MESSAGE #211 - THE GREATEST MYSTERY IN THE WORLD

There are a lot of great mysteries . . .

How did they build the pyramids in Egypt?

Who killed JFK?

Is there life in outer space?

These are great mysteries. But there’s an even greater mystery -- one that concerns each and every one of us.

As a matter of fact, if you can solve this mystery, you’re going to be rich and famous!

Here’s the greatest mystery in the world:

WHY DO PEOPLE DO THINGS THAT DO NOT WORK?

For example, do you want to be healthy? Of course you do. We all do. So why do we do things that we know that are unhealthy?

Do you want to do well in school? Do you want to get all “A’s”? Then why do you cut classes and not keep up with assignments?

Do you want to get in the best shape of your life? Then why don’t you work out more often?

I want to lose weight. I really do! Then why was I eating cheese cake yesterday???

It’s a mystery to me.

WHY DO PEOPLE DO THINGS THAT DON’T WORK?

The mystery is not whether it’s going to work or not. We know what doesn’t work . . . smoking doesn’t work . . . laziness doesn’t work . . . cheese cake doesn’t work.

We know it doesn’t work. We have years of evidence. We’ve done the research. But we keep doing it. We keep going down the wrong path.

WHY DO WE KEEP DOING THINGS THAT DON’T WORK?

It’s the greatest mystery in the world.

How do we get what we really want?

Losers ask, “Why?’

Winners ask, “How?”

We might never figure out WHY we do the things we do, but we can instantly figure out how to do what we do better.

Here’s how to have a more successful day each and every day . . .

#1. Find out what works and do more of it.

#2. Find out what doesn’t work and do LESS of it.

#3. Test out new ideas and strategies and discover if they work or if they don’t work.

It’s as simple as that.

Never ever do what DOESN’T WORK.

Thanks for reading,

Rob Gilbert

MESSAGE #210b - RELAAAAAAAAAAAAAX

Today . . .
nothing to read . . .
nothing to watch . . .
just something soothing to listen to.

So . . .
close your eyes . . .
and enjoy
this
relaxing
music.

Anytime you want
a six-minute
stress-reduction
session . . .
come back here.

MESSAGE #210 - WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD!

When I was growing up, one of the most popular shows on TV was “The Ed Sullivan Show.” It was on every Sunday night at 8:00 PM and it was a variety show that featured singers and dancers and ventriloquists and comedians and everything.

Ed Sullivan introduced The Beatles to America.

At school on Monday, everyone was talking about Ed Sullivan’s show. It was entertaining. It was fun to watch. It was great. It was THE BEST . . .

BUT . . . “The Ed Sullivan Show”

WAS NOTHING COMPARED TO YouTube!

YouTube is more than amazing. The greatest talent in the world is available to you 24/7/365. The greatest talent in the world is just a click away.

How can anyone ever be bored?

I’d like to thank GARY PRITCHARD of Adirondack Golden Goal for sending me this . . .

SEMINAR UPDATE:

If you missed last night’s seminar on “How to Do the Impossible,” you can now listen to the recording.

CALL: (641) 715-3413

ACCESS CODE: 1072571#

Thanks for reading,

Rob Gilbert

MESSAGE #209 - IT’S NOT WHAT YOU LOSE – IT’S WHAT YOU HAVE LEFT

In 1991, Grace Jacobian lost her eyesight.

This once successful fashion designer contacted the Braille Institute to teach her to read by touch.

While there, she discovered a heretofore unrealized talent -- painting!

At age 90, she is totally blind and paints from memory.

Her work has hung in a Los Angeles City Hall gallery. She is recognized as a “genuine folk artist of Southern California.”

“Remembering,” she says, “isn’t the same as seeing.”

But it is all she has left, and she maximized her memory.

From: 500 Illustrations
Authors: C. Curtis Jones & Paul H. Jones

MESSAGE #208 - HOW YOU CAN HAVE A “WINNING” DAY

If you want to win an election, you have to get more votes than your opponents.

If you want to win a baseball game, your team has to score more runs than the other team.

If you want to lose weight, you have to burn off more calories than you take in.

But what if you want it all . . . what if YOU WANT TO HAVE A WINNING DAY . . .

Here are 21 suggestions . . .

You have to listen more than you talk.

You have to give more than you get.

You have to smile more than you frown.

You have to think “we” more than you think “me.”

You have to agree more than you disagree.

You have to compliment more than you criticize.

You have to laugh more than you cry.

You have to clean up more than you mess up.

You have to be positive more than you’re negative.

You have to be fascinated more than you’re frustrated.

You have to “walk the walk” more than you “talk the talk.”

You have to be accepting more than rejecting.”

You have to see the cup “half-full” more than see it “half-empty.”

You have to help more than you hinder.

You have to believe in yourself more than you doubt yourself.

You have to work more than you whine.

You have to do more than you don’t.

You have to act more than you react.

You have to save more than you squander.

You have to care more than you ever have.

You have to love more than you ever have.

What do you think about this list? If you have any additions, deletions, or suggestions – click here.

