Daily Motivation

• Ladychipper 23,050 Posts

  Wed, Sep 14 2022 11:31 AM

  Wednesday, September 14, 2022

  Repeated experiences

  Go broad in your experience, but not at the expense of going deep. Just because you’ve visited some particular place, or participated in some unique activity, doesn’t mean you’re done with them for good.

  Many things are better the second, third, and fifteenth time. You don’t have to get in a rut, but neither do you have to abandon what was once fulfilling to go chasing every new thing.

  Repetition can deepen the value of positive experiences. You’ll find extraordinary, irreplaceable benefit in enduring relationships with people, places, interests, and activities.

  It’s great to be adventurous and explore all sorts of different things. But what’s not so great is to seek out shallow, exotic experiences just so you can say you’ve done them.

  There’s a big difference between getting off the cruise ship for a few hours and spending a couple of weeks at the destination. Lengthy visits, repeated conversations, deep dives into specific subjects all add a dimension to life that cannot be attained from a crowded schedule.

  If it works, if it’s beautiful, pleasant, inspiring, fulfilling, do it again. It’s very likely to become even more so.

   

  — Ralph Marston

• Ladychipper 23,050 Posts

  Thu, Sep 15 2022 9:13 AM

  Thursday, September 15, 2022

  Underlying good fortune

  Be thankful that there are lots of things you can forget to be thankful for. Be thankful that you are able to take so much for granted.

  Then, see how many of those things you can bring to mind. Experience how good it is to feel renewed gratitude for them.

  The problems and shortcomings, disappointments and obstacles demand your attention. Yet your underlying good fortune mostly continues to hold up, even when you ignore it.

  When you think about it, that’s pretty amazing. So remind yourself to think about it a little more.

  There’s value in putting your life into better context, in recognizing the goodness that undergirds all you do. When you appreciate all you have, you gain the ability to get more out of it, along with the confidence and courage to do so.

  Gratitude provides you with a customized connection to your possibilities and to the power of your underlying good fortune. Make that connection, and keep it strong.

   

  — Ralph Marston

• Ladychipper 23,050 Posts

  Fri, Sep 16 2022 7:05 AM

  Friday, September 16, 2022

  Force for good

  Focus on the creation of real value, lasting goodness, kindness, fulfillment, and love. Turn your attention away from the petty, foolish distractions that generate so much empty noise.

  Seek to gain wisdom, understanding, and deeper connection with every interaction. Resist the temptation to engage in drama and conflict.

  Every other person you come into contact with is unique, and at the same time more similar to you than different. Respect that beautiful, valuable combination of diversity and kinship, and utilize it for the benefit of all.

  Fill your mind with thoughts of positive possibilities. Fill your hours with generous and rewarding effort.

  You have a deep and abiding interest in the deep and abiding interests of everyone else. What advances life as a whole advances your life as well.

  Use this day and every day to live as a force for good. It is your opportunity and your obligation to yourself and to all of which you’re a part.

   

  — Ralph Marston

• Ladychipper 23,050 Posts

  Mon, Sep 19 2022 10:04 AM

  Monday, September 19, 2022

  Transcend feelings

  If you do nothing other than seek happiness you are certain to create much misery, for yourself and for others. Pay attention to the way you feel, but do not let it become your driving force.

  Self absorption is a terrible burden to impose upon yourself. It impedes not only outward connection but inner growth as well.

  Of course your feelings absolutely matter. Yet when they matter above all else they’re going to steadily, reliably lead into a chasm of despair.

  Want to feel better? Then stop being so concerned about the way you feel.

  Engage with objective reality, not merely with your thoughts and feelings about it. Navigating through that challenging and inconvenient reality you grow in strength, resilience, and capability.

  Stay away from the vicious cycle in which the way you feel is based solely on the way you already feel. Transcend your feelings, participate in the world outside of them, and you can transform them in a positive direction.

   

  — Ralph Marston

• Ladychipper 23,050 Posts

  Wed, Sep 21 2022 11:19 AM

  Wednesday, September 21, 2022

  Care and competence

  It feels good to know someone cares. Be that someone, care about what you’re doing and how it affects those around you.

  All kinds of possibilities for progress, goodness, joy and fulfillment open up when someone acts with competence. Be that someone.

  The knowledge, systems, institutions, skills and technologies that make your lifestyle possible did not just randomly appear. They were built and improved upon over years, decades, centuries, by caring, competent people.

  All those indispensable innovations require care and competence, precision and commitment to continue functioning. The whole world owes much to those who make that commitment and follow through on it, day after day.

  Your own existence is a testament to the care and competence of your ancestors and the people around them. Now you are in a position to continue the legacy.

  Choose to care about life, putting in the time and effort to grow increasingly competent at all you do. The world depends on your diligence more than you can imagine.

