Be better

When you are treated rudely, it is tempting to offer rudeness in return. But all that does is add more discord to your life.

It is difficult to show genuine consideration toward someone who has been inconsiderate or disrespectful toward you. And yet, that is precisely the response that most powerfully advances your life.

When you get yourself mired in fighting back against every perceived slight, you become a slave to the rude, destructive behavior of others. Choose instead to let it go, and then to rise above it.

You don't have to be snide, or vengeful or resentful. You can be better.

Instead of being negatively controlled by your anger, be positively propelled by your highest dreams and visions. Let go of the silly, petty issues, and focus your energy on what's truly meaningful and fulfilling to you.

Be better, not out of arrogance or spite or pride, but out of the desire to bring your most positive possibilities to fruition. Transcend the frivolous drama, and take the high road to the fulfillment of your dreams.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Make your luck

Wish for good luck, and you'll likely end up disappointed. Make your own luck, and you'll make it as good as you can imagine.

Fulfillment does not just come to you out of nowhere. The fulfillment you experience in your life is the fulfillment you choose to create.

It might be comforting to chalk up your failures to bad luck. However, it is much more empowering to quickly and eagerly accept responsibility for all your outcomes.

Sure, it is helpful to have outside factors working on your behalf. And the best way to make that happen is to get your own committed efforts working on your behalf.

Let go of the notion that luck is something that randomly happens to you. Embrace the powerful reality that comes from making your own luck.

Nothing is going to magically bring an ideal life to you, and yet, the magic is there nonetheless. Because the magic is in you, and in your ability to make your life the way you want it to be.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

The power to do it

You can do it, when you have a good and meaningful reason. You can do it, if you commit to it and act on it and persist until the goal is reached.

You can start with what is, and make it into whatever you would like it to be. You can begin from where you are, and get to where you want to be.

Instead if idly letting the moments pass by, you can make full use of each one. Instead of complaining that you don't know what to do, you can experiment with different approaches until you get it right.

You don't ever have to settle for less than the very best from life. Because you can envision what you desire and you can work diligently to make it so.

Some would assume that the necessity of effort is a burdensome curse. Yet in reality it is one of life's greatest blessings.

For it is the necessity of effort that enables you to dream your most treasured dreams, and then to make them real. You have the power to do it, and right here, right now, is when you can.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Create your experience

You've made plenty of mistakes. Now is when you can positively apply the lessons you've learned from those mistakes.

You've made lots of excuses, and found that those excuses have not brought any value to your life. Now you're in a position to leave the excuses behind and to take the actions that create real value.

You've fantasized about getting something for nothing. Yet now you realize that your own fulfillment must come from your own efforts.

It's easy to see now that most of the limitations that have held you back have been self-imposed. And with that realization comes genuine freedom from those limitations.

When you understand how much you've held yourself back, you can also see how truly powerful you are. Now is your opportunity to direct that power toward a meaningful, positive purpose.

Each day, each moment, you create your own unique experience of life. Now, get busy and create something truly magnificent.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Everything can move you forward

Failure is a result of what has already been done, not an indication of what you can now move forward and do. Each failure, in fact, can move you closer to success.

Don't let disappointing results reduce your confidence. It's more realistic, and much more effective, to let each failure strengthen your confidence.

The more experience you have with what doesn't work, the more you'll move in the direction of what does work. With persistence and a clear sense of purpose, failure can lead you steadily toward success.

Failure is not the worst thing that can happen. The worst thing that can happen is to do nothing.

Each and every result, whether it's the intended result or not, means that you're making an effort. Learn each time, from the desirable results and the undesirable ones, and boost your confidence with each step.

Rather than being ashamed of failure or dismayed by it, make good and positive use of it. Quickly get back up, keep going, and know that everything can move you forward.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Choose to enjoy

Make life more enjoyable by choosing to see more of it as enjoyable. Instead of assuming that what you're doing is unpleasant just because everyone else thinks so, see if you can find a way to enjoy it.

Much of what makes life unpleasant is your worry that you're missing out on something more enjoyable. Let go of that worry, enjoy the moment you're in, and feel the genuine beauty of life that lives within you.

The distinction between work and play is nothing more than a judgment call. Instead of making that judgment, make the choice to put meaning and fulfillment into whatever you're doing.

It's easy to feel confined by your commitments and obligations. Yet when you choose, it is just as easy, and just as realistic, to feel enthusiastic and empowered by whatever it is you must do.

Your situation is what it is. However, the way you feel about your situation is completely up to you.

It feels much better to feel better, and it makes you vastly more effective at bringing real value to life. So choose more often to enjoy, and happily experience life on your own enjoyable terms.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Do what matters

The life you long to live is as close as your next action. All you have to do, is to do what matters.

