SleepersWake

Napoleon Hill was a famous author who lived between 1883 and 1970. His most famous work was Think and Grow Rich.

Later, Hill teamed up with W. Clement Stone and wrote a book entitled Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude.  I came across this work and philosophy during my association with the Combined Life Insurance Company.  It tried to give you something which you surely needed at selling insurance door to door!

http://www.wimp.com/napoleonhill/

Transcript:

My search led me to the study of the spiritual forces with which all of us are blessed.  And it was in this field that I came upon a clue which has enabled me to help millions of people find their earthly destinies.

I want to describe my discovery in the simplest terms possible, because it will reveal to you why it is true that whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve, regardless of how many times you may have failed in the past or how lofty your aims and hopes may be.

I caught my first fleeting glimpse of the profound law which provided the means by which we may choose our own purpose of life and attain it, while I was being coached by Andrew Carnegie during the organization of the science of success philosophy.  I had just finished telling Mr. Carnegie that I feared he had, uh, chosen the wrong person to give the world the first practical philosophy of personal success, because of my youth, my lack of education and my lack of finances.

Well, at this point Mr. Carnegie delivered a lecture that I shall never forget, because it changed my entire life and paved the way for my helping to change the lives of millions of people, some of them not yet born.

“Let me call your attention to a great power which is under your control,” said Mr. Carnegie, “a power which is greater than poverty, greater than the lack of education, greater than all of your fears and superstitions combined.  It is the power to take possession of your own mind and direct it to what ever ends you may desire.”

“This profound power,” Mr. Carnegie continued, “is the gift of the Creator, and it must have been considered the greatest of all of his gifts to Man, because it is the only thing over which Man has the complete and unchallengeable right of control and direction.

“When you speak of your poverty and lack of education,” Mr. Carnegie explained, “you are simply directing your mind power to attract these undesirable circumstances, because it is true that whatever your mind feeds upon, your mind attracts to you.”

“Now you see why it is important that you recognize that all success begins with definiteness of purpose, with a clear picture in your mind of precisely what you want from life.

Then, Mr. Carnegie continued his speech with a description of a great universal truth which made such an impact upon my mind that I began then and there to give myself a new outlook on life, and set up for myself a goal so far above my previous achievements that it shocked my friends and relatives when they heard about it.

“Everyone,” said Mr. Carnegie, ” comes to the earth plane blessed with the privilege of controlling his mind power and directing it to whatever ends he may choose, but,” he continued, “everyone brings over with him at birth the equivalent of two sealed envelopes: one of which is clearly labeled ‘The Riches You May Enjoy If You Take Possession of Your Own Mind and Direct It to Ends of Your Own Choice,’ and the other is labeled ‘The Penalties You Must Pay If You Neglect to Take Possession of Your Mind and Direct It.’”

“And now let me reveal to you,” said Mr. Carnegie, “the contents of those two sealed envelopes.  In the one labeled riches is this list of blessings:

1.  Sound health
2.  Peace of mind
3.  A labor of love of your own choice
4.  Freedom from fear and worry
5.  A positive mental attitude
6.  Material riches of your own choice and quantity”

“In the sealed envelope labeled ‘Penalties’,” Mr. Carnegie continued, “is this list of the prices one must pay for neglecting to take possession of his own mind:

1.  Ill health
2.  Fear and worry
3.  Indecision and doubt
4.  Frustration and discouragement throughout life
5.  Poverty and want, and
6.  The whole flock of the evils consisting of envy, greed, jealousy, anger, hatred and superstition.

Now, my mission in life is to help you and everyone who needs my help to open up and use the contents of the sealed envelope labeled “Riches.”  And the starting point from which you must take off if you wish to write your own ticket from here on out for the remainder of your life, I will describe for you in these simple instructions:

One.  Procure a neat pocket-sized notebook — oh, something on the order of this one here — looseleaf affair, and on page 1, write down a clear description of your major desire in life; the one circumstance or position or thing which you will be willing to accept as your idea of success.  And remember before you begin writing, that you’re only limitations are those which you set up in your own mind or permit others to set up for you
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And two, on page 2 of your notebook, write down a clear statement of precisely what you intend to give in return for that which you desire from life.  And then start in right where you stand now to begin giving.
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And three, memorize both of your statements — what you desire and what you intend to give in return for it, and repeat them at least a dozen times daily, and always end your statements with this expression of gratitude for the blessings with which you were gifted at birth:

“I ask not, O Divine Providence, for more riches, but more wisdom with which to accept and use wisely the riches I received at birth in the form of the power to control and direct my mind to whatever ends I desire.”

