Laws control the lesser man . . . . Right conduct controls the greater one. – Mark Twain
Someone with a strong character needs no external guide or precepts to determine behavior.
Where do you look for guidance?
Do you consult “laws” to see what’s acceptable?
Or do you consult your ethics to see what’s right?
A life lived consulting ethics is a much more satisfying – albeit sometimes more challenging – life.
If life was so easy that you could just go buy success, there would be a lot more successful companies in the world. Successful enterprise are built from the ground up. – Lou Gerstner The starting point of all achievement is desire. Keep this constantly in mind. Weak desires bring weak results, just as a small…
Everyone wants to be appreciated. So if you appreciate someone, don’t keep it a secret. – Mary Kay Ash Is it a wonderful, great, generous idea and practice to acknowledge and appreciate others? Absolutely. But you can’t give what you don’t see in yourself. What can you appreciate about you today? Take a minute and, sincerely,…
Character is much easier kept than recovered. – Thomas Paine Whatever it takes to earn the esteem and trust is but a fraction of what it takes to rebuild yourself in the eyes of others. And that’s assuming it’s even possible. Sometimes, once you lose the confidence of people it can be impossible to get…
I read recently that the Dalai Lama said that enlightenment is love and insight working together, like wings on a bird. I love this idea because it conjures a rich metaphor for understanding our lives. Neither love or insight alone is enough to live well. Both must come together and act in concert for us to to…
Be thankful for what you have; you’ll end up having more. If you concentrate on what you don’t have, you will never, ever have enough. – Oprah Winfrey What you focus on is everything. Imagine your “focus” is a steering wheel in a car. Where you steer towards is what you get. Of course, sometimes…
It’s raining today. When I went outside, even with an umbrella, I got wet (or at least my shoes and lower pant legs got wet). I love nice weather, whether or not it includes rain.* Many people equate sunny skies and dry feet with nice weather. If it’s raining (or snowing . . . )…