Tag Archives: Courage

Things Happen for A Reason

March 4, 2022 Jonathan Hilton Leave a comment

I should stop being astonished, and there should be a moment where I finally get it. All of the things that happen in life do happen for a reason, and all I need is patience to see what lesson I need to learn.

The problem with me and I think many people are that we spend way too much time planning and plotting to prove how smart we are and not enough time enjoying what is happening in our lives right at this very moment. Or we are just so sure we know what the best outcome for us would be if only the Universe would stop toying with us and make us better.

This post is for the little leaps of faith that people take each day to get to where we are destined to go and hopefully find happiness. I need to remember these faithful spells are available to me at all moments. Too often, I will resort to fear and lack faith. It starts with the thoughts, words, and actions we entertain every day to see the wisdom in life.

The Stones Appear From Nowhere

It used to be that I thought you couldn’t do anything unless you saw the next step in front of you. That got me moving through a lot of days of mediocre existence. There were few lows and very few highs, just a constant middling life. I was not open to anything outside of my control. How could it be possible?

Eventually, it got to the point that there was a clear choice in front of me. Stay in this existence for the rest of my life, or move in a new direction where the potential for downtimes was there, but the potential for significant achievements as well. I paused at the crossroads like when I was young, summoning the courage to take the plunge into the cold lakes of Maine in the summer.

I took the first hesitant steps into the unknown, and the adventure of life truly began. I often took those steps out into the foggy mist, and I did not know what was there. I almost always find the feel of a sturdy stone under my feet with each step and open myself up to the wonder of the world. Sometimes I have slipped and fallen. That is the price you pay for excitement and learning something new, but I have also been able to experience jobs, people, and things that I would never have imagined.

Open Your Front Door

It is too easy to look at everyone and mistrust them thoroughly. If you watch the media view of the world, I don’t blame you. It seems like a mass murderer is living around.

Open a door and you never know who will walk in. — Open a door, and you never know who will walk in.

Every corner, but that is a lie. There is a great human being around every corner. You can choose to be suspicious and not trust anyone. But you are limiting yourself.

Often I have made this choice, and sure enough, I was safe enough, but at what cost? How many opportunities for growth did I miss out on? Were there people who could have helped me on my way? I will never know. Instead of keeping the front door locked and bolted all the time, try opening it once in a while. See who stops by for a visit.

I can’t guarantee you that the people you will meet will be great, but they may be just what you need to experience in your life right now. I don’t know if it is good or bad, but it is my experience that the more people in your life, the more opportunity for growth. So try opening that door.

Master Your Fear and Grow

I probably should have started with fear, but it always makes a good ending. In life, we all struggle with this factor. It is the root of many of our major problems in life, from what job to pursue to whom we should have a relationship. Fear is the factor we must all learn to overcome to have a life. Its potential exists in every person and everything we do.

These leaps of faith, from choosing a new path to giving people a chance in your life, are exercises in conquering fear.

Nobody lives their life free of fear, and it is such a part of our psyche. Sometimes the fear is so ingrained that we don’t even recognize that is what is controlling our behavior. It is hard to open up and give people a chance because they can hurt you, and that is an experience we would all like to avoid.

Learning to recognize when you are experiencing fear and managing it is one of the most significant leaps of faith you can take. You fear because you don’t want to be hurt when you open yourself up, then you may be injured. The risk is worth it because the best way to grow is to take a chance on a path, a person, or overcome fear, and find that you are more powerful than you thought.

Then as you grow, you are willing to take more significant risks and put yourself into a position where you could be hurt again, but accept the opportunity to experience great achievement, love, or anything else that you value.

The choices are really for you to decide. Stay in the safe zone you live in, or take some brave steps into the unknown and see just what growth is coming your way. It all starts with your thoughts, words, and actions.

Grasp your opportunities, and grow like you were meant to!

“Do not constantly spend your time complaining about a problem you may be having or may be up against. Focus your time toward correcting the problem. Always remember, Time values!” Victoria Addino

“Ultimately there is no such thing as failure. There are lessons learned in different ways.” Twyla Tharp

“I believe that nothing is more important to our ability to effectively address our present than understanding the lessons learned from those who have come before us.” Charlie Gonzalez

“The lessons learned as we try to build ever more sophisticated nanomachines will almost certainly inform our understanding of the origins of life.” Paul McEuen

“I’m thankful for every break in my heart, I’m grateful for every scar, some pages turned, some bridges burned, but there were lessons learned.” Nishan Panwar

Over The Rainbow

February 17, 2022 Jonathan Hilton Leave a comment

The Wizard of Oz has always been classic because of its great story and, of course, for the messages it teaches. Yearly, children of all ages enjoy it because of the symbolic search for self the characters embark on. The search for personal growth is one that I am very familiar with, the ability to think, have a heart, maintain your courage, and find a home. I think we are all looking for the same things. I have learned a few things on my trip somewhere over the rainbow.