* * * * * * *

PLEASE NOTE: For an update on Success Hotline Seminars (these seminars are conducted over the phone and they are FREE), please call Success Hotline at (973) 743-4690 and then press 3.

NEXT SEMINAR

DAY: SUNDAY

DATE: OCTOBER 28, 2007

TIME: 9:00 PM EDT

TOPIC: HOW TO DO THE IMPOSSSIBLE: THE FOUR SIMPLE STEPS

CALL-IN #: (641) 715-3200

PARTICIPANT ACCESS CODE: 1072571#

Hope you can call in . . .

Rob Gilbert

MESSAGE #207 - I CAN NOT COMMENT ON THIS . . . MAYBE YOU WILL.

Please click here to leave your comments.

Thanks,

Rob Gilbert

MESSAGE #206 - THE PARADOX OF OUR AGE BY DR. BOB MOOREHEAD

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers; wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints.

We spend more, but have less; we buy more, but enjoy less. We have bigger houses and smaller families; more conveniences, but less time.

We have more degrees but less sense; more knowledge, but less judgment; more experts, yet more problems; more medicine, but less wellness.

We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.

We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.

We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.

We've learned how to make a living, but not a life.

We've added years to life not life to years.

We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.

We conquered outer space but not inner space.

We've done larger things, but not better things.

We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.

We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.

We write more, but learn less.

We plan more, but accomplish less.

We've learned to rush, but not to wait.

We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.

These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion; big men and small character; steep profits and shallow relationships. These are the days of two incomes but more divorce; fancier houses but broken homes. These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill. It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom. A time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete.

Remember, spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.

Remember to say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.

Remember to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and it doesn't cost a cent.

Remember to say "I love you" to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it. A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.

Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again.

Give time to love, give time to speak, and give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER: Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

Dr. Bob Moorehead is former pastor of Seattle's Overlake Christian Church. He retired in 1998 after 29 years in that post. The essay appeared in 'Words Aptly Spoken,” Dr. Moorehead's 1995 collection of prayers, homilies, and monologues used in his sermons and radio broadcasts.

MESSAGE #205 - ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!

A big THANK YOU to GARY PRITCHARD of Adirondack Golden Goal for forwarding me today’s video.

I’ve spent the last 45 minutes writing and re-writing today’s blog.

I want to write something that’ll catch your attention so you’ll watch this video.

I want to write something that’ll get you motivated to watch this video.

THERE’S NOTHING I CAN WRITE . . .

THERE’S NOTHING I CAN SAY . . .

OTHER THAN . . .

YOU HAVE TO WATCH THIS VIDEO!!!

MESSAGE #204 - MAGIC: THE SHOW. THE STORY. THE SONG.

THE SHOW:

Wednesday, October 24, NBC premieres a show called “Phenomenon” where magicians/mentalists compete to demonstrate their “special powers.” “Phenomenon” airs at 8:00 PM EDT.

THE STORY:

From the book Life Changer by Reverend Robert Schuller . . .

It’s fascinating to read the stories, many of them legendary, about the late Houdini. That masterful magician was probably a better locksmith than he was a magician. He had a standing challenge that he could get out of any locked jail in 60 minutes, providing they would let him enter in his regular street clothes and not watch him work.

One of the stories is about a little town in the British Isles that decided to challenge (and perhaps embarrass) the great Houdini. This town had just completed an escape-proof jail, and so the townsfolk invited Houdini to come to see if he could break out.

He accepted the challenge. He was allowed to enter the jail in his street clothes. People said they saw the locksmith turn the lock some strange way, and then with the clang of steel, everybody turned their backs and left him alone to work. Houdini had hidden a long flexible steel rod in his belt, which is what he used to try to trip the lock. He worked for 30 minutes. He kept his ear close to the lock - 45 minutes, and then an hour passed; he was perspiring. After two hours, he was exhausted. He leaned against the door, and to his amazement, it fell open. They had never locked the door! It was their trick on the great escape artist!

The door was locked only in Houdini’s mind. That’s the only place it was locked! Some of you think that you can’t overcome your problem. The only place where it is impossible is in your thinking. That’s the only thing that’s locked!

THE SONG:

Well I know it wasn’t you who held me down
Heaven knows it wasn’t you who set me free
So often times it happens that we live our lives in chains
And we never even know we have the keys.

from “Already Gone” by the Eagles

MESSAGE #203 - HOPE

I just watched Dr. Randy Pausch on Oprah today.

I’m inspired.

So today’s message is dedicated to PROFESSOR RANDY PAUSCH . . .

From the book Head First by Norman Cousins. . .

Dr. William Bucholz tells the story of overhearing two physicians discussing a paper they were to deliver at a national meeting of cancer specialists.

One was complaining bitterly, “I don’t understand it, Bob. We use the same drugs, the same dosage, and the same schedule of treatment. Yet I get a 22 percent recovery rate and you get a 74 percent recovery rate. How do you explain that?”

The other responded, “We both use Etoposide, Platinol, Oncovin, and Hydroxyurea. You put those letters together and tell people that you are giving them EPOH. I put them together and explain to them that they are receiving HOPE. I emphasize that they have a chance."

