The Daily Motivator: May 2011

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Confident persistence

The more you try to please everybody, the less you'll be able to benefit anybody. If you worry constantly about what others will think, you'll sabotage your greatest accomplishments before they even get started.

Be kind, compassionate, thoughtful and considerate. Yet don't be a slave to the opinions of others.

By all means, hold yourself to the highest standards. Just be sure they are truly your standards, and not merely fears about what others may think.

Live and act true to what you know is right, and appropriate, and valuable. Follow your heart, your desires, your intuition and your own authentic dreams.

Listen to the criticism and advice, and learn from it. But don't let it dissuade you or delay you from doing what you know you must.

You can achieve whatever you choose if you'll just have the confidence and persistence to see it all the way through. Whatever others might say or think, create the great value that is yours to create.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2011 Ralph S. Marston, Jr. From The Daily Motivator at http://greatday.com where you will find an archive of more than 4,500 positive messages plus books, CDs, motivational videos and more. Permission is given to post online only if this entire notice is included.

Monday, May 30, 2011

No need

You get what you do not need. What you need, you do not have.

So long as you focus on need, you push away the object of your need. As soon as you can truly let go of the need for something, you can begin to experience more and more of it in your life.

Desperation builds a wall around you that lets nothing good come in. Thus, desperation leads to nothing but more desperation.

Every reality you create in your life begins with what you imagine. So use the power of your imagination to imagine abundance, instead of focusing your thoughts on need.

See yourself not as lacking, but as fulfilling. Let your thankfulness for what is possible crowd out any limiting thoughts of need or apprehension.

What you need, does you no good. With a grateful heart get beyond the need, and open yourself to all life's abundance.

-- Ralph Marston

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Discontent

If you blame your discontent on others, that will just make it grow bigger and more burdensome. Choose instead to embrace and to own that discontent fully, and you can make it go away.

There can be all sorts of reasons why you're unhappy with life. Yet it is not those reasons that matter, but rather what you're willing to think, to feel and to do.

When you accept that your discontent is yours and yours alone, you can quickly get beyond it. And though you may not be able to immediately change the outer conditions, you can instantly change your inner perspective.

What can weigh you down is not what has happened, but how you have chosen to respond. Choose to let go of the discontent, and free yourself to grab hold of the most positive possibilities.

Whether the situation is your fault or not, doesn't really matter now. Your best strategy is to be sincerely thankful for where you are, and to move quickly in the direction of where you wish to be.

Life can be tough on you, but you don't have to be so tough on yourself. Let go of your discontent, and let yourself soar to new, fulfilling heights.

-- Ralph Marston

Friday, May 27, 2011

Find your way

Don't complain that something is blocking your path. Find a way over it, under it, around it or through.

Just because the work is difficult doesn't mean it's impossible. Find a way, and you'll absolutely make it happen.

You can't expect to be told exactly what steps will get you where you want to go. Find joy and sweet fulfillment in the fact that it's up to you to find your own way.

Don't waste your time crafting elaborate excuses or seeking the pity of others. Invest your precious time in finding a way forward.

You might think it would be nice if someone else were to cater to your every need and whim. Yet what your spirit truly desires is to find its own way, and deep inside you know that.

You were born to find your own unique way through life's richness of possibilities. Your treasures await, so get going right now.

-- Ralph Marston

Thursday, May 26, 2011

Focus and purpose

Effort alone does not create achievement. Somebody can put forth a lifetime of effort and not have much to show for it.

What counts is focused effort in the service of a meaningful purpose. Get that, and you're really getting somewhere.

Just being busy is not going to make you successful. Instead of merely using up time, find a way to create real, desirable value with the time you have available.

Don't comfort yourself with being aimlessly busy. Challenge yourself to get meaningful results from your time and effort.

Outstanding achievement and disappointing mediocrity are both built from the same twenty-four hours in each day. The difference is not one of time or even effort, but of focus and authentic purpose.

As long as you're making the effort, as long as you're using up resources, as long as you're spending the time, make it all count. Make a habit of doing what really matters, and you'll enjoy a life that's really great.