If I only had a Brain

With the thoughts I'd be thinking, I could be another Lincoln. — With the thoughts I’d be thinking, I could be another Lincoln.

The search for intelligence has changed over time for me. Initially, I thought school was the ultimate expression of your intellect and to what degree you had determined your intelligence.

But life experience has taught me that your natural intellect is revealed when you have a passion for learning something. I have learned more since I turned 44 than I ever conceived of as a college student. I never had a passion for reading about facts and learning new things as I do today, and trying to fit their lessons into my life. If I were a faster learner, perhaps I would have had a happier life.

I believe that all people contain intelligence inside themselves, and they only need the right question to bring it out. Don’t spend a lifetime looking outside yourself for intelligence or intellect. It has existed inside you all along. Embrace it and your magic that will take you anywhere you want to go.

Tales of a Broken Heart

I would like to be able to sing and dance too. — I want to be able to sing and dance too.

Many of us are just like that tin man, tapping our chests and hearing nothing but an echo shooting back at us. Yet, the heart is always there, and it has to be for us to exist. Some are hard to find in people as they act callously toward us or others. But some semblance of pulmonary machinery exists, and you have to look hard in some people.

An emotional heart is in everyone, but we try to protect it too much. Nothing hurts as bad as when it is broken, but that is a part of the process. There is an inherent risk in any relationship that if you love someone, you may be hurt. It is one of the elements of life that make no sense. Something good goes terrible; pleasure becomes pain; joy becomes sorrow, yin, yang, light and dark; we are all pawns to our strongest emotions.

This fact goes for loving your spouse, girlfriend, boyfriend, children, grandparents, or friends. Because it hurts so much, that is why we construct such stable structures around our hearts. The problem with this is that it is hard to get any guidance from a heart so deeply buried. Let it rise to the surface and take your chances. That is life. No guarantees.

Remember that your heart is available to you anytime you want to use it. Any tin walls around it can be removed simply by deciding to do so. But know also there is no warranty on your heart and no return policy either. It will allow you to love all the good, bad, joyful, and painful stuff that comes with it.

What have they got that I ain’t got?

I'd fight you with my eyes closed! — I’d fight you with my eyes closed!

When it comes to courage, we all face fears all the time. Some are big, like a fear of death or heights, and some are pretty small. There is a twinge of fear in each action that we either overcome or succumb to. I think I have given in way more than I would ever like to admit. To the horror of what others think, fear of failure, fear of success, and fear of being happy. (as silly as that sounds)

Courage to me is recognizing the thing that frightens you and still moving forward anyway. As life progresses, people create routines and structures that seem to protect us from fear, but it still exists. My search for courage is to be myself in every moment, regardless of what others think. To open myself up to life and love and accept the results, even when they aren’t what I would choose. I still endeavor to try to be happy and try to be brave for another day. Some days I have retreated, but we all have days like that. I have been knocked down 100 times and gotten up 101.

Your fear may be something else. We all have the courage inside us to face whatever adversity we face. It isn’t always easy, but it can be done. Have courage in your journey, and you will find success.

No Place Like Home

Some would say that home is where the heart is, and others might say that home is where you can be accepted and loved for who you are. No matter what definition you use, I think searching for a home is a lifelong one.

I am fortunate to have experienced a lot of pleasant experiences in my life, but I am unfortunate that I have never found my home. Home is one of the places that I have been looking for all of my life, and I have thought I found it before but was mistaken. I also know what I may encounter is finding the home I am thinking of is an impossibility, or it may be something that I have known all along. There is a sneaking suspicion inside me. Home is not out there somewhere over the rainbow but residing much closer to me, right inside myself, just waiting to be recognized. Once accepted and understood, the world might make sense. We can’t find a home in another place or another person, and we can only share our home with them, and they theirs with us.

Either way, those who have found this in their lives should be grateful. I am thankful for the idea that home will be possible someday, and I dream of it because there is no place like home.

So, What have you learned, Dorothy?

So as I express my gratitude for this movie and the search for a brain, a heart, courage, and a home. I urge all of you who have these things to be grateful for them. If you are still searching, that is OK too.