   

  — Ralph Marston

• Ladychipper 23,050 Posts

  Thu, Sep 22 2022 7:28 AM

  Thursday, September 22, 2022

  Easier said than done

  Have you ever considered a course of action, and then decided to forgo that action because it’s easier said than done? Have you ever received good, genuinely helpful advice and then ignored that advice because it’s easier said than done?

  Plenty of undertakings are easier said than done. But that doesn’t mean they’re impossible or ill advised.

  Talk and advice are cheap and easy, that is true, while action is costly and difficult. Yet it is precisely because of the cost and difficulty that action can produce great value.

  If something is easier said than done, that’s certainly not a reason to dismiss it. Indeed, it’s likely a good reason for figuring out a way and getting the work done.

  It’s easier said than done to get into better shape, to make a career move, to learn a new skill, to expand your social circle. Yet those are all endeavors that can significantly improve the quality of your life.

  What do you consider easier said than done? Maybe this is a good time to say it, and then to put forth whatever is necessary to do it.

   

  — Ralph Marston

• Ladychipper 23,050 Posts

  Fri, Sep 23 2022 7:55 AM

  Friday, September 23, 2022

  Your own actions

  Your life is affected by what you do. Your life is also affected by what other people do.

  It’s important to pay attention to the actions of others and to be aware of what impact they will have on your life. But you’re not going to have much success at influencing those actions.

  What you can do with considerable impact is to exercise thoughtful and intentional control over your own actions. That is far and away the best place to invest your time and energy.

  Maybe you can have some influence over what other people say, do, feel, and believe. But for the most part, people are going to do what they’re going to do, and any influence you have will be fleeting and minimal.

  Very few of your problems are ever going to be solved by friends, relatives, neighbors, or the government. The vast majority of the problems solved and goals achieved in your life will be largely up to you.

  Keep that in mind when choosing where to expend your time, focus and effort. Exercise the considerable control you have over your own actions and discover what a meaningful positive difference you can make.

   

  — Ralph Marston

• Ladychipper 23,050 Posts

  Mon, Sep 26 2022 8:33 AM

  Monday, September 26, 2022

  Make mistakes sooner

  If you have even the slightest ambition, mistakes are inevitable. The sooner you make them, the better.

  Don’t intentionally make mistakes, but don’t be afraid of them either. The sooner you make them, the longer you are able to benefit from what they teach you.

  If you’re waiting to get started because you’re concerned about making a mistake, consider this. You’re going to make a mistake sooner or later, so you might as well make it sooner.

  Put work and thought into anticipating and preventing what is likely to go wrong. Then put humility and curiosity into learning and improving based on what actually does go wrong.

  Avoid wasting energy on the pretense that you’re perfect. Instead, put that energy into discovering and overcoming your imperfections.

  Take action, make mistakes, improve the action, make more illuminating mistakes, and continue the upward trajectory. Make your mistakes at your earliest opportunity and you’re well on the way to success.

   

  — Ralph Marston

• Ladychipper 23,050 Posts

  Tue, Sep 27 2022 8:03 AM

  Tuesday, September 27, 2022

  Make the magic

  It’s amazing what you can get done if you’ll just do the work. It’s amazing how much you can accomplish if you’ll keep working.

  There are lots of ways to convince yourself and others that you’re busy when you’re not actually getting much done. There are plenty of diversions to pass the time that will leave you wondering where the time all went.

  Something is magical, though, about putting in long, diligent, focused effort and having real value to show for it. Take the opportunity to avail yourself of that magic.

  You have all sorts of powerful tools, so let yourself feel the incomparable satisfaction of putting them to productive use. You are skilled, knowledgeable, creative, and passionate, and you can find fulfillment in channeling those qualities.

  You know from experience how good it feels to get useful work done. You also know how liberating and energizing it can be to finish a task that’s been hanging over your head.

  So give yourself the priceless gift of doing the work and having it finished. Make the kind of magic in your life that only you can make.

   

  — Ralph Marston

   

• Ladychipper 23,050 Posts

  Thu, Sep 29 2022 8:22 AM

  Thursday, September 29, 2022

  Bring to it

  Don’t settle for an attitude that merely reflects what has already happened. Choose your attitude based on what you want to happen.

  Expect the best from yourself and then act according to your expectations. Focus your awareness and energy on all you can do to fulfill those expectations.

  You have no way of knowing or controlling everything this day will bring to you. Yet you can very intentionally and specifically control what you bring to it.

  Bring a strong sense of purpose, buttressed with gratitude for all that’s good and meaningful in your life. Bring curiosity and enthusiasm about all that’s possible and all you can achieve with those possibilities.

  Bring a willingness to persist in taking action, no matter what challenges or distractions you may encounter. Bring also your patience, understanding, kindness, along with the unique sense of joy and wonder that lives within you.

  Bring to this day, to this life, your best. Position yourself to create value and fulfillment from whatever may unfold.

   

  — Ralph Marston