The fulfillment of your most beautiful dreams can begin right now. All you must do, is to do what truly matters.

You are not here to live out someone else's idea of a satisfying life. You have your very own unique perspective on what is important and meaningful.

If you're continually frustrated with what you're doing, the answer is clear. End your frustration by investing your time and effort in what matters.

When you know you're doing what truly matters, the challenges and obstacles will still come your way. However, you will absolutely have the energy, the commitment, the drive and fortitude to successfully work through every difficulty.

Life is always best when you do what matters most to you. In all you do, do what matters, and bring your very best possibilities brilliantly to life.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Disappointment happens

The only sure way to avoid disappointment is to avoid doing anything with your life. But then that would be the ultimate disappointment.

When you step forward, you will occasionally encounter disappointment. However, if you never step forward, your whole life will be a disappointment.

Disappointment happens, and yet it never has to stop you. Disappointment, as painful as it may be, is a normal part of a rich, successful and fulfilled life.

Things are not always going to go your way. Fortunately, no disappointment has to be permanent, because you can always pick yourself up and move positively forward from it.

Right now, every disappointment you've ever known is in your past. Right now, you have the opportunity to learn powerful, positive lessons from both the triumphs and the disappointments, and to find new energy for following your dreams.

Don't take the disappointments personally, but rather, take them in stride. Then rise quickly above them, knowing that you have more and more of what it takes to bring true richness and fulfillment to your life.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

The best light

Would you like to have less stress in your life? Then quit creating so much.

Instead of jumping at the chance to be offended, choose to be amused. Rather than filling your thoughts with resentment, fill your heart with forgiveness.

If someone is rude to you, let it be that person's problem and not yours. Quickly move beyond each disappointment, while savoring and extending and sharing each joy.

The world in general is what it is. Yet your life in particular, and your experience of it, is the way you choose to make it.

When you encounter difficult, frustrating situations, choose to respond with patience and understanding. When things don't go your way, see it not as a disappointment but rather as an opportunity to make positive improvements.

Take each occurrence in stride, confidently knowing that you can make the best of it. Life is good when you see it as good, so decide to always see it in the best light you can imagine.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Your life is yours

True fulfillment requires responsibility. Your life is yours, so step up and take responsibility for it.

If you expect someone else to do it for you, what you end up with will have no real meaning to you. When you avoid responsibility you cheat yourself out of much of life's richness.

Living with full responsibility for your own life is not easy. Yet taking the easy way out in the short term, leads to a life that is tragically difficult in the long run.

It's your life, and you have the priceless opportunity to live it. So go ahead and live it, with all the ups and downs, with the frustrations and inconveniences, with all the setbacks and all the joys.

Let go of the fantasy that someone or something will come along and make it all easy for you. Instead, experience the matchless satisfaction of solving your own problems and making your own way in life.

Celebrate and fulfill the unique, beautiful possibilities that are yours. Take responsibility, and get a life that's rich with meaning.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Stop putting it off

If there's something that must be done, go ahead and get it finished. Get busy, get it done, and feel the freedom of no longer having it hanging over your head.

Sure, it will take some focused, concentrated effort. Yes, it may be annoying and inconvenient. However, those are not reasons to avoid it. Those are great reasons to go ahead and get it behind you.

Instead of filling your day with worry and dread and resentment and guilt, fill it with effective, productive effort. Instead of making excuses and ending up getting nowhere, make some real progress and get the task behind you.

The energy you spend putting it off is one hundred percent wasted energy. The energy you spend getting it done is what will make a real, discernable, positive difference in your world.

So get yourself going and get it done. Now is the time and this is the place from which you can move confidently forward.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Look forward

Don't base your attitude on what you've already experienced in the past. Choose your attitude based on what you would most like to experience in the future.

The way you decide to see the world determines what kind of world you see. Decide to see, and to live in, the very best world you can imagine.

Don't waste a lot of time complaining about what has already happened. Put your time and energy into envisioning and planning and acting to create the life you truly wish to live.

Look forward with eager anticipation, see life at its best, and smile about what you see. What's ahead is what counts, because that's what you have the opportunity to choose right now.

There's never any reason to be discouraged. No matter where you are or where you've been, you can choose a positive future for yourself.

Look forward, and see the positive possibilities. Look forward, and step decisively toward the best of them.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Drop the negativity

Negativity is a waste of your precious time. You deserve much better, so give the very best of life to yourself.

When you catch the slightest bit of negativity creeping into your thoughts, visualize yourself taking hold of it and then simply letting it drop to the ground. Feel the spark of energy that comes from your newly gained freedom, and step positively forward.

Worries are worthless, so don't bother with them. Resentment over a difficult situation actually makes that situation worse, so remind yourself there's no point in it.