-- Ralph Marston

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Fill your future

Is there something you wish you had done earlier? Although you can't go back to the past and get it done, you can take a valuable lesson from it.

Tomorrow, you may very well be wishing that you had done some particular thing today. Fortunately, you still have the opportunity to do it.

Looking ahead to next month, or next year, what actions will you wish you had already taken? Now is your chance to change each of them from a future wish into present reality.

Today, with your actions, you can make those future wishes come true. Today, you can avoid the painful regrets that would otherwise be headed your way.

What once seemed like a distant future has already come and gone. What you now consider to be the future is fast approaching, and can benefit greatly from what you choose to do with this day.

What can you do today that you'll soon thank yourself for doing? Instead of empty wishes and painful regrets, fill your future with sincere gratitude for what you're doing with right now.

-- Ralph Marston

Tuesday, May 24, 2011

Exceptional life

If you want to get lost in the crowd, do what has already been done. If you want to have plenty of competition, do only what is easy.

If, on the other hand, you wish to stand out from the crowd, listen to your own unique voice. If you wish to be an exceptional leader, be willing to take on the most difficult challenges.

Do you want people to pay attention to what you're saying? Then speak from your heart, and speak the truth in a way that has never been heard before.

The way to be truly exceptional is to be yourself. The way to be memorably impressive is to act upon and fulfill your own best intentions.

There is real, exceptional greatness already within you. Through your own efforts, with your own commitment and integrity, you can let that greatness flow out from you and into magnificent achievements.

You always have the option of living an exceptional life. With your attitude, with your thoughts, with your actions, choose that option now and always.

-- Ralph Marston

Monday, May 23, 2011

True to your best possibilities

You have a very good idea of what works for you and what doesn't. So here's a little reminder to do what works, right now, and let go of what doesn't.

You've probably told yourself ten thousand times that you've been meaning to do some particular thing, so here's a suggestion. Go ahead and get it done.

The distractions can be seductive, and they make it very easy to procrastinate. But merely filling your time won't fill your life.

You can do better and you've always known it. This moment right now is your opportunity to put the best of what you know you can do into action.

Here in front of you is a chance to live at your highest level of effectiveness. Where you are now, is where you can feel the powerful, intoxicating feeling of knowing you're living true to your best possibilities.

Dive head first into the immense richness of life that awaits you in this moment. Live, feel, think and act on a level that's worthy of the beautiful, unique, miraculous collection of possibilities that you are.

-- Ralph Marston

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Life is what it is

Life is unfair, your problems are not your fault, no one understands you, and there's never enough time. All of that is true and none of it matters.

What matters is what you choose to do with the situation as you find it. And despite all the challenges, you can choose to do some very spectacular, wonderful, valuable things.

Life is what it is, yet none of it has to hold you back. Life is what it is, and you can make purposeful use of it all.

Life is what it is, and the more eagerly you accept it the more richness you can create with it. Instead of complaining about the injustice and inconvenience, get busy and create a more compelling and robust alternative.

It's no big news flash that there are problems in the world, so don't waste your time spreading the word about them. Make the choice to invest your time building and spreading true goodness in your own special way.

This day is as it is, and with it you can do great things. Imagine the best possibilities, and enthusiastically give them life.

-- Ralph Marston

Friday, May 20, 2011

Your willingness

Your biggest limitation is your reluctance to move forward. Get over that, and you can get over anything.

Time, money, knowledge, and resources are minor considerations when compared to one vital factor. That factor is your willingness to get it done.

By all means do the research, raise the money, make the plans, and gather the materials. Then manifest your willingness by taking the action.

How do you reach the highest level of willingness, the level at which you step boldly forward? You make sure you're doing what really, truly matters to you.

Go ahead and admit there are some things that mean all the world to you. Your purpose is unique and beautiful, and there is no limit to the achievement it can inspire.

If you feel hesitation, there's something about what you're doing that's not in complete agreement with your purpose. Get honest, get authentic, and you'll find yourself getting it done.

-- Ralph Marston

Thursday, May 19, 2011

Worry and gratitude

One of the very best cures for worry is gratitude. When your thoughts are filled with gratitude, there's no room left for worry.