* * * * * * *

Jim Berry, a brilliant Success Hotline caller, coined an acronym for HOPE . . .

Hold On Possibilities Exist

Rob Gilbert

MESSAGE #202 - ONE DOZEN T-SHIRT QUOTES

A t-shirt is a moving billboard.

Here are some of my favorite thoughts taken from t-shirts . . .

THE REASON THAT MOST PEOPLE FAIL
INSTEAD OF SUCCEED IS THAT THEY
TRADE WHAT THEY WANT MOST FOR
WHAT THEY WANT AT THE MOMENT.
~ Ridgewood High School (NJ) Football 2003
(Thanks, Coach Johnson)

WHAT WOULD HURT MORE?
TO CONTINUE?
OR TO STOP?
~ Adidas ~

TLEL YUOR ESGLINTH TCEEHAR
THAT SPLENILG DSONE’T MTTEAR.

Never go to sleep angry . . .
Stay up and PLOT your REVENGE!!!

I HAVE AN OPEN
MIND, BUT IT’S
CLOSED FOR REPAIRS.

Seen on the t-shirt of a teenager’s dad:
HUMAN ATM MACHINE

UPON THE ADVICE OF MY
ATTORNEY, MY T-SHIRT
BEARS NO MESSAGE
AT THIS TIME.

WHEN CHOOSING BETWEEN
TWO EVILS, ALWAYS
CHOOSE THE ONE
YOU HAVEN’T TRIED
YET!
~ Mae West

YOU GOT TO GET TO THE STAGE
IN LIFE WHERE GOING FOR IT
IS MORE IMPPORTANT THAN
WINNING OR LOSING!
~ Arthur Ashe

MAKE A COMMITMENT . . .
KEEP YOUR WORD.
~ Lisa Sargese

YOU WIN SOME.
YOU LOSE SOME.
YOU WRECK SOME.
~ Dale Earnhardt

YOU
ARE
PURE
POTENTIAL.
~ Martin de Maat

Do you have a t-shirt quote to add? Click here for immortality.

For information about tonight’s STRESS REDUCTION SEMINAR,
call Success Hotline at (973) 743-4690.

Rob Gilbert

MESSAGE #201 - “NOBODY WORKS HARDER THAN A CURIOUS KID.”

I just got off the phone with one of my friends who’s a grandmother.

She’s going to be staying up awfully late tonight sewing a Halloween costume for one of her grandchildren.

Why?

Because that girl’s teachers told her that if she dressed as a famous historical figure on Halloween she’d get extra-credit.

How great is that!

Why does everything in school have to be linked with grades?

Grades. Grades. Grades.

The key is to pay close attention to which activities make us feel most alive and in love with life – and then try to spend as much time as possible engaged in those activities.

Nathaniel Branden, psychologist

Look at it this way . . . I don’t think Thomas Edison was looking for extra-credit.

Extra-credit is all about the GRADE. Many teachers are teaching their students to be “grade obsessed.”

Rather than focusing on the grade why didn’t that teacher focus on the kid’s innate curiosity and passion.

Why didn’t that teacher try anything to instill some curiosity rather than just bribe the kid with a grade?

“Try anything” other than “grade-bribing.”

I know I’m not making my point as well as I could . . . but stay with me.

I need help for this one so I’m bringing in a pinch hitter – the great Tom Friedman.

You must always be curious.

Walt Whitman, poet

The following passage is from the absolutely brilliant book The World Is Flat by Thomas L. Friedman.

In his equation CQ + PQ > IQ . . .

CQ = Curiosity Quotient

PQ = Passion Quotient

IQ = Intelligence Quotient

As Friedman says, IQ still matters, but CQ and PQ matter even more.

Here’s Tom Friedman . . .

I live by the equation CQ + PQ > IQ.

Give me a kid with a passion to learn and a curiosity to discover and I will take him or her over a less passionate kid with a high IQ every day of the week. Because curious, passionate kids are self-educators and self-motivators. They will always be able to learn how to learn . . . “Work matters,” said [Doc] Searle [the respected technology writer], “but curiosity matters more. Nobody works harder at learning than a curious kid.”

For my money, they could engrave that onto the doorway of every school in America: Nobody works harder than a curious kid.

Some kids are just born that way, but for the many who are not, the best way to make kids love learning is either to instill in them a sense of curiosity, by great teaching, or stimulate their own innate curiosity by making available to them all the technologies . . . so they can educate themselves in an enormously rich way. . . .

Is it possible to generate your own high PQ, high passion quotient for leaning a subject, without a teacher or parent stimulating you?

Of course.

Just think back to when you were a kid and you got your first fire truck or doll or doctor’s kit or astronaut’s helmet, and you told everyone you wanted to be a fireman or a fashion model or a doctor or an astronaut when you grew up. That innocent passion for a certain job, without knowing the salary or the working hours or the preparation required, is what you need to get back in touch with.

It’s the child-like feeling of “I want to do that because I want to do that – and I don’t have to explain why” that we all need to rediscover.

To put it simply: You need to rediscover your inner fire truck. We all have one, and when you find it, you’ll know it.