Life is nothing but a search for all of our missing pieces, which exist out there somewhere. If I only knew where a wizard was hiding behind a curtain, perhaps I would find mine more efficiently.

Faith

December 18, 2021 Jonathan Hilton Leave a comment

It is easy to say you have faith in someone or something and quite a different thing actually to act on that faith. The definition of faith is to have complete trust and confidence in someone or something. Looking back on life, I know that a precious few people or things I have placed my faith in each day. As life progresses, we are inundated with more and more experiences that hurt us and cause our trust to erode piece by piece. But at the end of your life, you have to be willing to live in hope, or your life will be dominated by fear, and that will never lead to a happy and enjoyable experience. We see things as undesirable, painful, and it is difficult not to take them personally. Things happen; we must file them away and deal with them. It is our choice if we live a life of fear or continue to develop a life of faith. All things will work out OK, we will be OK, and life knows what it is doing after all. Sometimes having a little hope is all you have, and it can be the most valuable possession in the world.

Tough Times Come To Everyone

Difficult times and painful experiences are going to come into your life. That is a guarantee, and nobody in the world is exempt from them. We can all choose how we deal with them, but you, me, and all other people will face challenges. Betrayal, lies, anger, loss are all a part of our experience. I have often wondered why this is the case when things are so much more enjoyable when they are excellent and comfortable. Why have we experienced a loss we couldn’t understand? Why put us through all of that? Why give the good times if only to take them away immediately? It seems like God is just toying with us for no reason. Unfortunately, the tough times provide suffering, and it is through this process, we can glean wisdom.

Imagine a life with no challenges. There is nothing to push you to try something else, seek a deeper meaning, or search for understanding. I don’t know a lot, but I know life is meant to be an experience of growth, or it is over. Faith in the ultimate ability to overcome your challenges, remember who you are, and bring that light to the world is the real challenge for you. Living in faith means to believe it will all work out in the end to the benefit of all, even if you can’t understand how right now. It is hard to see the edges, where it ends, and where the calm lies when you are inside the storm. All storms have an end; all tumult is followed by peace. Just as there will be challenges, there will be triumphs and good times. Faith tells us this.

The Best Days

Having a little faith in the darkness that the dawn will eventually break is hard when you live in fear of what might happen next. Living in fear causes people to harm others and themselves. When you live in doubt, you see all of the potential dangers of what might happen if things go wrong. It closes your eyes to the good, which might be right in front of you. Suppose you can put the fear aside and accept on faith that there is a lesson for you in the hard times. One experience will propel you to greater heights in the future.

Have a little faith in the lesson you need to learn. If you look honestly at your challenges, growth results are an aspect. A plant grows when you add water, sunlight, and proper soil. So your mind becomes, and sometimes the fuel we need is unfavorable. Is it, though? To be pushed can move you to a new level of activity and achievement. You may never have looked for answers to the questions resulting from your suffering. Having gratitude for hard things is very difficult, but many of the most outstanding achievements in history occurred after a great tragedy. Look at your account. How many accomplishments came after facing a challenge and taking the skills and motivation to move into a new stratosphere of accomplishment?

Faith is Real

The choice to hope that all things will work out in the end in the best manner possible is always the best. We all have decisions to make, and as long as we are alive, there is hope and an opportunity to make a dream come into reality and achieve a goal. Suppose we can get out of the way of our fear of suffering. This suffering is the very definition of courage, and it is through this act of faith; all of your goals will find their positive results. One thing I know for sure, if you live in fear, live in doubt, treat others poorly, and carry no belief in yourself, nothing positive will result. These things are all a personal choice. What choice do you make today? What lessons are you learning through the challenges you face? How has loss shaped you? Has it made you understand you have to have faith? Or has it made you fear more loss?

I urge you today to develop a sense of living in faith that all things will work out for good in the end if you let them. Don’t live in the regrets of the past or in the anxiety of what might happen in the future. Live today with a bit of faith in yourself and the Universe that this cosmic play has much more good in it than it does evil, and seek to embrace it.

“Without faith, a man can do nothing; with it, all things are possible.” – Sir William Osler

“Faith is not belief without proof, but trust without reservation.” – D. Elton Trueblood

“Faith is unseen but felt, faith is strengthened when we feel we have none; faith is hope when all seems lost.” – Catherine Pulsifer

“Breathe, and have faith that everything will work out for the best.”