Whatever you focus your thoughts on, grows more prominent and abundant in your life. So instead of focusing on what you fear might happen, focus on what you know is already good in your world.

Worry is not any fun, and it doesn't get you anything you want to have. Gratitude, on the other hand, feels great and opens your life to more positive possibilities.

It's just as easy to be thankful as it is to be worried. You simply have to make the choice of one over the other.

If you try to fight against thoughts of worry, that just brings on more worry. Yet when you begin to count and appreciate your blessings, the worry gets crowded out of your mind.

Make a habit of being thankful. And you'll never have to worry.

-- Ralph Marston

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Blueprints

Your thoughts are the blueprints from which your days are constructed. Each action you take is informed and directed by the thoughts you think.

If your thoughts are disjointed and unfocused, the results you get will be meager and mostly meaningless. If your thoughts are filled with negativity and worry, your life will faithfully express your greatest fears.

Fortunately, you can do much, much better, and it's really not so difficult at all. You can choose, right now and as often as you wish, to fill your mind with positive, empowering thoughts.

All it takes is the will to do so. It is so easy to choose your thoughts, it seems almost trivial, and yet the results are anything but trivial.

When the blueprints are well designed, the building will be a strong, beautiful, functional structure. When your thoughts are consistently well chosen, your life will be consistently rich and fulfilling.

You can choose any thought, any time you wish. Remind yourself often to stick with those thoughts that continue to build your life into one that's truly great.

-- Ralph Marston

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Get it started

If you wait until the fear is gone, the opportunity will have already passed. If you wait until you're sure you'll get it perfect, you'll never get it started.

The time to act is when you have the intention. The time to act is as soon as you feel the urge to make a difference.

If you hesitate, you'll begin to talk yourself out of it. When you give in to doubt, doubt will seize the momentum.

Let the fear inform you and prepare you, but do not assume that it must stop you. Realize that whatever you doubt you can do is precisely what you must find a way to do.

Choose to transform each excuse for holding back into permission to step forward. Remind yourself that you can handle the uncertainty and the challenges, and can in fact thrive on them.

As soon as you decide to get it done, go ahead right then and get it started. Make the commitment, and you'll create the achievement.

-- Ralph Marston

Monday, May 16, 2011

Working for fun

What if hard work was actually fun? Just imagine how much more of it you would choose to do, and how much additional value you would create.

What if tedious work was actually fulfilling? Just think of how many more great things you could accomplish.

Imagine that some person or some group wanted to hold you back, to keep you from being your very best. What would be a good way of doing that?

One extremely effective way to hold millions of people back would be to spread the assumption that difficult, challenging work is to be avoided. That being the case, is it really an assumption you want to willingly hold on to?

What's fun, and satisfying, and fulfilling for you, is whatever you decide is fun, satisfying and fulfilling. If you so choose, that can include intense, difficult, challenging and even tedious work that creates great value.

Are you being held back by your assumptions about what is enjoyable and fulfilling, and what is not? You're free to change those assumptions any time you choose.

-- Ralph Marston

Saturday, May 14, 2011

Where you lead

If you don't notice and appreciate life's beauty today, why will anyone else? If you don't make the effort to make a difference, why should anyone else?

It's easy to assume that someone else will take up the slack. But when everyone makes that assumption, nothing much gets done.

Choose instead to act as if all of life is seeing itself through your eyes. Live as if all of life is depending on you to express its highest, most beautiful purpose through what you do.

Live as though your world depends on you. Because it does, even when no one appears to be watching, and even when no one seems to care.

All that you think, all that you do, and all that you are, truly matters. It goes far beyond you and makes the world what it is.

Lead with care, lead with positive purpose, lead with love. And your world becomes a little bit brighter as it follows where you lead.

-- Ralph Marston

Friday, May 13, 2011

Whatever results

To achieve, you must care enough to make the effort but not so much that you're afraid to fail. The most valuable results are reached by focusing intensely on what you're doing without attaching your sense of self worth to what you get from it.

Of course you would like to get the results you intended. But it's not the end of the world if you don't.

In fact, it is a powerful step in the right direction. No matter what results you get, you are still capable, you are more experienced than ever, and you are eminently worthy.

