I will get to knit more items at Mom’s, and help her finish her last quilt. If Mom hadn’t taught me to crochet on my last visit, I would look at the crocheted bookmarks as a great idea, but not one I would create myself.

Being crafty has pitfalls, we need to find a repository for what we create, or we might become overwhelmed by our creations. The more we create the more we want to create, and I’ve wondered how some authors are so prolific but now I know, they love writing, and when they finish one project they start another one, and over time it adds up.

I’m not sure it matters what we create, what is most important is we find some form of creativity that feeds our soul, and if we end up making a little money at it, so much the better.

If we can’t use creativity up, the more we do, the more we can do, and the more we want to do, are we as creative as we want to be? Is there a creative project we’d love to start, what’s holding us back?

Don’t wait for inspiration. It comes while working. Henri Matisse

The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt. Sylvia Plath

Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun. Mary Lou Cook

Thank you for reading this post. Please come back and read some more. Have a blessed day filled with gratitude, joy, and love.

To subscribe, comment, and see archives or categories of posts, click on the picture and scroll to the end.

Thank you to everyone who reads my books, and a special thank you to those who leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link and purchase an item, I receive a small percentage of the sale through the Amazon affiliate program.

Books written by members of the Mississauga Writers Group at the event:

Posted on by BWThomas

Learning and growing, teaching and being taught, is there a better way to live a life?

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

A wise person knows that there is something to be learned from everyone. Anonymous

Can we learn something from everyone we meet?

How do we square having more than enough against knowing some don’t yet have enough?

If we are lucky enough to live in abundance, surrounded by peace and plenty, do we have something to teach others? Can everyone live in abundance, surrounded by peace and plenty? Are we moving toward this or away from it?

If we look around and see other people living better lives than we are, can we emulate them so their ways become our ways? Is mentorship how we pass things on to others and learn what we don’t know?

If we learn the best practices from everyone we meet, how good can our lives become? What if, instead of envying others for their accomplishments, we learn from them and become eternal students learning and growing throughout our lives? One of the ways we can do this is to be part of organizations that are comprised of diverse groups who have different things to teach us.

By joining organizations, we can meet people we wouldn’t meet any other way. Our only point of commonality may be that we are part of the same organization, and Toastmasters is that kind of organization. Everyone who joins Toastmasters wants to improve something about their lives, and this is a great meeting point because when we see others improving their lives and telling their stories, we begin to think we can have bigger lives as well.

If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more you are a leader. John Quincy Adams

We might listen to a speech on helping the poorest of the poor, how bringing smiles to faces and making a difference in lives brought more meaning to the giver’s life than they thought possible.

People know what works in their lives, and advice taken to heart and implemented will work in ours. If we learn from other’s mistakes instead of making those mistakes ourselves, can we spare ourselves a lot of grief?

If we learn the best things from everyone we meet and implement the best practices into our lives, will we make a difference in our lives and those we love?

We can get this knowledge from books and podcasts because many books and podcasts are about building our best lives. But, when we meet people doing it, we might believe we can do it too instead of thinking there is something special about who we are reading about or listening to.

Being part of a group, whether a religious or secular group, might bring us closer to turning philosophy into action. An idea is just an idea rolling around in our head if we don’t put action into making it a reality. We might have the best ideas rolling around in our minds, but if they only remain ideas, will they impact our lives?

Do we have mentors in our life and are we a mentor to others? What if we don’t limit ourselves to mentors who look like us, or believe what we believe, what if we really can learn something from everyone?

We all have dreams. But in order to make dreams come into reality, it takes an awful lot of determination, dedication, self-discipline, and effort. Jesse Owens

When you’re intentional, you can add value to everything you do and to every person you meet. John C. Maxwell

Success is not to be pursued. It is to be attracted by the person you become. Jim Rohn

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Thank you to everyone who reads my books, and a special thank you to those who leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link I receive a small percentage of the sale through the Amazon affiliate program.

Posted on by BWThomas

Perfection is unattainable, but good, that is something to work toward.

Painting by Belynda Wilson Thomas

Good enough is good enough. Perfect will make you a big fat mess every time. Rebecca Wells

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. This popped into my mind this morning as I walked down the stairs. Unions are pushing workers to strike, or are workers pushing the unions to strike? Isn’t pushing for higher and higher wages going to make robotics more attractive?

Yesterday, I listened to a show discussing Tesla and other automakers and how non-unionized Tesla workers are becoming millionaires because of stock options.

I remember when I first moved to Mississauga I worked for a small bank, and union organizers were approaching the workers. We had a meeting and the bank management was detailing what we as workers might lose if we unionized. A few years later I met someone whose business was to unionize companies. I never got the idea his goal was to make it better for workers, he was lining his own pockets with union dues.

I think we have to be careful about who we think has our best interests at heart. As a small business owner, I know keeping a business going is the business owner’s main objective. This might sound terrible but without the business, there isn’t anything for anyone. The owners lose, the workers lose, the shareholders lose, the communities lose, and we all lose. We have to protect the goose that lays the golden egg. Business is that goose.

Some in our society don’t want parents to know what pronouns their children are using in school and is this because parents are the children’s worst enemy? Is this where we are today? Families aren’t perfect because people aren’t perfect but what do we want to do, have children grow up without a family because they won’t have a perfect one?

Don’t try to be different. Just be good. To be good is different enough. Arthur Freed

There are some ideologies out there that feel anything less than perfection isn’t good enough. But, we’ve never had perfection and for the most part, things work pretty well. We need to be able to live with good enough. Good enough businesses, with good enough leadership, and good enough families that build good enough communities. Because good enough is way better than where looking for perfection might lead us.

Some people will tell us that we are not aiming high enough if we settle for good enough. We won’t all agree on what good enough is, but I think a good definition is the point past which putting more resources into something won’t improve it in a meaningful way. Plastic surgery is where we see going for perfection ends in disaster.

What does a good enough society, business, or family look like? In my opinion, good enough is a pretty high bar, it isn’t a low bar which I think some people see it as. To be a good enough person is something to strive for, it isn’t something that comes easy because where there are obvious improvements to make, we aren’t good enough.

Who gets to decide what’s good enough for someone else? Do we need to be patient, and above all to be patient with ourselves?

And now that you don’t have to be perfect, you can be good. John Steinbeck

You’ve been criticizing yourself for years and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens. Louise Hay

Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy. Norman Vincent Peale

Thank you for reading this post. Please come back and read some more. Have a blessed day filled with gratitude, joy, and love.

To subscribe, comment, and see archives or categories of posts click on the picture and scroll to the end.

Thank you for reading my books, and a special thank you to those who leave a review on Goodreads and Amazon. If you click on the Amazon link and purchase an item, I receive a small percentage of the purchase price through the Amazon affiliate program.