Mikes Blog

Positive vision
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It’s not enough to be opposed. You have to be supportive of an alternative.

It’s not enough to point out what someone is doing wrong. To improve the situation, you must be able to offer a more workable approach.

A common enemy can bring people together and compel them to action. Yet for that action to be sustained, for the group cohesion to endure, there must be a common positive vision as well.

Knowing what you don’t like can provide valuable insight. In order to move forward, though, you must identify what you desire, what direction you seek to go.

The bad things are easy to spot. Once you do that, challenge yourself to develop the good things that will be more compelling and beneficial.

Go beyond obsessing over what is wrong. Focus on a positive vision that will inspire positive action and bring positive results.

— Ralph Marston

Triumph over fear
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At the root of fear is the knowing that life has value. If you had nothing to lose, such as your existence, the people you love, your resources and abilities, there would be nothing to fear.

Love makes fear possible. Thus with love you can triumph over fear.

When you have much to fear it is because you have much to live for. And it is precisely in purposeful living that you exert the power of love to successfully navigate through fear.

Fear can be acutely informative. Love enables you to make purposeful, beneficial, strategic use of that information.

When you feel fear you are also feeling the power and the potential of love. Make it your choice to put that power to good use.

Acknowledge the fear, gain insight and take energy from it. Then focus that energy, along with your attention and your actions, on all the meaningful and generous living you can do.

— Ralph Marston

Set your mind to it
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Set your mind to it. Keep it set there until you have it done.

Focus your awareness on the job at hand. Re-direct the energy of all distractions, interruptions, and random thoughts toward what you have chosen to accomplish.

There are plenty of excuses for stopping, or pausing, or giving up. Decide in advance to have nothing to do with those excuses.

You have made your choice and now you can follow through with that choice. You are doing important work and you have every ability and intention of continuing until the work is done well.

There’s no need to be concerned with whether it’s easy or difficult or pleasant or uncomfortable. You’re doing just fine, and you can continue for as long as necessary.

Set your mind to it, and get it done. Experience for yourself what an amazing and useful difference you can make, just by deciding to do so.

— Ralph Marston

Feel the power
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Feel the power of your own discipline. Experience the benefits of your own intentions.

Set a specific, measurable, achievable goal. Then do the necessary work to make it happen.

It is within your reach. It is something over which you have control.

It seems like a simple, obvious thing, and it absolutely is. But that’s no reason to ignore its value, or to avoid doing it.

Set a goal, achieve it, and decide for yourself whether the whole undertaking makes your life better or worse. Then, based on the experience, consider your priorities going forward.

You have significant influence over many facets of your life and your future. Remind yourself to make good use of that influence.

— Ralph Marston