Fill your life with as many moments and experiences of joy and passion

as you humanly can. Start with one experience and build on it.

Marcia Wieder, author and speaker

Thanks, Tom Friedman . . .

Rob Gilbert

MESSAGE #200 - NEWS FLASH! NEWS FLASH! NEWS FLASH!

PROFESSOR RANDY PAUSCH TO APPEAR ON OPRAH ON MONDAY

Professor Randy Pausch of Carnegie Mellon University will be on Oprah on Monday, October 22.
Don’t know who Professor Pausch is???

He gave the greatest lecture ever.

Just click here to see Message #172, Message #173, & Message #174.

I can’t wait until Monday.

Rob Gilbert

P.S. This Sunday, I’ll be conducting a telephone seminar on “Relaxation and Stress Reduction.” Please call Success Hotline at (973) 743-4690 for more information.

MESSAGE #199 - THANK YOU, JT!

Is there a secret of life?

Yes.

I found it many years ago in the most unlikely place – an old gym in Amherst, Massachusetts.

One Sunday afternoon in the early 1970s, a young folk singer named James Taylor shared the secret with me.

Now I’d like to share it with you . . .

MESSAGE#198 - SPECIAL MESSAGE FOR ALL MY STUDENTS: MESSAGES #197 & #198 ARE ESPECIALLY FOR YOU!

In the book, Robert Schuller’s Life Changers (Wings Books), the great religious leader Reverend Robert Schuller tells of his son Robert’s graduation from college in 1974:

My son . . . graduated from my alma mater, Hope College in Holland, Michigan . . . . The moment he received his B.A. degree was one of the proudest moments in my life. I watched as he received his diploma and moved the tassel on his mortarboard from the left to the right.

After the ceremony we met outside. Beaming with delight, we hugged each other and slapped one another on the back. “You made it!” I exclaimed.

“Yes,” he said, grinning broadly. “I made it. But it was tough.”

“But it was worth it, though, wasn’t it?” I asked.

“It was worth it,” he repeated. “But at times I wondered. It was quite a hassle.”

As he spoke those words, my eyes were drawn to the tassel flowing from his cap. Touching it lightly, I said, “The tassel is worth the hassle.”

“You bet,” my son affirmed enthusiastically.

If you make your decisions based upon how comfortable, easy, convenient, or painless your choices are, then don’t ever expect great rewards. Hassle-free living is tassel-free living. You can be sure that the tassel is in proportion to the hassle.

Pay a big price and you can expect a good return!

P.S. In other words, “No guts, no glory.”

MESSAGE #197 - THIS MESSAGE IS REQUIRED READING FOR ALL OF MY MONTCLAIR STATE STUDENTS!

“Good, better, best . . .

Never ever rest

Until your good gets better

And your better gets best.”

Did you listen to the Success Hotline College Success Seminar last Sunday? It featured Melissa Sapio. In case you missed it, Melissa graduated from Montclair State in 2001 with a perfect 4.0 G.P.A. I asked her if she started her first semester here thinking that she wanted to graduate with a 4.0? Here’s her response:

“Oh, no. Graduation was way too far away to think about that. I took it semester-by-semester and actually test-by-test. I would take each course week-by-week and do whatever I could to try to surpass the professor’s expectations for each assignment, quiz or test.”

I hope one word jumped out at you right away. This key word can instantly change your whole academic career. The word??? SURPASS. “Surpass” is giving people more than they expect. It’s a fun game to play . . . but too few people are playing it! As the old Nike ad says, “There’s no traffic jam on the extra mile.”

“Winners are simply willing to do what losers won’t.”

Sign in the gym in the movie Million Dollar Baby

In college, everyone’s playing the “meet-the-expectations” game. Oh sure, if you meet your professors’ expectations, you’ll graduate. But if you surpass their expectations -- you’ll do something extraordinary! You’ll receive honors, awards, fellowships, admission to medical school, law school, graduate schools, great job offers, etc. . . . Who knows, maybe you’ll even win a Rhodes Scholarship!

In business, if you meet your customers’ expectations, you’ll make money. But if you surpass their expectations -- you’ll make millions. That’s exactly what Walt Disney and Cirque du Soleil do. They give people more than they expect!

In sports, if you meet your coaches’ expectations, you’ll make the team. But if you surpass their expectations — you’ll make the Hall of Fame. Tiger Woods practices more than anyone else on the P.G.A. tour. Jerry Rice worked out harder than any other pro football player. When Alexander Karelin, one of the greatest Greco-Roman wrestlers of all time, was asked the secret of his success, he said, “I train harder every day than my opponents will train any day.”

So you have a life-changing choice to make: M.T.E. or M.T.E.?

Are you going to:

Meet The Expectations

or are you going to do

More Than Expected?

Shoot for the moon — even if you miss, you’ll be among the stars!