If you are not too successful or self-satisfied to accept and express this profound prayer; if you accept it and express it in the same spirit of humble sincerity in which I pass it on to you, a new and a better world will reveal itself to you — a world in which you will see reflected the circumstances and the things in which you yourself have created.

And now, let me close this, our first visit, with my favorite expression of gratitude:

Oh Divine Providence, I ask not for more riches, but more wisdom with which to make wiser use of the riches you gave me at birth, consisting in the power to control and direct my own mind to whatever ends I desire.

From Wimp.com

1. Believe that even the smallest compliment can save someone’s life

2. Remember that one person can change an entire nation

3. Understand that kids are smarter than we make them out to be

4. Just because old people are old, doesn’t mean they’ve lost their youth

5. Talent can be found under the dirtiest rock or in the most hopeless slum

6. Just because someone is poor in wealth doesn’t mean they are poor in spirit

7. Poverty is the greatest gift you can give a person. It is only then that they will have a choice to either become valuable or die as a quitter

8. Let the naysayers say nay and allow the criticizers to criticize: in the end you will have found greater happiness having pursued your dream

9. If a baby can smile living off of only breast milk and a mother’s love, you can smile too

10. The prettiest people can do the ugliest things

11. You are no different than the squirrel on that branch. You both eat a lot, hibernate for the winter, and have a tendency to be curious of humankind

12. From the CEO of a major corporation to the lowly janitor who sweeps where his boss stands; they are all insecure

13. To be creative is the most valuable thing in the world; don’t let anyone tell you otherwise

14. People conform because there is strength in numbers, but true strength comes from the person brave enough to stand alone

15. Unrealistic goals are hardly ever achieved not because they are impossible, but because everyone is too scared to make them real

16. Don’t be afraid to let those go who are hindrance to your high self-esteem, the life blood of your success

17. Embarrassment is a pointless emotion that only serves to confuse and over exaggerate reality

18. The only ways to stop negativity is to avoid it completely or face it head on

19. Irrational self confidence is worth more than rational defeatism

20. To live in no one’s reality but the one you’ve created for yourself is to achieve true happiness

21. Giving is one of the most underrated tactics to getting what you want

22. Fear the person who dreams unrealistically; one day he may acquire what he desireshel

23. Everyone has a weakness

24. Live and die as your passion; to be known as anything else is an insult to your existence

25. Do not deprive yourself or others of the gift of cartoons. Their creativity, hilarity, and curiosity have made me who I am today

26. Quiet patience and adaptive persistence are the two keys to perpetual happiness

27. Never feel ashamed of your natural instincts. They are there for a reason

28. Look at the people you are following in their footsteps. Is that the person you wish to be?

29. Don’t indulge in distractions that are short-lived and derail your long term efforts

30. To create a piece of art is to exist as a God within your mental domain

31. The movers in this world are the ones who create and consume only what coincides with their ultimate vision of themselves

32. Things are never as they seem. Always dig deeper to find the gold beneath the rock

33. Stereotypes don’t come out of thin air; all that is left for you now is to disprove them

34. Any crack in your resilience will be exploited if you don’t patch it up from time to time

35. Being assertive is a sign of a steadfast will

36. Negative people don’t deserve your time; positive people crave it

37. When your beliefs are tested, bring evidence to prove them wrong (granted you actually feel the need to)

38. When you have the strength to ask for more even after being knocked down countless times, there is nothing you can’t achieve

39. To look down to the ground is a sign of weakness. Look forward to showcase your unshakable confidence

40. Even one who is deaf can produce the most beautiful music

41. How much do you want success? How far are you willing to go?

42. A true genius is one who can sit for hours intensely focused on what he loves

43. Do not screw around with your time. It is the only thing within your absolute control

44. The only sense of entitlement you should feel is toward living your passion

45. The answers are always right in front of us. Just open your eyes

46. If you do not want to put in the work to make your dreams real then you do not deserve the right to put down anyone who fails in trying

