Life On The Edge

Have you ever reach a point that it seems you are living your life on the edge?

When you think about your life, JUST ENOUGH, LACK, INSUFFICIENCY, SHORTAGE, SCARCITY, SHORTFALL, DEFICIT are some of the words that you can relate to?

How about I'M TIRED, DEPRESSED, SAD, ANXIOUS, FEARFUL--- do you feel this most of the time?

Well, do not worry… you are not the only one…

The good news is that whatever that is bothering you right now, is something that you can bear.  The bible said God will not allow you to receive hardship that you cannot endure and overcome.

And you can say with confidence, "the Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid."

Living on the edge--knowing Jesus will always be there to carry the burden for you--life can become an adventure!

May God's grace be abundant in your life as you conquer your weekend!

Stay Safe!

Remarkable

Have you ever done anything that will make you remarkable today?

Seth Godin's purple cow is a very apt illustration of how you must strive to be different today.

But the goal is not just to be different but to be remarkable, in the most positive sense of the word.

Today, I found out that the simplest way to be instantly remarkable is to help somebody and go the extra mile.  Whether it's a crisis…a petty problem…or just a person asking for direction… we have the opportunity to be remarkable.

The main point is--if you will help someone…make sure that you have given that person the best help he can get from you.   

By helping someone, you made a difference.  By going the extra mile, you made yourself remarkable.

Stay Safe.

My Mama needs to be like Lola Techie

I talked to my mother, sister and brother-in-law from Florida, USA today.

Thanks to the advancement in communication, it is now easy to get in touch with your loved ones wherever they are.

Seeing my Mama made me very happy.  My sister Carolyn, really takes good care of her.

Carolyn mentioned that my Mama get homesick sometimes.  I told her to video call us anytime she feels sad or bored.  It will make things easier for her since she is still establishing residency.

It is really a wonder that a few years ago, video calls are expensive or even impossible.  But given the positive changes in internet, cloud technology, and computers, now its normal to do video calls.

Too bad for telecoms, communication is getting to be more affordable and more efficient.

Too good for people like us….who lives through the wonder of the world wide web.

So it was really great to see my mom….hopefully she gets the hang of giving us a call from time to time.

Na-miss ko talaga siya.

Skype lang tayo, mama…love you!

My Papa

My late father used to tell me..."Anak, marami kang makikilalang tao. Lahat pakisamahan mo. Kunin mo ang magandang asal nila, itapon mo ang masama.  Sundin mo lang ito, ayos ka na."

This is just one of the advices he gave when i was growing up. My Papa used to own a trucking company where he employs over 300 rough men as truck personnel.  Mga "barako" ika nga…  So you can assume that he is not the "emotional" type.

My dad may not be the emotional type, but he is pretty level headed when it comes to life's issues.  

He is always there for me to give good advices.

Even though I am the only boy in a family of seven children (yes, i live with 6 sisters), my alone time with my father had help me with my teen years.

We always watched the PBA, live, on a regular basis… and we are rooting for the same teams (Crispa, then Tanduay, then San Miguel).

I am so grateful with the time that we spent together.

I want to honor him for being a good father to all of us.  He was always a good provider, and a good listener.

I miss my Papa.

I just wish that my own kids had known him because he will definitely enjoy them.

Thank you Papa for raising me up to be me….

Blogging again.

I am inspired.   Thanks to the Productive Pinoy, I recently got inspired to do blogging again...  It's always a great way to share ideas, thoughts, opinions, and facts.

Hopefully some of my blogs will also inspire somebody.

Stay safe.

Thoughts on Positive Thinking Part 2 of 2 series

Now, to continue on this series on Positive Thinking...

The following are last 4 of the 9 principles that I am sharing to help you improve your ability to think positively:

6. Look Everywhere for the Best in New Ideas

Positive thinkers are constantly looking for new ideas. They increase their odds on their success by doing so. Victor Hugo said, “There is nothing more powerful than an idea whose time has come.”

Some people believe that great ideas come only to the geniuses of the world. But finding great ideas is more than a function of attitude than aptitude.

An open-minded, creative person looks for ideas anywhere he can find them. And when he looks, he is slow to reject any idea until he has examined it thoroughly for any good that he can discover. It is said, that the great Thomas Edison, one of the world’s greatest inventors, discovered some of his greatest inventions when he examined a failed invention, but was able to see another unlooked-for use in it.

7. Don't Talk about your Health unless it is Good.

There are a few things in life that give people negative feelings faster than a person who talks about his poor health all the time. The first time or two that it happens, people will be sympathetic. After that, they will become irritated and negative.

