I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions.* – Stephen Covey
Sure, circumstances have an influence on what happens.
But such pales in comparison to the impact of your actions.
*****
And, not to second-guess Covey’s choice-of-words, while decisions are important, but you must act on those decisions. Ever hear the one about the five frogs on a log? There’s five frogs on a log. One decides to jump off. How many frogs are on the log? Five.
“The ‘I think’ which Kant said must be able to accompany all my objects, is the ‘I breathe’ which actually does accompany them.” – William James I have long thought that Kant had it wrong when he said “I think, therefore I am.” Sometime not long after my Intro to Philosophy course at Hobart College…
The way to gain a good reputation is to endeavor to be what you desire to appear. – Socrates We all want* a good reputation, to be well-regarded in the eyes of others. Wanting a “good” reputation is not enough though. You need to have a clear picture. You need a plan for creating and…
Set your course by the stars, not by the lights of every passing ship. – Omar Bradley I’m pretty sure that by stars Mr. Bradley means values and by passing ship lights he is referring to the vagaries of popular opinion and culture. If so, he’s right. What do you value? Are your values reflected…
I recently read a post on Johnny B. Truant’s blog that really hit home. So much so that I wanted to do two things: share it with my readers and 2) think on and write about each piece of his post. The post is “20 Truths About Life No One Wants To Believe” and the second one I…
Human labor, through all its forms, from the sharpening of a stake to the construction of a city or an epic, is one immense illustration of the perfect compensation of the universe. The absolute balance of Give and Take, the doctrine that every thing has its price, — and if that price is not paid,…
The solution of the problem that you see in life is to live in a way that will make what is problematic disappear. – Ludvig Wittgenstein You can either solve problems, or you repress them. When you solve a problem you address, fully and completely, it’s cause. When you (merely) repress a problem, you will see it…