“Your hardest times often lead to the greatest moments of your life. Keep the faith. It will all be worth it in the end.”

The Courage

November 18, 2021 Jonathan Hilton Leave a comment

We all have to walk down the dark corridors of our lives, and there are moments we need to find all the courage we have inside to keep moving forward even though fear is gripping our hearts. Courage is the ingredient that allows a person to take their next step, though they are afraid of what might happen. Freedom from fear shifts a person’s energy from the negative to the positive. Courage allows you to dismiss the opposing forces of doubt and fear and replace them with hope and expectation of something positive happening in your life.

You can choose to bring your courage into your conscious thought every day by recognizing the daily fears you face and still do what you have to anyway. Here are three significant concerns we all need to overcome at some point; 1. The anxiety of the future 2. fear of rejection 3. Fear of failure. With a shift in focus and awareness, we can deal with what scares us, and it starts with noticing your thoughts of fear and answering the question: Do I have the courage to face my nightmare?

Courage for the Future

Fear about the future is what many worries are based on. Somehow people believe that if they play out every nasty, negative, and painful scenario of what might happen in their mind, they will never be hurt or disappointed. Worry is negative energy that brings negative things into your thought process, the words you use with others, and, of course, the actions you take. Fear never brings anything good to anyone, and it robs you of the good things you have in your life right now. Isn’t this what anxieties of all kinds are based on? The future may have challenges in it, and those things will help you grow. Eventually, our death will come, and the ending of everything will ultimately happen. Worry won’t stop that. It just makes your experience of today far less enjoyable.

Put your worries away and focus on the positive things in your life right now. Enjoy the good things you have at this moment. Prepare for the future, as any responsible person would. But realize that whatever is coming your way is coming. There will be loss, sadness, and pain. There will also be joy, laughter, and great experiences. Have courage that you will be able to weather the negative, and the positive will be present in much larger quantities. Have courage about the future and the positive things it will bring to your life. There are no guarantees, so embrace the joy when it comes to you.

Courage about Rejection

People may reject you or something you do for many reasons, and the truth is, most have little or nothing to do with you. It is their past experiences, choices, and consciousness making those choices. Don’t take any of this personally. It is them, not you. Put your plan in action and do it in a way that makes you happy. Even though you may have lost someone or something you treasure, look for the good in the situation. It may not be easy to recognize, but it will be there.

Changing your perspective takes courage to do because there will always be naysayers and doubters. And often, the biggest doubter you will face will be in your head. Ignore their noise. People will come into your life who will discourage you. Make you doubt who you are and affect you negatively. If they put as much effort into pursuing their dreams as critical of others, they could accomplish anything. They are the definition of negative mediocrity. Give their opinions about all the attention they deserve. Non Have courage, try, create, do, go, find, build, and believe!

Fear of Failure

Now we come to what I think is the most common fear, and that is a failure. What is a failure but a label? We are trained in education to view breakdown as the worst result. Things are not always going to go perfectly. But it isn’t. If you are genuinely creating and reaching for something new, there is a real chance you aren’t going to get it right the first time. But each attempt at something provides information, experience, and skill. Those can work to a challenge, and the next time you will get a different result. The courage to ignore a negative view of failure and see how this situation provides an opportunity to grow, learn, and ultimately gain success. That is how it has worked throughout the history of man.

It takes real courage to face this challenge. Our society views anything but perfect results as a failure. There is little margin for error. Why is this? Could it be that if we encouraged thinking and fundamental knowledge, people would be less controllable? Individuals might develop ideas that would change things. Be brave and let your courage drive your process of learning. Not the expectations and judgments of narrow-minded small people. Give them all the regard they earn. They have no idea where you are going and what you can do. Unless you accept their narrative about you, it’s your choice to be more conscious of your courage.

Have Courage and Do It

Let your consciousness continually become aware that life is a little game. There is a beginning, a middle, and an end. We are all moving toward the inevitable, don’t waste your time in fear. Find your courage to make changes in your life that leads you toward living like your best self.

People fear change naturally, even if it is clearly for the better. Be brave and have the faith that it will work out in the end. Nobody can be sure where that end is, but having the courage and taking action will lead to a result. Find your courage today, and it all begins with a higher awareness of your thoughts, words, and activities. You can then learn, evaluate, grow, improve, and make better actions. You are eventually becoming and achieving what you want.

Courage- the ability to do something that frightens one.

We all have courage inside us that will allow us to achieve all of the great things we want to accomplish if we learn to use it.

“True courage is not the absence of fear—but the willingness to proceed despite it.”–Unknown.