Eventually, they will avoid the negative person altogether.

Share negative news about our health only with your closest friends and family.

8. Avoid Pettiness

Positive thinkers don't spend time and energy on petty things because pettiness can sidetrack them from their goals and priorities. This happens when something insignificant creates a wrong reaction in a person--a reaction disproportionately larger than a situation requires.

Consider these cases:

· Sweden and Poland fought in 1654 because the king of Sweden discovered that his name in an official dispatch was followed only by two etceteras, while the king of Poland had three.

· A small boy, by throwing a pebble at the duc de Gruise, led to the massacre of Vassy and the Thirty Years' War.

· The spilling of the glass of water over the Marquis de Torey led to war between France and England.

· A chinese emperor once went to war over the breaking of a teapot.

All of these were really petty to start a war and get a lot of lives killed in the process. But the reality is, many people are petty in nature.

Remember, a person is only as big as the things that make him angry.

9. Develop a Spirit of Giving

Albert Schweitzer, notable doctor and missionary to Africa, said, "The purpose of human life is to serve and to show compassion and the will to help others." He realized that the most positive contribution a positive thinker can make is in the area of giving to others.

When the people's attention is centered on serving others, they become more dynamic, more forceful, and harder to resist. After all, how can a person resist someone who is trying to help him solve a problem?

Develop a spirit of giving, then start living it...and you will find your life taking a positive turn.

Hopefully these principles will help you to think positively because, in truth, we all need it.

Stay Safe!

Thoughts on Positive Thinking, Part 1 of 2 series

In the past, I used to attend a lot of success seminars that were related to building a successful business network. It is always well-attended by people from all walks of life. I remembered in one of the seminars, i heard this quote, and it made a deep impression on me: You are only an attitude away from success.


Positive attitude are derived from positive thinking. We may not have positive attitude all the time but we can start to think positive all the time.

Positive thinking will give us positive results. And the good thing about positive thinking is that it can be learned by anyone, regardless of circumstances, temperament, or intellect.

The following are 5 of the 9 principles that I will be sharing to help you improve your ability to think positively:

1. Think, Talk, Walk, and Act like the person you wish to become.

Most people will wait until they feel positive before they do things positively. They have it backwards! Attitude follows action. Positive actions lead to positive thoughts. And positive thoughts lead to positive attitude. People with negative mind-sets will never become the positive person they desired to be if they wait for the feelings to move them forward into action.

2. Hold positive thoughts in your mind.

Andrew Carnegie once said, "The man who acquires the ability to take full possession of his own mind, may take possession of anything else to which he is justly entitled." When we begin to think in positive terms, and we see ourselves as successful, we start to become successful. If we wish to harvest the fruit of a successful life, we must do the work of a farmer. We cannot simply plant a few positive seeds, and then expect the rest to take care of itself. We must continually water those seeds, nurture them as the plant begins to grow, and fertilize them. Always give your thoughts to what is positive and success-focused.

3. Exude the Attitude of Well-being, Confidence, and Purpose.

As your thinking and actions become more positive, you will develop a sense of well-being. Your confidence will increase, and you will begin to sense a stronger sense of purpose in your life. As these things happen, others will begin to become more attracted to you because people enjoy being with positive people. Use others' positive responses to you to develop relationships and to help others become more positive.

4. Treat Everyone You Meet as the Most Important Person on Earth.

It is such as a fast-paced world that we live in. Most people move quickly from place to place focused on activities that they need to get accomplished. Often, they neglect to make time for the people that they come in contact with.

If you take time with the people you meet and give them your full attention in a positive way, it will make their day. You have added value to them, and in return they will also add value to you.

All people have the desire to feel important, needed, and appreciated. It is who we are as human beings. When you meet that need in people, it makes them positive about themselves and you. It creates a win-win outcome.

Another benefit of making others feel important is that they will make you feel important in return. The treatment most people receive is a reflection of how they treat others.

5. Look for the Best in Everyone.

Similar to the idea of making people feel important is the idea of looking for the best in people. There is good in the worst of us and bad in the best of us. What you look at is what you see. I have been blessed with a wonderful family, friends and colleagues. In part, that has been a gift from God. But it is also a result of my positive expectations for those around me.

I often tell people I work with to mentally place a"10" on the heads of everyone they meet. In other words, if you evaluated people on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the highest, expect those people to perform and act like a 10, and really believe it. More often than not, people will rise to your positive expectations. Looking for the best in others makes them feel good about themselves and gets them growing and striving to be the best they can be.

In my next blog, I will give the last 4 principles. Stay tuned!