Motivation
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Strength and temptation
“Strength is the capacity to break a Hershey bar into four pieces with your bare hands — and then eat just one of the pieces.” ~Judith Viorst, author In any endeavor, success depends on discipline — otherwise defined as inner strength, as today’s quote suggests. If you want to build muscle, you must stick with your daily exercise plan. If you want to get published, you have to keep writing and submitting your work. If you want to kick a bad habit, you must be diligent about changing your routine. Personal discipline is hard. Temptation is everywhere. Oh, how easy it is to give up or get lazy — to…
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Who are your heroes?
“One way to remember who you are is to remember who your heroes are.” ~Steve Jobs, Cofounder of Apple, Inc. In the sixth grade, I was deeply moved and inspired by the courage of diarist Anne Frank, who earned literary fame after her death with the 1947 publication of The Diary of a Young Girl. Anne started her diary after she turned 13, recording the details of her life in hiding (from 1942 to 1944) during the German occupation of the Netherlands. After reading it for the first time, I sobbed for days at the thought of how a young girl — not much older than I was then —…
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Back in the flow
“It can be tempting to prolong certain agonies. There’s the sympathy vote to start with, and if you haven’t felt well or you’ve been through a difficult period, you certainly can’t be expected to work full days or do your own laundry. But bouncing back as soon as you’re able means getting back into the stream of life. This is where the opportunity is.” ~Victoria Moran We all have different ways of coping. During periods of grief or illness, I tend to nurse my deepest wounds by myself. When I’m really down, I decline activities or events that usually spark joy for me — because I hate to dump my…
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Room for potential
“We spend January 1st walking through our lives, room by room, drawing up a list of work to be done, cracks to be patched. Maybe this year, to balance the list, we ought to walk through the rooms of our lives…not looking for flaws, but for potential.” – Ellen Goodman, American journalist Last week I read an article suggesting that we consider renaming our New Year’s resolutions “intentions” — and to forgive ourselves if we fall short of our goals later on. But I think Ellen Goodman has a better spin on the whole resolution thing. Instead of simply correcting our bad habits or repairing our shortcomings, why not explore…
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Time and change
“Think before you act. You may desire change, but prematurely forcing issues will leave you vulnerable. Bide your time, listen, observe, and calculate the best way to expand your interests.” ~Daily Horoscope for Leo, Dec. 27, in The Oakland Press Once in a while, I find the best maxims in — of all places — the daily horoscope in the newspaper. Last Tuesday’s guidance for those born under the sign of Leo is also great advice for anyone who’s planning to make significant changes in the new year. Change can be scary — even when it’s for the best, and even when we think we’re ready for it. Whether we’re…