“It takes courage to grow up and become who you are.”― E.E. Cummings Quotes On Courage.

“The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud.”― Coco Chanel Quotes On Courage

“Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak; courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen.”― Winston S. Churchill.

Determined

November 15, 2021 Jonathan Hilton Leave a comment

Determination-firmness of purpose; resoluteness.

People set out on many journeys in life. Our determination dictates how far the trip is going to take us. All start with calm confidence. All are going to face challenges that will help decide the direction a journey is going to take. Sometimes things get tough, and you can’t continue. The bottom line is that when it comes to your goals and dreams, the determination you carry in your heart is the number one factor in reaching a successful conclusion or not. Resolution is a quality in each of us, and it needs to be used to be effective. It all starts with looking at our thoughts, words, and actions when it comes to completing our goals and seeing the determination we have inside.

Becoming Determined

It takes courage to live a different life that is defined by your personality. Other people will want to push you in different directions that benefit them. You are determined to achieve or become something that will keep you focused on your road ahead and what you need to do to reach your goals. The spring of determination comes from courage. Being brave enough to say no to the things that deter our progress, and yes to the experiences that propel us forward.

Determination is the wake-up call to our humanity. There are experiences we want to have. Usually, these are things we want to accomplish, and we will never accomplish anything until we start in some way, small or big. We are determined to reach a goal or create a dream that pushes us down the road toward the result we seek. Our human soul celebrates and thrives when it has a purpose, a drive, to follow. We can decide which mountains we want to conquer and experience. Without determination, we will never reach the top.

Beliefs Build Determination

When you are trying to accomplish anything to keep your determination moving you in the right direction, you have to feel that you can achieve whatever you are setting out to do. You may think you want to be the best singer in the world, but if deep down you don’t believe that you can, it isn’t going to happen. If you have a belief inside of you that you can become a great singer, then you will have a much stronger determination to accomplish this goal. Whatever you dream of doing, check your beliefs first and see if it resonates with you. Believe you can or change that belief into one that supports your effort.

Beliefs give us the resolve to take action toward making something a reality. They will allow you to establish a neural pattern toward your goals. It will keep you taking steps to let your determination lead to success. You will stay resolute in continuing to practice, work out, learn, or grow in whatever way you need to, to do what you want to do. “If you think you can do a thing or think you can‘t do a thing, you‘re right.” A quote by Henry Ford says it better than I ever could. Believing in yourself and your abilities allows determination in action.

Just Keep Going

When you feel like you have to stop, don’t. When it gets hard, keep going. That is easy to say and hard to do, but that is what determination allows you to do. Find the strength inside of you to keep ongoing. It is through faith in yourself and the promised reward of what your goal is. The determination can be cultivated in anyone, beginning with a focus on the thoughts you entertain, which lead to your beliefs, the words you speak to others, and the actions you will take to get where you want to go. The great thing is that you can become whatever you want if you keep your determination to become whatever you wish.

“Never go backward. Attempt, and do it with all your might. Determination is power” – Charles Simmons

“Do not underestimate the determination of a quiet man” – Iain Duncan Smith

“The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand. “

A Problem

October 9, 2021 Jonathan Hilton Leave a comment

Sometimes we forget how much control we have in our journey.

When I was growing up, I knew who I was and what I wanted to stand for. There were certain core principles in life I knew were “good,” and I wanted to practice, and there were things that were “bad,” and I wanted to stay away from those. Life changed that boy and clouded his judgment, making the lines of what was “good” and “bad” become cloudy in his mind. The programming I received through experience, peers, society, institutions, and family members made me think my original thoughts were wrong. I naturally valued honesty, kindness, fairness, truth, love, showing courage, and being the best person I could be.

Those things were not always looked at positively and fit in; I pushed much of my best self to the background to lie dormant for years. Until one day, I realized how unhappy I was with how life was going. Through a lot of soul searching, reading, and questioning, I began to realize that my choices were the problem. I had chosen to move from my authentic self to a person who wanted to “fit in.” That compromise cost me much, but it wasn’t too late. I could make conscious decisions about my priorities, which would allow me to return to the person I was as a child. That was a conscious choice and led to raising my consciousness about all aspects of life that will lead to growth. Here are some factors anyone can align themselves with to become their best self.