SPECIAL NOTICE

WEDNESDAY (OCTOBER 17)

PHONE SEMINAR

TOPIC: “HOW TO MOTIVATE YOURSELF & OTHERS”

COACH ED AGRESTA & DR. ROB GILBERT

9:00 pm – 10:00 pm EDT

CALL: (641) 715-3200

ACCESS CODE: 1072571#

MESSAGE #196 - SIXTEEN GREAT QUOTES

SPECIAL NOTICE

WEDNESDAY (OCTOBER 17)

PHONE SEMINAR

TOPIC: “HOW TO MOTIVATE YOURSELF & OTHERS”

COACH ED AGRESTA & DR. ROB GILBERT

9:00 pm – 10:00 pm EDT

CALL: (641) 715-3200

ACCESS CODE: 1072571#

I.

The Ten Most Powerful Two-Letter Words:

If it is to be, it is up to me.

II.

Shoot for the moon, even if you miss you’ll be one of the stars.

III.

The purpose of life is to discover your gifts.

The meaning of life comes from giving your gifts away.

Dr. David Viscott, psychiatrist

IV.

It’s the start that stops most people.

V.

The most important thing is to make

the most important thing

the most important thing.

VI.

The will to win is not nearly as important as the will to prepare to win.

Coach Homer Barr, college wrestling coach

VII.

Intelligence is not as nearly as important as diligence.

Dr. Rob Gilbert

VIII.

Don’t count the days-- make the days count.

Coach Ed Agresta

world’s greatest motivational speaker

IX.

Be at the right place,

at the right time

and do the right thing.

Coach Ollie Gelston, superstar college basketball coach

X.

Be comfortable being uncomfortable.

Dr. Rob Gilbert

XI.

If you fall asleep with bats, you’ll wake up upside down.

XII.

Good, better, best

Never ever rest

Until your good gets better

And your better gets best!

XIII.

There’s no special talent, there’s no magic secret . . .

success is the result of a willingness to work hard.

Melissa Sapio, ABD

school psychologist

XIV.

It’s better to do a little a lot

than to do a lot a little.

XV.

DESIRE WINS.

Bud Jeffries

world’s strongest drug-free man

XVI.

WILL > SKILL.

Dr. Rob Gilbert

MESSAGE #195 - I CAN'T BELIEVE I HAVEN'T TOLD YOU THIS STORY YET!

Here we are on Message #195 and I haven’t told you the #1 most favorite story of my callers to Success Hotline (973.743.4690). How do I know it’s my callers’ favorite?

I ask them.

Many years ago, I heard this story. I never forgot it because it has really helped me.

I hope that you’ll remember this story and that it will help you.

Once upon a time, there was a little donkey that lived on a ranch. The little donkey spent all of his time in a pen with his grandfather. One day, the little donkey said, “Grandpa, I want to grow up to be big and strong like you. What do I have to do?”

Grandpa said, “All you have to do is learn how to shake it off and step up.”

That confused the little donkey so he asked his grandfather what that meant.

Grandpa said, “Let me tell you a story. One day, when I was just about your age, I was right here in this pen when someone left the gate open by mistake. Well, I escaped and started walking out on the prairie. I was admiring the big mountains and the huge sky. Then, all of a sudden, when I wasn’t looking at where I was going, I fell into an old, abandoned well. I was trapped at the bottom of the well, scared to death, thinking I was going to die. Then, within a few minutes, I heard a truck and looked up and saw an old farmer. I thought he would surely save me. But he just looked down at me, shook his head, got back into his truck, and left.

“A few hours later, I heard what sounded like four or five trucks. I looked up and saw the farmer and several of his friends. The old farmer said, ‘Boys, the well’s abandoned and that little donkey ain’t worth anything, so let’s get to work.’

“They got their pick axes and shovels and started burying me alive. Now I knew I was going to die! The dirt started burying my hooves and then it started covering my lower legs and then I suddenly realized something -- every time a shovel-full of dirt landed on my back, I could shake it off and step up on it. So I shook it off and stepped up, and shook it off and stepped up, and I continued shaking and stepping, and shaking and stepping, until I eventually shook off enough and stepped up enough that I was able to step out of the well and save my life!”

Then the grandfather looked right at the little donkey and said, “Remember, if you want to grow up to be big and strong, you have to learn how to shake it off and step up.”

* * * * * * *

I’ll bet that you are never going to fall into a well. But, I’ll also bet that people are going to throw dirt on you. By “dirt” I mean that people will criticize you, reject you, gossip about you, etc. Remember, if you want to grow up to be big and strong, you have to learn how to shake it off and step up!

Click here to comment on this story . . .

MESSAGE #194 - DESIRE VERSUS ABILITY

SPECIAL NOTICE:

Sunday, I will be conducting a TELEPHONE SEMINAR on
COLLEGE SUCCESS.

DATE: Sunday, October, 14, 2007

TIME: 9:00 pm to 10:00 pm Eastern Daylight Time

SEMINAR FEE: $000.00

SEMINAR VALUE: “priceless”

REQUIRED READING: “How to Have Fun Without Failing Out” by Rob Gilbert

SEMINAR DIAL-IN NUMBER: (641) 715-3200

PARTICIPANT ACCESS CODE: 1072571#

* * * * * * *

DESIRE VERSUS ABILITY

I know that I would rather teach or coach a highly motivated person with little or no skill than a highly skilled person with little or no motivation.

The great professional speaker Larry Winget feels the same way.

