Believe

'BELIEVE”
B-Believe you can make a difference. I joined the Army directly out of college. I was on the fast track and my career was moving in a positive direction. However, I felt I was called for something else.
My calling was to stay in the business world showing business people how to create work environments that provide meaning and purpose to those who work there.
You {can} came a difference. Whether you drive a bus, raise children, teach Sunday School or a CEO of a Fortune 500 company, if this is what you {are called} to do—then be thankful. Each of us has a purpose and knowing that can make a powerful and meaningful difference.
E-Eliminate negative attitudes. I spent several years living in Puerto Rico and learned how to scuba dive. My intrsuctor was a retired Navy sailor wh had a positive attitude about life. When he weas in his 50's he decided to do something never done before—swim from St. Thomas to puerto Rich non-stop. Halfway through the swim a shark decided to make lunch out of his arm. The only thing that saved his arm was an underwater wristwatch, which prevented a bad situation {from} becoming terrible. Fortunately for Harry Hauck, he kept his arm and his positive attitude in tact.
Other people would have decided not to return to the ocean, but not Harry. After healing from his injuries and armed with a shark cage, Harry returned to his goal finishing the swim.
L'Live in the now. The word “live in the now” may should shallow, but each of us {was given} a mind and a pair of hands for a purpose. These marvelous gifts were given to us to use to help others, to create, teach and build.
We are fortunate to live in a time in history where there are so many opportunities to make a difference. What are you doing to make a difference?
I-Improve and encourage others. My mind holds many good memories. I remember Pat Prescott wh was one of my first Sunday School teachers. She touched me in tremendous way and helped me focus on what my life could become. She was authenic and touched all the people in her class with encouragement.
E-Execute an action plan. Sometimes the old nature fights change and refuses to give up bad attitudes. Negative attitudes develop over the years and become bad habits. The environment, family and friends influence these attitudes. Zig Ziguar calls this, “stinkin thinkin.”
An important face to realize is these attitudes don't have to be permanent. They are like clothing that can be taken off and thrown away. By developing an action plan we can change our negative thought patterns. When we substitute negative thoughts with positive thoughts our attitudes will improve. When I tried to change my attitude I read every positie thinking book I could get my hands on.
V-Visualize your destination. One of my favorite books is called, Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl Viktor Frankl was both a physician and a prisoner in the Nazi concentration camp located at Auschwitz.
The horrific events and indescribable hardships surrounding his existence are impossible for most of us to imagine. Other prisoners like himself gave us all hope and died. Then there were those who choose a different attitude, faced the same hardships and survived. What was the difference?
In scientific objectively, Frankl analyzed and pinpointed the secret or survival. Words from his book said...”the sort of person the prisoner became was the result of an inner decision, and not the result of camp influences alone. Fundamentally, therefore, any man can, even under such circumstances, decide what shall become of him—mentally and spiritually.”
This was the place Frankl placed himself in. Instead of giving up he decided to force his mind to visualize being in a warm classroom lecturing to students about survival in a concentration camp. He substituted a painful reality of hopelessness with more powerful vision of the future. Even in this horrible place he was able to choose his attitude and find his purpose in life.
E-Enter into acceptance. Every race has a beginning and the end. Every project has a company date. We begin life as an infant and will this life much older. No matter where you are along this journey focus on the {positive}.
Gregory P. Smith http://www.ChartCourse.com