Finding Truth

Being truthful is difficult and often painful. The conscious choice to accept your truth will be one of the most freeing things you ever experience. What others will think of you stop many of us from expressing our realities to the world. Express your truth anyway. For me, it is about realizing there is a conscious choice in how we treat others and ourselves, and we make it every day. I like people, but I am uncomfortable in crowds. Unless I make a conscious effort, I am very judgmental of others. I am prone to be harmed by extending help to others. I have made bad relationship choices in my life.

Seeing reality for what it is and not through a lens of what things mean is truth. It will allow you to escape the expectations of others and embrace who you are and who you want to be. Most of us are living a lie created by our programming. To embrace who we are as honest and truthful. Embrace it with both arms.

Create Love in Your Life

Love is one of the healthiest things in the world. It is an emotion, but more importantly, love is a verb that dictates the positivism you bring into your life and the world around you. More than just a romantic feeling with one other, love is built in the way you interact with the world and feel about yourself in each moment. To become comfortable with who you are, where you are in life and where you want to go is the more significant aspect of love.

We live in a world that pushes us to be superficial in our thoughts and actions. Put those things aside and pursue what makes you feel positive about yourself, and others will allow the love inside you to shine out to others. Some will accept it; some are so negative they will run from it. Let them that is their choice; you can only choose to love for yourself. Deeper connections with other people can only happen when both parties are looking for them. Love is a verb, a compilation of your actions in life. Love who you are and be the best person you can be.

You Create Your Life

I think we dismiss the power we each have to create almost anything in our lives. All people can see something they want in their minds, from love to wealth to fame or whatever you might like to create for yourself. Yet, we let the same spirit that can help us make these dreams, push negative thoughts onto us, and stop us from creating anything of value. Test it out. Look at a time when you have an inspiring idea. You have about five minutes of positive excitement before you start the flood of thought, telling you why you can’t do what you dream.

It’s too hard. Too expensive. Unrealistic. Nobody would buy it. You don’t have the talent. Nothing you do ever turns outright. All of these things and worse will rise in your mind, and if not dismissed consciously, they will stop you from pursuing what you want. You have the power to choose the thoughts you want to focus on consciously. You can build the motivation and discipline needed to accomplish anything. It starts with aligning yourself with this power by acting on it every day. Do what you must to chase your dream. Your dream will soon be chasing you.

Pursue Conscious Growth

It is a simple plan to find the principles that resonate with you and be true to them in your life. If they are absolute truth, love, power, unity, robustness, courage, and intelligence, then your life will take off in the direction you choose. If you decide to ignore these things and consciously or unconsciously select selfish, negative thoughts that do not represent your best self, life will be far less enjoyable.

I know because I have allowed the unconscious selfishness of my thought to run my life for too long. When I focus on the truth of my life and what I need to create to find the essential things of value and produce practical actions and show love to myself and the world, my life is a pretty great place to be.

“No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it.” Albert Einstein

“Consciousness is the stone that creates the waves in a sea of nothing.” Richard Gerber

“Through consciousness, our minds have the power to change our planet and ourselves. It is time we heed the wisdom of the ancient indigenous people and channel our consciousness and spirit to tend the garden and not destroy it.” Bruce Lipton

“Consciousness is only possible through change; change is only possible through movement.” Aldous Huxley

“There is no birth of consciousness without pain.” Carl Jung

The Problem

Courage Quotes

August 29, 2021 Jonathan Hilton Leave a comment

Courage lets You go in the right direction

“If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn’t go anywhere.” –Unknown

Like everybody else in life, there have been times when I have been faced with circumstances that were not the most pleasant to deal with. There are really only two choices as to how you decide to face these moments in life. One is to act out of fear, that you may lose what you have worked for or be hurt irreparably by whatever misstep has come your way. Or you can face the challenge of the situation head-on and with courage that you will not be conquered by the events of your life and you will not shrink from them. You will come out on the other end a stronger, better person. Courage is defined as mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty

Quotes of Courage from the Cowardly Lion

I have always liked the Cowardly Lion in the Wizard of Oz, how he realizes that if he would just face his life with more courage he would be more happy and successful. The best part is, that just like all of us, all of the courage that he ever needed was inside him all the time just waiting for him to have the confidence to use it. He just needs to get beyond the limiting belief that he is a coward and always will be.

The ability to summon up courage from inside yourself does not have to be done with a formal ritual, or a special process. It has to be done by believing in yourself, and your value as a human being. I know that is all well and good, but how do you really do that? Get by the catchphrase and summon up the courage that you need.

“Courage. What makes a King out of a slave? Courage.

What makes the flag on the mast to wave? Courage.