Imagine what you could do if you could do without worry. In fact, you can.

Think of how effective you could be if you didn't have to obsess over how effective you were being. Those who accomplish much, do so by being unconcerned that they might accomplish little.

You are uniquely beautiful and worthy no matter what results you get. Keep that in your mind and in your attitude, and you'll surely get truly great results.

-- Ralph Marston

Thursday, May 12, 2011

Begin and continue

Whether it is a small task or a life-changing project, the strategy for achievement is the same. Begin right away, and then continue for as long as necessary.

Are you worried you might not get it right? If you put your energy into worry, you won't get anything done at all.

Instead, step confidently up to the task right away, get going on it, and keep going. You'll know soon enough if you need to adjust your efforts to get precisely the result you intend.

There are plenty of very reasonable excuses for not getting started. But even the most valid, understandable excuses won't pay the bills or add to the quality of your life.

Instead of entertaining the worthless excuses or poisonous resentments, you can be making the effort. Instead of fretting about the possible obstacles, you can be steadily working your way past the real ones.

The achievement you seek is ready for you to claim it and bring it to life. Begin the effort now, continue as necessary, and that achievement will indeed be yours.

-- Ralph Marston

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Streak of bad luck

If you're having a bad day, or a bad week or year, it's nothing personal. In fact, it's nothing at all.

The fates are not malevolently aligned against you. You've just chosen to see it that way.

Your streak of bad luck will end at precisely the moment you decide it is over. The only thing that can make the future look bleak is your agonizing over the past, and that can end right now.

Misfortune is difficult when you're living through it. Yet as you do live through it, you build strength, experience, determination, and a solid connection to authentic purpose.

Instead of seeing yourself as a victim of your troubles, realize that as of now, you are very much a beneficiary of them. Though the pain may be deep, the power is even more profound.

With a renewed sense of purpose, look forward and move forward. Your future is yours to choose.

-- Ralph Marston

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Feel that way

What would your life be like if you were living at the most meaningful and fulfilled level you can imagine? If you want to be that way, then choose to feel that way.

Your desires are yours because of the way you expect they will make you feel. Yet no matter what your outside situation may be, your inner feelings are yours to choose in any flavor, at any time, in any circumstance.

By choosing the feelings that resonate with your dreams, you give real substance and life to those dreams. By deciding to feel that way, you become that way.

Though it may seem sometimes your feelings simply come over you, that's not the way it happens. Whatever you feel is what you have, by habit or by intention, chosen to feel.

So instead of feeling hopeless, decide to feel empowered. Instead of feeling angry or bitter, frustrated or fearful, choose to feel determined and effective.

Allow your most positive, affirming feelings to fill your awareness. And ride along with those feelings as they find real expression in the substance of your life.

-- Ralph Marston

Monday, May 9, 2011

You get to be you

Today you get to be you. Today you get to be immersed in the abundant richness that is your life.

Today you get to grow stronger by dealing with new and unique challenges. Today you have the immense good fortune of being able to create joy where none existed before.

On this day that's one of a kind, you get to experience the wonders of the universe from your own unique perspective. Today you can envision a dream and then immediately start working to bring that dream to life.

What's truly wonderful is that even in the midst of the most frustrating frustrations, you can make a difference. In your world, in your life and in the lives of others, you can make a positive difference.

Today, in a new and fulfilling way, you get to be you. And even the setbacks, shortcomings and obstacles make your life richer and more meaningful.

So here it is, and here you are. Stand up, step forward and live the grand adventure that now stretches out in front of you.

-- Ralph Marston

Saturday, May 7, 2011

You matter

The fear you have about being insignificant is a deception. As long as you have the courage to act, you will matter.

Your actions may very well fall short of the goal. You may pick yourself up and make another attempt, giving the entirety of your focus and energy to it, and fall short again.

Even so, you matter very much. You are unique and beautiful in your very own way and always able to take the next step, to make some kind of a difference, and to have an influence.

If you're even the slightest bit ambitious, it will take many attempts and will demand much of you. Don't punish or disrespect yourself for that.

Just keep going. You have something important and meaningful to do, so keep going until you get it done.