47. The human brain contains 15-33 billion neurons; do not tell yourself that you are not creative

48. Do not let yourself fall into despair; it is a massive waste of time and emotion

49. People don’t tell you to try new things because it sounds “adventurous”. They say it because it actually works

50. If today was your last day, how many of these words would you actually follow?

51. To be an authority of any kind, you must earn and emanate respect

52. When in doubt, just laugh. Find amusement in how absurd your situation is then come out of the gate with full force

53. Don’t admire those who are simply hard workers with lots of awards under their belts. Idolize the people who are successful by working hard doing what they love

54.  Life won’t let you you get by with being stupid. You have to have knowledge of some kind to live in this wor

55. Don’t confuse being stupid with being stubborn. Sometimes trying harder is all it takes

56. Do NOT allow anyone to disrespect you or make you feel less than you know you are

57. Don’t blame someone else for being better than you. Blame yourself for not working harder

58. Hard work is not something we should run away from. It’s pointless work we should fear

59. Don’t carry everything on your shoulders; that’s what friends are for

60. When you’ve lost your spirit, spend some time with youth. Their thirst for life and exploration will no doubt re-invigorate you

61. The fact that nothing in life is guaranteed is both a blessing and a curse

62. There is never only one choice: you don’t have to go up after you hit rock bottom. You can also choose to stay there

63. Sometimes you have to realize when you just aren’t good at something; this is the best time to regroup

64. Using old-age methods to solve new-age problems is setting yourself up for failure

65. When you’ve been sitting in the same spot for hours, trying to get something absolutely perfect, give yourself more than just a pat on the back

66. Not many people will risk everything in order to achieve what they want; in other words, be a risk taker and you will reap the rewards

67. Even when you know you’re close to the finish line, never let up

68. The only thing you can change about people are your relationships with them

69. What’s happened in the past is done. The future does not exist yet. The only thing in your mind should be what you’re doing now

70. You may be a great writer, a doctor, a lawyer, or a banker, but at your very core, the only thing we are best at is being ourselves

Reposted in its entirety from LearnThis

Map

I found a guy who was out of gas and seemed to have no idea how to get the gas from a new, little, red-plastic gas can that couldn’t have held more than a gallon.  He had already spilled a bunch of gas on the ground under the fill cap.

I went over and found that the guy was somewhat out of it, but it’s like this:  If it feels like the right thing to do, I do it, and if it feels wrong, I don’t.  I did.

The translucent white spout wasn’t attached, but even after I got it on, the thing had weird safety measures.  I got the guy to put on his hazards because it was busy with the cars whipping by having just got off of 93 and highway speeds. He couldn’t get the hazard lights on.

Even with the spout on, he couldn’t get the gas to flow, and I saw why: the thing had a switch you had to move to be able to press a trigger, and you had to hold the trigger to let air in or no gas would flow.  He could only get about half in, so I took over.

Before I took over, I said “It’s better I helped him than a cop.”  He asked why, so I just looked at him until he volunteered “Because I’ve been drinking?”  I said “Yup,” and he asked “You can smell it?”  I said “That’s right”, but he was busy trying to get in and go.  I had spooked him.  He was going to go without the gas can or turning the hazards off. Apparently, “It’s the triangle switch over the heater” was too difficult for him.

I told him to get off the road as soon as he could, and he agreed.  He had already walked it off some getting the gas, but I hope some sense came to him.  He was gone when I came back through there.

Afterward, I wondered if I was aiding and abetting a potential murderer.  I really trust my gut, though.

April Fool.

Found a hobo camp today.

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Under the bridge, of course.

2.44 miles in 61 minutes.  451 Calories burned and Ascent/descent = 490 feet.  Avg. speed = 2.4 mph.  I took it easy.

It looks like I made a Christmas tree!

Map

2-19 miles, avg speed 2.7 in 49 minutes with 388 calories burned with a 433 ft. descent and ascent to boot.  Living on a hill. . .