What makes the elephant charge his tusk in the misty mist or the dusky dusk? What makes the muskrat guard his musk? Courage.

What makes the Sphinx the 7th Wonder? Courage.

What makes the dawn come up like THUNDER?! Courage.

What makes the Hottentot so hot? What puts the “ape” in ape-ricot? Whatta they got that I ain’t got? Dorothy & Friends: Courage!

Cowardly Lion: You can say that again.

I Can And I Will-Quotes of Courage

One of the best frames of mind you can build to bring the courage out from inside you is to have the “I can and I will” mentality about life.

When you are faced with a difficult task, that you think you may struggle with, repeat this phrase to yourself, “I can and I will”. At first, you may not quite believe it, as you try to fight through your own insecurities and fears.

Keep thinking it, “I can and I will”, soon as your past failures and personal limitations fall off to the side you will begin to feel the confidence of this statement, “I can and I will”, your own well of courage which is inside each of us will start to bubble to the surface. At first like a few small bubbles but as you continue to think and believe, “I can and I will”, more and more will come to you.

Each challenge you face will be faced more and more easily with the courage you have inside you. You will not always be successful, but you will start to realize that failure will not permanently define you, but your courage will. You will start to reach higher for things you once never dreamed you had the ability to reach. And if you fail? So what, “I can and I will” , what you are looking for will happen for you.

Courage is better than fear

courage over fear, — F**k It You Can Do It

Why then is it so hard to reach inside and summon up the courage that is in each of us just waiting to be used?

Most often it is our own limiting beliefs that stop us from reaching for what we want. Limiting beliefs are thoughts that have been said so much by ourselves or others that we have finally just stopped questioning them and accept them as true, regardless of what they do to us.

Examples, “I’m not smart enough”, “I don’t have the talent”, “I am too ugly”, “Good things only happen to other people”, “I can’t”, there are many more.

As you can see if you allow yourself to be boxed into your life by believing statements that are limiting you, you will never be able to reach your potential. And the bad part is that these limiting beliefs become, in ways, very comforting to us. They explain why other people are happy and we are not.

If you are hearing that little voice inside your head that is repeating any of these types of limiting beliefs, there is one thing you can do today that will start to erode them away. Just say, “To heck with that, I’m awesome.” This phrase carries with it the appropriate emotional emphasis to get you through whatever limits you have placed on yourself and/or your abilities. Try it when your limiting thoughts come up, “I’m too fat.” Reply with, “To heck with that, I’m awesome, I am not defined by my weight.”

You will find that once you start to overcome these limiting beliefs, there isn’t really a lot of things that can stand in your way. Another example is, “Success in business is for other people, not me.”To heck with that, I am as smart and deserving as anyone else in the world. I can be successful, all I need to do is try.” Try this with one of your own limiting beliefs and you will see that you have the courage to fight for yourself and to get what you deserve to be happy. Because the bottom line is that we all deserve to be happy, even you! Our minds need to be reminded of this continually. If you don’t control your mind, someone else will.

I could rattle on all day, but the essence of this article can be boiled down into one sentence that I hope you will read and remember:

We all have courage inside us that will allow us to achieve all of the great things we want to achieve if we will just use it.

That is it, put aside the fear, and limiting beliefs that have held you down for years and summon up the courage that we all have to strive for a dream, or to reach for the goal. You may or may not get there, but courage allows the journey, and the journey is what life is all about.

Quotes of Courage

“Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear.” – Ambrose Redmoon

Courage is not living without fear. Courage is being scared to death and doing the right thing anyway. – Chae Richardson

Courage is looking fear right in the eye and saying, “Get the hell out of my way, I’ve got things to do.” -Author unknown

Live your beliefs and you can turn the world around.—Thoreau

It is easier to find a score of men wise enough to discover the truth than to find one intrepid enough, in the face of opposition, to stand up for it. –A.A. Hodge

It is curious—curious that physical courage should be so common in the world, and moral courage so rare.– Mark Twain

Cautious, careful people, always casting about to preserve their reputation and social standing, never can bring about a reform. Those who are really in earnest must be willing to be anything or nothing in the world’s estimation, and publicly and privately, in season and out, avow their sympathy with despised and persecuted ideas and their advocates, and bear the consequences. —Susan B. Anthony

Following the path of least resistance is what makes rivers and men crooked.–Unknown

Silence is evil’s closest ally. –Gary Amirault

Whenever you find that you are on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.—Mark Twain