The following passage is from his book It’s Called Work for a Reason.

When evaluating people and their performance, ask yourself these two things about the employee:

#1. Does the employee have the desire to do the job?

#2. Does the employee have the ability to do the job?

What you will find is that most of your employees have the ability to do the job. Fewer will have the desire.

I would almost always rather have someone who was a “ten” on desire but a “one” in terms of ability.

I can teach just about anyone to do almost anything – therefore ability has never been much of an issue with me.

If people have a sincere desire to do something, they can usually be taught to do it.

However, if someone has no desire, what difference does it make if she is great at doing something?

You can take a person with all the ability in the world, and if he has no desire to do the task, it’s just not going to get done.

MESSAGE #193 - LOVE AND STRUGGLE

If the first part of this message seems familiar – it is.

You might remember it from MESSAGE #111 on July 22, 2007.

The following quote is always with me.

It’s on a card in my wallet. One of my students, who graduated from the DeSisto School in Stockbridge, Massachusetts and had her life changed from the experience, gave me the card. It was passed out at Michael DeSisto’s funeral.

MICHAEL DESISTO

May 29, 1939

November 1, 2003

The butterfly is the most “human” of all insects, for the pain of its metamorphosis most closely resembles the pain experienced in human growth.

If we know that the beautiful butterfly inside the cocoon is fighting to get out and we love it and help it by doing for it – WE KILL IT!

The struggle that it undergoes is what goes it the strength to live. Children also, if we really love them, must be allowed to struggle, for only through the struggle of adolescence can they acquire the security of adulthood.

Love is not “doing for,” but “sharing with.”

* * * * *

Now, as my hero Paul Harvey says, here’s “the rest of the story”...

From the book Simple Steps by Arthur Caliandro ...

THE STRUGGLE

I have a few stories that have helped me in my own life. They seem to me to embody truths that I believe are very important.

One of my favorites concerns a laboratory experiment by botanist Alfred Russell Wallace, a contemporary of Charles Darwin.

Interestingly, he developed the theory of evolution at about the same time that Darwin did.

Wallace was ready to publish it when he learned that Darwin had started the experimentation about six months before he had.

Wallace, a gentleman, deferred to Darwin, and it is Darwin who posterity credits with the theory of evolution.

In the experiment, Wallace was in his laboratory observing an Emperor butterfly trying to get free from its cocoon.

The struggle was intense with life-or-death consequences.

He wondered, “What would happen if I assisted this process?”

So with a knife he made a slit down the length of the cocoon.

This is what happened, in his words: “The butterfly emerged, spread its wings, drooped perceptibly, and died.”

The pain and intensity of the struggle had been denied it, and it had failed to grow. It could not emerge into the world with the strength it needed to survive.

Of course, we don’t always welcome adversity with open arms.

We don’t always welcome pain or setbacks.

Yet with the right kind of thinking, we can keep them in perspective and see them as opportunities to grow, strengthen, and excel in our lives.

With the right outlook and attitude, we can triumph over adversity.

MESSAGE #192 - THE GREATEST LOVE OF ALL

The most common disease in our culture is not cancer, heart disease, or diabetes – it is lack of self esteem.

Do you have good self esteem?

HERE’S THE TEST: Are you your own best friend?

The following was written by J. Coudert . . .

It is rewarding to find someone whom you like, but it is essential to like yourself.

It is quickening to recognize someone as a good and decent human being, but it is indispensable to view yourself as acceptable.

It is a delight to discover people who are worthy of respect, admiration, and love, but it is vital to believe yourself deserving of these things.

For you cannot live in someone else.

You cannot find yourself in someone else.

You cannot be given a life by someone else.

Of all the people you will know in a lifetime, you are the only one you will never leave nor lose.

To the question of your life, you are the only answer. To the problems of your life, you are the only solution.

The greatest song about self esteem may also be the greatest song period ...

MESSAGE #191 - RECIPE FOR A SUCCESSFUL LEADER

4 cups of intelligence

1⅝ cups of responsibility

2 cups of open-mindedness

1 quart of understanding

1⅜ teaspoons of initiative

Dash of judgment

1⅔ cups of sifted positive attitude

3 cups of ambition

2 cups of unbeaten patience

1 cup of tactfulness

4 cups of ability

Have all the ingredients at body temperature. Sift intelligence, ambition, and understanding together. Mix co-operation, initiative, and open-mindedness until dissolved. Add gradually ability, tactfulness, and responsibility. Stir in positive attitude and judgment thoroughly. Beat patience until smooth. Blend all ingredients well. Sprinkle liberally with cheerfulness and bake in oven of determination. When absorbed thoroughly, cool and spread with kindness and common sense.

author unknown

MESSAGE #190 - I STILL MISS LEO

Today’s message comes from the book Living, Loving & Learning by the late great Leo Buscaglia.

In this book, Dr. Buscaglia, a counselor and university professor, used a poem called “Things You Didn’t Do” to emphasize what can happen if you put things off.

The person who sent this poem to Dr. Buscaglia asked to remain anonymous.

Remember the day I borrowed your

brand-new car and I dented it?

