COMMENTARY 798.1: We Don’t Need Anti-Bullying Programs
Though intensive media attention on bullying has died down, the problem persists in many forms, and it continues to diminish the lives of tens of thousands of students every day. According to a recent survey, roughly half of all high school students say that in the past year they were bullied in a manner that seriously upset them. A similar …
COMMENTARY 797.5: The Road to Significance
The most traditional way to measure the quality of one’s life is to evaluate success by listing accolades, achievements, and acquisitions. After all, in its simplest terms, success is getting what we want and most people want wealth and status. Yet, as much pleasure as these attributes can bring, the rich, powerful, and famous usually discover that true happiness will …
QUOTE & POSTER: Mastering the Art of Living
You have mastered the art of living when you can face: 1. Trouble with courage 2. Disappointment with cheerfulness 3. Difficulties with determination
QUOTE & POSTER: The Remedy for Blind Partisanship
“A mature person is one who does not think only in absolutes, who is able to be objective even when deeply stirred emotionally, who has learned that there is both good and bad in all people and in all things, and who walks humbly and deals charitably with the circumstances of life, knowing that in this world no one is …
QUOTE & POSTER: The difference between a try and a triumph is a little UMPH
Nothing worth learning comes the first time, but with effort and persistence the world is yours! Click read more to see poster
QUOTE & POSTER: In the natural order of the world, suffering is random. Bad things happen to good people just about …
In the natural order of the world, suffering is random. Bad things happen to good people just about as often as they happen to bad people. We have not been given a shield protecting us from misfortune, but there is within all of us waiting to be discovered, the strength to deal with misfortune, to overcome it, and learn from …
WORTH SEEING – Poster – Every now and then it’s a good thing to stop looking for happiness and just be happy. Michael Josephson
See more at https://www.facebook.com/WhatWillMatter?ref=hl
When you’re down, get up!
The surest way to escape depression and defeat despair is action. When you’re down, get up! No matter how hard it is, get outside your head and get back into the world where the sun is still shining.
WORTH SEEING: Poster – FIVE THINGS TO TEACH CHILDREN
1. Be a good friend. 2. Be kind even to those who don’t deserve it. 3. Learn from every experience. 4. Do your share even when others aren’t doing theirs. 5. Start and finish a job even when you don’t feel like it. – Michael Josephson
Who You Are
It’s not where you’re from; it’s where you’re going. It’s not what you drive; it’s what drives you. It’s not what you think; it’s what you do. It’s not who you were; it’s who you become. It’s not who you know; it’s who you are. – Michael Josephson
COMMENTARY 796.5: Curing Victimitis
Watch your thoughts; they lead to attitudes. Watch your attitudes; they lead to words. Watch your words; they lead to actions. Watch your actions; they lead to habits. Watch your habits; they form your character. Watch your character; it determines your destiny. These words of unknown origin tell us that our silent and often subconscious choices shape our future. Every …
Our Business in Life
Our business in life is not to get ahead of others, but to get ahead of ourselves — to break our own records, to outstrip our yesterday by our today. – Stewart B. Johnson
COMMENTARY 795.3: The Self-Portrait Called Character
While I was on a radio call-in show talking about cheating, a listener I’ll call Stan mocked my concern. He cheated to get into college, he said. He cheated in college to get a job. And now he occasionally cheats on his job to get ahead. In fact, he concluded, cheating is such an important life skill that parents ought …
COMMENTARY 795.1: I Just Talk to People
Marta was a hard-working single mother. When her minister sermonized about “living a life that matters,” she worried that working to raise her kids and going to church wasn’t enough. So, on the bus to work she made a list of other jobs she could do and volunteer work she could try. Sylvia, an elderly woman, saw the worry on …
COMMENTARY 794.5: Doing Sports Right
When I was a kid playing sports, there were no clubs, travel teams, or private coaches. Except for summer baseball leagues, the primary place to play was high school. When I was in the 10th grade, I wanted to play basketball in the worst way. Unfortunately, given my size and talent, that’s how I played. But in those days, sports …
COMMENTARY 794.3: The Yuppie Lifestyle and Satisfaction
T.S. Eliot said, “Half of the harm that is done in this world is due to people who want to feel important. They do not mean to do harm…they are absorbed in the endless struggle to think well of themselves.” How do we feel important? Often, it’s by trying to obtain an image of success created by a culture that …
COMMENTARY: Living and Reading
One of the most insightful and useful books I’ve ever read is a small volume by Harold Kushner called Living a Life That Matters. I’ll talk about the content of the book in future commentaries. Today, I want to suggest ways of getting the most out of books, at least non-fiction books, which is about all I read. Reading shouldn’t …
COMMENTARY 793.2: Kids Like to Win; Adults Need to Win
Whether you’re a sports fan or not, you have to acknowledge the powerful cultural influence that sports have on our culture. The values of millions of participants and spectators are shaped by the values conveyed in sports, including our views of what is permissible and proper in the competitive pursuit of personal goals. Professional sports and even highly competitive intercollegiate …
COMMENTARY 793.1: Tell Someone They’re Valued
The students at Sandy’s high school were badly shaken by the news that a classmate had killed himself. The suicide note said, “It’s hard to live when nobody cares if you die.” Glen, a teacher, realized this was a teachable moment about the importance of making people feel valued. He asked the class to imagine they were about to die …
COMMENTARY 792.5: The Journey Through Adolescence
One of the toughest jobs in the world is being a teenager. Everything is in transition. Everything is intense — even apathy. Kids on the brink of adulthood have to cope with inconsistencies and conflicts. The desire to be special and different clashes with the need to belong and fit in. The desire for independence collides with an aversion to …
COMMENTARY 791.5: Blessing Or Curse?
A man and his companion lost their way in a forest. The companion despaired, but the man said maybe some good would come of it. They came upon a stranger who needed the man’s help. The stranger turned out to be a prince who gave the man a beautiful horse. His neighbors praised his good luck and said, “How blessed …
COMMENTARY 791.3: Wisdom in 20 Words or Fewer: Part One
Since my children were small, I launched their day with the invocation to “be good, have fun and learn.” I hope they remember that mantra, but now that my daughter Samara is beginning her independent life as a college freshman 3,000 miles away, I think a more detailed set of maxims is needed. So, I’ve begun to assemble a collection …
COMMENTARY 790.2: Ramadan Kareem
Ramadan Kareem. Ramadan Mubarak. Kul ‘am wa enta bi-khair! (May every year find you in good health!) Please forgive my pronunciation, but I want to respectfully offer warm wishes and greetings to my Muslim brothers and sisters during the holy month of Ramadan. To those whose entire perspective of Islam and the Qur’an is shaped by fear and hatred of Muslim extremists …
COMMENTARY 789.3: The Illusion of Success
A common management strategy to spur achievement is to set aggressive performance objectives that, like the mechanical rabbits that pace racing greyhounds, push employees to maximum effort. Using “stretch goals” can be successful, but unreasonably high performance goals often spawn dishonesty and irresponsibility. Believing that “it’s a matter of survival,” a disturbing number of employees conclude that distortion, deception, and even …