Limitless abundance and great value are here to be found in this moment. What a shame it would be if any little bit of useless negativity were to block that abundance from your awareness.

Joy and fulfillment are your destiny, so let them flow freely from you. Rise above the pettiness that often threatens to draw you in, and give your focus to the good things that truly matter.

Give your precious time the respect and appreciation it so richly deserves. Fill it with beautiful, meaningful, positive purpose.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Live with love

Life is beautiful. And love greatly magnifies that beauty.

Love has no reason. It is the reason.

Give love, and you have even more. Live with love, and you live with all the richness life has to offer.

Let yourself love sincerely, without expectation, just because that love flows naturally from who you are. Let go of the pretenses, fears and inhibitions, and live with the love that is at the center of you.

Live with love, and it brings out the best in you. Think, speak and act from a perspective of real, authentic love, and the result is genuine and growing fulfillment.

Live with love. For love will carry you forward like nothing else can.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

A job well done

Stop fighting against what you must do and allow your best efforts to flow. Let go of thoughts about how difficult or frustrating or inconvenient or unfair it is, and let yourself get it done.

Quit wishing that you were somewhere else, or that things had worked out differently. From where you are, with what you have, with positive purpose and determination you are able to make life the best it can be.

Rejoice at each little opportunity to make a difference. Feel the power as each action you take adds real value to life.

Whatever you must do is not a burden. It is a new, unique chance to express and experience the beauty of being alive.

Do what you do with love and care, with enthusiasm and joy. Allow yourself to enjoy each challenge and every effort, because you deserve it.

Get the work done, and have a great time doing it. Experience, again and again, the priceless satisfaction of a job well done.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Welcome the criticism

There is no law that says you have to be hurt by criticism. In fact, you can choose to thrive on it.

No, you don't want to intentionally offend people or do truly foolish things. But there's no reason why you ever have to let anyone else's opinion of you get you down.

It's nice to have positive feedback. Yet it can be far more useful and instructive to receive negative feedback.

It is good to know what you're doing right. Yet the biggest potential for improvement comes when you understand what you're doing wrong.

Instead of being defensive or resentful about the criticism you receive, be appreciative. If someone has a problem with you, let it be that person's problem and let it be your gain.

You are absolutely worthy, apart from what anyone else may think, and fully capable of continual improvement. Welcome the criticism and the opportunities it brings, and use it to make each day, each effort, each experience even better than the one before.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Be specific

Achievement is not generic. In order to achieve, you must achieve something specific.

If you seek true fulfillment, you have to precisely define what that fulfillment looks like. Being successful means being successful in some particular endeavor.

Instead of just wishing for a better life or wishing for a more pleasant situation, be specific. An essential part of getting what you desire is clearly expressing what you desire.

To make your dreams real, give them rich and compelling details. Be specific, to such a degree that you can literally touch those dreams from where you are.

Life's abundance is infinitely flexible and malleable. Your job is to shape that abundance into something truly meaningful.

There is no shortage of energy and raw material for you to work with. Be specific about what you desire, and bring those desires to life.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

A great future

Think ahead, act ahead, and you'll get ahead. Consider your future consequences right now, while you are in a position to determine what those consequences will be.

Live fully in the moment where you are, while creating value for the many moments that will come. Time gives you enormous leverage, so use it.

A small action today can have a big influence a year from now, or five years from now. Use each day as an opportunity to make a better future for yourself.

Focus on the long-term value of each situation. The best opportunities are often hidden in plain sight behind the time required for their fulfillment.

Live your life in such a way that you'll be thankful tomorrow for what you've done today. Make your future bright by making the most of the present.

Look ahead, plan ahead, live ahead, and put yourself ahead. A great future is yours to create right now.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

The power of enthusiasm

Your life is a great and wonderful experience, so don't be afraid to show some genuine, infectious enthusiasm for it. The world is filled with outstanding opportunities, and you can make the most of those opportunities by being enthusiastic about them.

Yes, sometimes you might look a little bit silly. However, it's much better to be laughed at for being enthusiastic than to be pitied and avoided for being dull.

Enthusiasm keeps you young, energizes your days, and attracts positive people to your efforts. Enthusiasm keeps you focused on moving forward, even when there are obstacles and distractions working against you.

To be enthusiastic, you must do what you truly care about, and genuinely care about what you're doing. To be enthusiastic, be honest with yourself about what your passions are, and follow those passions without holding back.

Feel how good it feels to let enthusiasm freely flow. Feel how powerful it is when your actions are continually energized by your enthusiasm.

Find those things about which you can be authentically enthusiastic. And then, let the power of your enthusiasm flow.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Enjoy the effort

Effort can be complicated, inconvenient, tedious, frustrating and unpleasant. Yet it also can be liberating, enriching, empowering, fascinating and downright enjoyable.