I thought you’d kill me, but you didn’t.

And remember the time I dragged you

to the beach, and you said it would

rain, and it did?

I thought you’d say, “I told you so.”

But you didn’t.

Do you remember the time I flirted with

all the guys to make you jealous, and

you were?

I thought you’d leave me, but you didn’t.

Do you remember the time I spilled

strawberry pie all over your car rug?

I thought you’d make me clean it up, but you didn’t.

And remember the time I forgot to tell

you the dance was formal and you

showed up in jeans?

I thought you’d drop me, but you didn’t.

Yes, there were lots of things you didn’t do.

But you put up with me, and you loved

me, and you protected me.

There were lots of things I wanted to

make up to you when you returned

from Vietnam.

But you didn’t.

MESSAGE #189 - A HORROR STORY

The purpose of life is to discover your gifts.
The meaning of life comes from giving your gifts away.
Dr. David Viscott (1938-1996), psychiatrist

One day an old man who, was an expert in the world of art, died and went to heaven where he was met by St. Peter.

The old man asked St. Peter to introduce him to other people who were interested in art.

St. Peter said, “See that man with the beard? He was the greatest artist who ever lived. Want to meet him?”

The old man said, “St. Peter, I know that man and I know art. That man worked in his father’s shoe store and he sold me all my shoes for years. And he’s not an artist!”

St. Peter replied, “Oh, he could have been the greatest artist who ever lived, but he thought he was a shoe salesman.”

We have all been placed on this earth to discover our own path,
and we will never be happy if we live someone else’s idea of life.
James Van Praagh, psychic

MESSAGE #188 - YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only that that ever has.

Margaret Meade (1901-1978), Anthropologist

MESSAGE #187 - THIS IS A TOUGH ONE!

How do you solve a brain teaser? Think outside the box . . . get fascinated . . .

don’t allow yourself to get frustrated . . . make a game of it. DON’T QUIT!!!

Here’s a tough one.

What do the following words have in common? It’s not that obvious. But . . . you can do it!

Banana

Dresser

Grammar

Potato

Revive

Uneven

Assess

Click here and leave your answer(s).

Good luck.

Keep on keeping on,

Rob Gilbert

MESSAGE #186 - THERE AIN’T NO SUCH THING AS A FREE LUNCH

A couple in New York City received, in the mail, two tickets to the biggest hit on Broadway, a show for which tickets had been sold out for three months.

Whoever had sent the tickets had forgotten to include a note with the donor’s name.

The tickets were for the following night.

The couple went to the show, which they enjoyed greatly.

When they returned to their apartment, their bedroom was turned upside down.

The women’s fur and jewels were gone.

The man’s fine cufflinks were gone.

And on the pillow was the note: “Now you know.”

Source: Executive Speechmaker’s Book of
Wisdom, Wit, and Humor
Author: Joe Taylor Ford

MESSAGE #185 - PROFESSOR PAUSCH UPDATE

Here’s the latest on Professor Randy Pausch.

In case you’ve missed part of the story check out Messages #172, #173, and #174.

Moving On by Jeff Zaslow
The Professor's Manifesto: What it Meant to Readers
Wall Street Journal, September 27, 2007; page D2

As a boy, Randy Pausch painted an elevator door, a submarine and mathematical formulas on his bedroom walls. His parents let him do it, encouraging his creativity.

Last week, Dr. Pausch, a computer-science professor at Carnegie Mellon University, told this story in a lecture to 400 students and colleagues.

"If your kids want to paint their bedrooms, as a favor to me, let 'em do it," he said. "Don't worry about resale values."

As I wrote last week, his talk was a riveting and rollicking journey through the lessons of his life. It was also his last lecture, since he has pancreatic cancer and expects to live for just a few months.

After he spoke, his only plans were to quietly spend whatever time he has left with his wife and three young children. He never imagined the whirlwind that would envelop him. As video clips of his speech spread across the Internet, thousands of people contacted him to say he had made a profound impact on their lives. Many were moved to tears by his words -- and moved to action. Parents everywhere vowed to let their kids do what they'd like on their bedroom walls.

"I am going to go right home and let my daughter paint her wall the bright pink she has been desiring instead of the "resalable" vanilla I wanted," Carol Castle of Spring Creek, Nev., wrote to me to forward to Dr. Pausch.

People wanted Dr. Pausch to know that his talk had inspired them to quit pitying themselves, or to move on from divorces, or to pay more attention to their families. One woman wrote that his words had given her the strength to leave an abusive relationship. And terminally ill people wrote that they would try to live their lives as the 46-year-old Dr. Pausch is living his. "I'm dying and I'm having fun," he said in the lecture. "And I'm going to keep having fun every day, because there's no other way to play it."

For Don Frankenfeld of Rapid City, S.D., watching the full lecture was "the best hour I have spent in years." Many echoed that sentiment.

ABC News, which featured Dr. Pausch on "Good Morning America," named him its "Person of the Week." Other media descended on him. And hundreds of bloggers world-wide wrote essays celebrating him as their new hero. Their headlines were effusive: "Best Lecture Ever," "The Most Important Thing I've Ever Seen," "Randy Pausch, Worth Every Second."

