“When you have the choice of whether to be right nor kind, be kind.” – Wayne Dyer
CONSIDER YOURSELF A WORK IN PROCESS.
CONSIDER YOURSELF A WORK IN PROCESS. “It is never too late to become a happier person. It is never too late to become a better person. None of us are all we could be or should be. We must see and pursue our positive potential and take comfort knowing that we are better than we used to be and not …
State Department Sponsors Sessions on Josephson Institute’s Exemplary Peace Officer Model
STATE DEPARTMENT SPONSORS SESSIONS ON JOSEPHSON INSTITUTE’S EXEMPLARY PEACE OFFICER MODEL FOR KYRGYZSTAN AND PALESTINIAN POLICE The U.S. State Department occasionally asks me to meet with visiting delegations interested in my work in the policing field. In January I met with the top state policing leaders from the country of Kyrgyzstan and last week, directors and commanders of the West Bank’s …
WHAT I’VE BEEN DOING — Consulting with Kyrgyzstan & West Bank Police
The U.S. State Department occasionally asks me to meet with visiting delegations interested in my work in the policing field. In January I met with the top state policing leaders from the country of Kyrgyzstan and last week, directors and commanders of the West Bank’s Palestinian Civil Police and the Presidential Guard (like our Secret Service). Despite major cultural differences …
Kind Hearts…
“Kind hearts are the gardens. Kind thoughts are the roots. Kind words are the flowers. Kind deeds are the fruits. Take care of your garden and keep out the weeds. Fill it with sunshine, kind words and kind deeds.” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Over your lifetime…
Over your lifetime, this piece of paper is worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Education is the best investment you will ever make.
People of Character Do the Right Thing
“People of character do the right thing, even if no one else does; not because they think it will change the world, but because they refuse to be changed by the world.” – Michael Josephson
COMMENTARY 973.4: The Pressure to Cheat
What’s causing the growing hole in our moral ozone? Why are cheating and lying so common in schools, on the sports field, and in business and politics? Apparently it’s a thing called pressure. Kids are under pressure to get into college, athletes and coaches are under pressure to win, and, according to a survey by the American Management Association, the …
The Brighter Your Outlook, the Brighter Your Future
The brighter your outlook, the brighter your future. Your life improves with a positive attitude.
If You Can Learn to Live with the Needles…
If you can learn to live with the needles, you can enjoy the flowers.
COMMENTARY 973.3: Gifts From the Heart Are Gifts of the Heart
According to legend, a young man roaming the desert came across a spring of delicious crystal-clear water. The water was so sweet he filled his leather canteen so he could bring some back to a tribal elder who had been his teacher. After a four-day journey, he presented the water to the old man, who took a deep drink, smiled …
What Will Matter In the End
“What will matter in the end is not what you bought but what you built; not what you got but what you gave; not what you learned but what you taught. What will matter is not your competence but your character.” – Michael Josephson. Click here to read the entire poem.
“It’s easy to dodge our responsibilities, but we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities.” – Sir Josiah Stamp
“It’s easy to dodge our responsibilities, but we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities.” – Sir Josiah Stamp
Our Choices Show What We Are
Harry: “The Sorting Hat only put me in Gryffindor, because I asked not to go in Slytherin.” Professor Dumbledore: “Exactly. It is our choices that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” – from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
COMMENTARY 973.2: Digging and Filling Holes
Charlie, a road crew supervisor for highway landscapers, came upon a pair of workers from one of his crews seemingly hard at work. He watched one fellow dig a hole while his partner waited a few minutes and then filled the hole. After a few repetitions Charlie demanded an explanation. The hole-filler was offended: “We’ve been doing this job for …
If You Keep Doing What You’ve Been Doing…
If you keep doing what you’ve been doing, you will keep getting what you’ve been getting. If you want something different, you have to do something different.
REAL-TIME OBSERVATION RE: SUPREME COURT CONTROVERSY. That we have come to expect politics to control is an unfortunate reality that is contributing to a “winning is everything” philosophy that is damaging our democracy and contributing to an unhealthy coarseness in civil discourse.
That we have come to expect politics to control is an unfortunate reality that is contributing to a “winning is everything” philosophy that is damaging our democracy and contributing to an unhealthy coarseness in civil discourse. Predictably, the self-serving and often self-righteous rhetoric surrounding the replacement of Justice Scalia is escalating in a way that is simply widening the gap …
It is Never Too Late…
“It is never too late to become a happier person. It is never too late to become a better person.” – Michael Josephson
Thomas Jefferson’s 10 Rules of Life
Thomas Jefferson’s 10 Rules of Life Which one is most pertinent to your life? 1. Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today. 2. Never trouble another for what you can do yourself. 3. Never spend your money before you have it. 4. Never buy what you do not want because it is cheap; it will never be …
What Is Right Is Not Always Easy and What Is Easy Is Hardly Ever Right
“What is right is not always easy and what is easy is hardly ever right, but the right choice today will improve your life tomorrow.” – Michael Josephson Take control of your life. Choose wisely.
Real Generosity
“Real generosity is doing something for others, even when you’re certain you will get nothing back, not even a thank you.” – Michael Josephson
COMMENTARY 973.1: The Power of Words
“Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me.” Really? Insults, teasing, gossip, and verbal abuse can inflict deeper and more enduring pain than guns and knives. Ask anyone who as a kid was fat, skinny, short, tall, flat-chested, big-busted, acne-faced, uncoordinated, slow-witted, or exceptionally smart. In schoolrooms and playgrounds across the country, weight, height, looks, …
COMMENTARY: 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 972.4: I’m Only a One-Star
Years ago I was talking to a group of Army generals about the way politicians often treat the defense budget as an all-purpose public works fund to help bring money into their districts. One general admitted, “Yes, if the chairman of the Appropriations Committee comes from a place that makes trucks, we’re probably going to buy those trucks. That’s the …
COMMENTARY: Acts of Kindness and Two Sets of Proud Parents
I received an email with a story worth sharing. Only the names have been changed to preserve privacy. Doug is the proud and loving father of Emma, a high school junior who takes a leadership class responsible for putting on dances and other student events.
Bonus Commentary: THE SUPREME COURT CONTROVERSY: Hiding Our Own Hypocrisy by Pretending That Politics is All About Principle.
Has the political divide become so wide that it is an unbreakable chasm? If we do not re-learn the art of accommodation and compromise all we think we are preserving by our passion will be lost — all in the name of passionately held principles. Whether a President in his last year should nominate a replacement Supreme Court Justice and …
COMMENTARY: The President’s Day Un-Celebration — Honoring Not Just the Great, But All U.S. Presidents
If you’re not going to school or work today, it’s because it’s a national holiday. The country used to celebrate the birthdays of George Washington and Abraham Lincoln separately, but in 1971 Richard Nixon and Congress, in order to create a perpetual three-day weekend, merged the two holidays into a brand new one called Presidents Day, to honor all U.S. …
QUOTES: 30 Best Love Quotes for Your Valentine
I love you, not only for what you are, But for what I am when I am with you.– Roy Croft I love thee to the depth and breadth and height my soul can reach.– Elizabeth Barrett Browning Come live with me, and be my love, and we will some new pleasures prove, of golden sands, and crystal brooks, with …