Then set your sights on an even more ambitious goal and quickly begin moving confidently toward it. You do indeed matter, you can always make a difference, and doing so is what will bring the fulfillment you seek.

-- Ralph Marston

Friday, May 6, 2011

Live your own life

You are special, so act like it. You are unique, so make the most of that uniqueness.

There's something you can contribute to this moment that no one else has to offer. There is a perspective from which you can experience this day that is unlike any other.

Don't settle for merely doing the same thing as anyone else, or mimicking the opinions, desires and dreams of others. Live your own life, and explore the unique beauty of your very own dreams, thoughts, opinions and interests.

Your greatest value comes from being who you truly are. Let your beautiful, unique, fascinating and authentic self come fully to life.

Instead of spinning your wheels and striving to be someone you're not, enjoy the sweet fulfillment of being who you really want to be. Instead of trying in vain to please others with who you think they think you should be, impress them with who you really are.

Know the true joy of being your true self. Honor and appreciate all of life by fully and authentically living the one very special life that is yours.

-- Ralph Marston

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Series of miracles

Today is nothing less than a miracle. Your life is even more of a miracle.

Feeling the warm sun on your face seems like such a simple thing. And yet that simple little experience is made possible by unimaginably complex and profound factors, all coming together in a single moment.

And then, when one amazing moment is finished, another has just begun. Even the most seemingly ordinary life is a series of magnificent miracles, each one following quickly after the one before.

It is all too easy to take it all for granted. And just the fact that you can take it for granted is itself an amazing thing.

You can never fully appreciate all that goes into the wonder in which you're immersed. And because of that, there is no limit to how much you can treasure it all.

Even when you are continually thankful, there is always more for which to be thankful. Even when you know you have it good, you don't ever fully know how good you have it.

Celebrate the miracles that come in every moment within the overall miracle that is your life. And as each moment falls away, there is another one for you to celebrate.

-- Ralph Marston

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Do the hard work

Don't avoid the hard work. That's where the greatest value is created.

Don't be afraid of the difficult, complicated, challenging tasks. Once you get past the fear, you're already past the most difficult aspect.

Relish the opportunity to do the hard work. For it is an opportunity to experience yourself being fully alive and effective.

Find real enjoyment and satisfaction in doing the difficult work. Get yourself hooked on how good it feels to make a meaningful positive difference.

It's often assumed that hard work is best avoided. Yet when you avoid hard work, you cheat yourself out of the joy of accomplishment.

Seek out the hard work and you'll find it's not bad at all. Do the hard work, and transform each day, each moment and each effort into great value.

-- Ralph Marston

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

You achieve

Every day, you are achieving something. With every moment, every action, every word, gesture, thought and feeling, you exert influence on your world.

Everything you do is an achievement of some kind. The question is, where are those achievements taking you?

Are your constant achievements bringing you closer to the life you ultimately desire to live, or are they holding you back? Are your achievements satisfying and fulfilling, or are they just getting you through the day and passing the time?

With your attitude, your focus and your actions, you can choose your achievements. And by choosing your achievements, you are choosing the kind of life you experience.

Because you are so skilled at achievement, you have a grand opportunity available to you right now. Let yourself dream, and know that your very own abilities can enable you to reach that dream if you choose.

You are constantly achieving, so point those achievements in a joyous and meaningful direction. You achieve, so use those achievements to make your life the very best it can be.

-- Ralph Marston

Monday, May 2, 2011

Life is good

Life is difficult, life is unfair, life is challenging and sometimes painful. And life is so very good.

There are frustrations, tragedies, disappointments, setbacks, heartbreaks, and absurdities. The simple joy of being outweighs them all.

Life is good, because within its realm, anything is possible. Life is good, because no matter how far you fall, there is always a way to climb back up again.

You can complain, fret and worry about all the problems in your life, but you'll be wasting your time. Or, you can choose to focus on why and how life is so good, and on what you can do to take that goodness and make it even better.

Not only is life good, it's uniquely good for you in your very own way. The possibilities for expressing your purpose are limited only by your imagination.

Remind yourself often of the great and wonderful value that you already, always have. Life is good, and in this moment that's bursting with possibilities, life is yours.

-- Ralph Marston

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