In his lecture, Dr. Pausch had said, "Brick walls are there for a reason. They let us prove how badly we want things." Scores of Web sites now feature those words. Some include photos of brick walls for emphasis. Meanwhile, rabbis and ministers shared his brick-wall metaphor in sermons this past weekend.

Some compared the lecture to Lou Gehrig's "Luckiest Man Alive" speech. Celina Levin, 15, of Marlton, N.J., told Dr. Pausch that her AP English class had been analyzing the Gehrig speech, and "I have a feeling that we'll be analyzing your speech for years to come." Already, the Naperville, Ill., Central High School speech team plans to have a student deliver the Pausch speech word for word in competition.

Dr. Randy Pausch

As Dr. Pausch's fans emailed links of his speech to friends, some were sheepish about it. "I am a deeply cynical person who reminds people frequently not to send me those sappy feel-good emails," wrote Mark Pfeifer, a technology project manager at a New York investment bank. "Randy Pausch's lecture moved me deeply, and I intend to forward it on."

In Miami, retiree Ronald Trazenfeld emailed the lecture to friends with a note to "stop complaining about bad service and shoddy merchandise." He suggested they instead hug someone they love.

Near the end of his lecture, Dr. Pausch had talked about earning his Ph.D., and how his mother would kiddingly introduce him: "This is my son. He's a doctor, but not the kind who helps people."

It was a laugh line, but it led dozens of people to reassure Dr. Pausch: "You ARE the kind of doctor who helps people," wrote Cheryl Davis of Oakland, Calif.

Dr. Pausch feels overwhelmed and moved that what started in a lecture hall with 400 people has now been experienced by millions. Still, he has retained his sense of humor. "There's a limit to how many times you can read how great you are and what an inspiration you are," he says, "but I'm not there yet."

Carnegie Mellon has a plan to honor Dr. Pausch. As a techie with the heart of a performer, he was always a link between the arts and sciences on campus. A new computer-science building is being built, and a footbridge will connect it to the nearby arts building. The bridge will be named the Randy Pausch Memorial Footbridge.

"Based on your talk, we're thinking of putting a brick wall on either end," joked the university's president, Jared Cohon, announcing the honor. He went on to say: "Randy, there will be generations of students and faculty who will not know you, but they will cross that bridge and see your name and they'll ask those of us who did know you. And we will tell them."

Dr. Pausch has asked Carnegie Mellon not to copyright his last lecture, and instead to leave it in the public domain. It will remain his legacy, and his footbridge, to the world.

MESSAGE #184 - WHICH ONE ARE YOU???

ARE YOU A “BUILDER-UPPER”OR A “BREAKER-DOWNER”?

A POEM

One day as I was walking around my home town,

I saw a group of men tearing a building down.

With a “heave” and a “ho” and a mighty yell,

They swung a huge steel ball and a tall building fell.

And I asked the foreman, “Are your men skilled?

Are they the ones you’d hire if you were going to build?”

“Oh no,” he laughed, “Oh no, indeed!

Just unskilled laborers are all I need.”

“These men can easily wreck in a day or two,

What it takes skilled builders many years to do.”

And I asked myself as I walked away,

“Which one of these roles do I want to play?”

Do I want to be known as one who constantly tears down,

As I waste my time spreading negativity around.

Or do I want to be known as one who skillfully builds with care,

In hope that my team will always be glad that I’m there?

Carefully using a positive plan

And putting it into practice the very best that I can.

Or am I a wrecker who roams the town

With the intent of just tearing down.

AUTHOR UNKNOWN

MESSAGE #183 - HOW TO DO THE IMPOSSIBLE

Art Tatum was born in 1909 in Toledo, Ohio. He was African American and born partially blind. As an adolescent, he was beaten by other kids and became totally blind. He had perhaps the most exuberant love of music of any child. He wanted desperately to play the piano.

But he faced two problems.

First, he couldn’t see.

Second, although Art had learned some violin at music school, his family lacked the money for a private piano teacher. So Art learned to play the piano the only way he could – in the honky-tonk saloons of Toledo in the early 1920s.

Even on the days when he was tired from schoolwork and part-time jobs, he would make at least a little time for what he loved. He would get a friend or family member to walk with him to one of the honky tonks nearby, on Indiana Street, and he would ask to sit at the player piano while it played. By placing his fingers lightly on the keys, every time the player piano pumped and the keys dropped, Art could follow the motions.

It was complicated – yet he loved it. There were so many keys involved, at times it felt nearly impossible to follow them with his fingers. But his passion kept encouraging him to try. Far into the night, song after song, his heart willed his hands to master this art. In this way, he learned to play.

But what Art Tatum didn’t know – because he didn’t have a piano teacher to tell him it wasn’t possible – was that when the player piano manufacturers of the late 1800s and early 1900s made player pianos and made the rolls of paper music to play them, they used two pianists, not one.

Because he didn’t know what he tried was impossible, Art Tatum did it anyway. He became the first pianist in history to play four hands of piano music with his two hands.

Robert K. Cooper, Ph.D.
The Other 90%
Crown Business