Effort creates value, and is an essential part of life. Though it is not always easy, and sometimes fails to produce the desired results, it is always worth the trouble.

Though effort can often feel like a burden, that's mostly because you have decided for it to feel that way. The great thing is, you can always choose to feel however you wish to feel about the effort you're making.

As long as you're making the effort anyway, you might as well embrace it and get the very most from it. There's a reason why you're making the effort, so your best strategy is to treat that effort as an opportunity rather than as a burden.

Yes, it may be complicated, yet that complexity will compel you to learn new and valuable things. Sure, it might be frustrating and tedious, and yet that will build the power of your patience.

Instead of resenting or fighting against the necessity of effort, be thankful that you're in a position to make that effort, and by so doing to create new value. Choose to enjoy the effort, and you'll get the greatest possible rewards from whatever you're doing.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

You can make a difference

When things go wrong, don't despair. You can make a difference, so get busy and do it.

Don't be afraid to acknowledge and accept what has already happened. Because you can take what is, whatever it may be, and use it to make a positive difference.

There's no need to worry about whether or not you're lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time. It is always the right place and the right time for you to make a difference.

Making a difference demands much of you in the way of time, effort, skill and commitment. Fortunately, you're entirely capable of giving all that and more in the service of making a meaningful difference.

Everything that happens is an opportunity for you to make a difference. Rather than wasting your energy on judgment and remorse, put that energy into making a difference.

Every one of your abilities gives you the ability to make a difference. Hold true to your vision of the best that life can be, and make a difference to make it so.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

The vision inside

Achievement flows from the inside out. To experience an exceptional life on the outside, you must nurture exceptionally positive values on the inside.

You cannot be angry, resentful, envious or cynical on the inside and expect to achieve anything of value. No matter where you might attempt to direct it, your negativity hurts you more than anyone else.

The great thing is, you can experience an outstanding life if you will constantly and persistently envision an outstanding life. That positive vision will itself drive your actions to ensure its own fulfillment.

There is great and unique beauty living within you. Connect with it, acknowledge it, express it and watch as your actions create corresponding beauty in the world around you.

Achievement begins, continues and culminates with the vision of achievement that lives inside you. Fulfillment flows naturally and unceasingly from the integrity of your inner self.

Keep that inner vision strong, and keep that integrity intact. The whole of life surrounding you is eagerly awaiting the full expression of the beautiful vision that lives inside you.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

On your own terms

It's your life, so be willing to be fully responsible for it. Take charge of your own destiny.

Don't sit around hoping somebody will give you a break. Get busy and do the work that will enable you to live life fully on your own terms.

Avoid falling into the trap of blaming others for your situation. For when you assign blame to others, you are putting yourself under their control.

Instead, put yourself and your life under your own control. You know what's best for you, so do what is necessary to make that happen.

If you could use some encouragement, give it to yourself. When there's something you don't know how to do, take it upon yourself to learn.

The fulfillment you seek is something you must create as a result of your own responsibility, commitment, discipline and efforts. Get focused, get busy and experience the outstanding joy of living life on your own terms.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

The richness of today

This day, and all its rich possibilities, will soon be gone. Now is the time to claim the best of those possibilities and transform them into lasting value.

Of all the resources available to you, time is among the very most precious. That's because there is no limit to the value you can create with your time, and also because once a moment or a day has passed, there's nothing more you can do with it.

Raw and available abundance is streaming into your life right now in massive quantities. This is your opportunity to mold that abundance into lasting value, so you can benefit from it for a long time to come.

Live this day fully, by applying your effort and focus in meaningful and effective ways. By doing so, you will make the richness of today an enduring part of your life.

Drop your meaningless pretenses and useless worries about the future, and put your energy into living the richness of what is right now. Feel the great opportunity that is in front of you, and make it uniquely yours.

While it is still here, bring today's richness into your life. And make this day one you can look back upon with satisfaction and immense gratitude.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.

Make the troubles irrelevant

If something is troubling you, or doesn't agree with you, don't fight it. Instead, make it irrelevant.

Create so much goodness in your life that it more than offsets the difficulties. Rather than fighting against the troubles on their level, rise above them to a level where they don't have an impact.

Yes, you can do it. Because you have the powerful, amazing ability to direct your focus, your attention and the entirety of your spirit in any way you choose.

There are all sorts of negative things in life that you simply can't do anything to erase. Fortunately, you don't have to, because you can create a more positive and compelling alternative to each of them.

The troubles in life are very real, and yet they never have to get you down. Because you can choose to raise your spirit higher, and then bring the rest of the world along with you.

Instead of fighting against what you fear, build and nurture and strengthen what you love. Put so much love, joy, goodness and beauty in your life that there's no room left for fear.

-- Ralph Marston

Copyright (c) 2012 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.