You must be the change you wish to see in the world.—Gandhi

New paradigms put everyone practicing the old paradigm at risk. The higher one’s position, the greater the risk. The better you are at your paradigm, the more you have invested in it, the more you have to lose by changing paradigms. –Joel Arthur Barker

True courage is not the absence of fear—but the willingness to proceed in spite of it.–Unknown

Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt. –William Shakespeare

A certain amount of opposition is great help to a man. Kites rise against, not with the wind. – John Neal

Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage—to move in the opposite direction.– E. F. Schumacher

In the end, they wanted security more than they wanted freedom. –Edward Gibbon (The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire)

Everyday courage has few witnesses. But yours is no less noble because no drum beats for you and no crowds shout your name. –Robert Louis Stevenson

One man with courage makes a majority.– Andrew Jackson

We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light. – Plato

To know how to say what other people only think, is what makes men poets and sages; and to dare to say what others only dare to think, makes men martyrs or reformers. –Elizabeth Rundle

Fear comes from the Adamic nature—faith comes from the Christ nature– Jacquelyn K. Heasley

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I -I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference.–Robert Frost

People tend to want to follow the beaten path. The difficulty is that the beaten path doesn’t seem to be leading anywhere.–Charles M. Mathias

If you find a path with no obstacles, it probably doesn’t go anywhere. –Unknown

But the bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them,glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it. –Thucydides

I cannot give you the formula for success, but I can give you the formula for failure, which is -try to please everybody.–Herbert Bayard Swope

Behold the turtle. He makes progress only when he sticks his neck out.–James Bryant Conant –

The greatest mistake is life is to be continually fearing that you will make one. –Elbert Hubbard

All progress has resulted from people who took unpopular positions.–Adlai E. Stevenson

Evil triumphs when good men do nothing. –Edmund Burke

I think of a hero as someone who understands the degree of responsibility that comes with his freedom. –Bob Dylan

Except a person be part coward, it is not a compliment to say he is brave. –Mark Twain

There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root. — Henry David Thoreau

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy. –Martin Luther King Jr

Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage. –Anais Nin

Awesome

July 14, 2021 Jonathan Hilton Leave a comment

Positive Thought Project

Awesome-extremely impressive or daunting; inspiring great admiration, apprehension, or fear.

It never ceases to amaze me when I look at the people I encounter every day in this small part of the world, just how awesome so many of them are. Some people are kind, caring, supportive, successful, motivated to create and do amazing things. In a word, they are awesome! The strange thing is that they don’t see it in themselves. I wonder if you can see that same level of awesome in the people around you? Most importantly, do you see the awesome person you are capable of being? We will go through times when we question our choices, the relationships we are in, or the relationships we are not in our current financial situation, or any other part of life that involves a decision. Today’s challenge is to look at yourself and be conscious of the potential for awesome that exists in you, and it all begins with your thoughts, words, and actions.

Don’t Listen to Negative Noise.

One of the reasons people rarely see the awesome in themselves is because of the negative messages they are bombarded with throughout their development and into life. It takes a strong individual in a supportive situation to display the talent and not be ridiculed or chastised for it. Perhaps a well-meaning adult or a jealous peer saw how awesome a person was and tried to limit this talent. Often, it only takes one negative word that sinks into one’s consciousness and stops creativity in its tracks. The facts are that no matter who you are and what you can do, there are always going to be those who don’t appreciate what you can do.

One of the reasons people struggle putting themselves out there is the risk of ridicule. In today’s digital age, criticism is easy to give, and your words of hate can be transferred instantly and anonymously. Awesome people will be created from their hearts and will not waste time worrying about what haters are going to say. They will always exist, and the only way to avoid them is to say nothing, do nothing and be nothing. Forget that and be the awesome creative person you are!

Rarity of Awesome

Once you decide to really look at your life and your capabilities, it can be a scary proposition to follow your passions and skills. There is a lot of fear involved. You have a talent for doing something, and you love to do it. In fact, when you do it, you feel whole. The simple fears are the fear of failure, the fear of success, and the fear of what others will think of us. These simple fears have stunted an untold number of awesome people. Developing your awesomeness is very rare because it takes courage to try and confidence to continue.

The good news is that each of us has the ability to pursue our awesome gifts at any point in life we choose to do so. Many look at their current situation and see a static location. It isn’t, change is constant and inevitable, and your circumstances are going to change. Be proactive in how that change develops, and you might find your way. This is true for any goal setting in any facet of your life. In finances, relationships, or spirituality. You can begin to develop your awesome talents as soon as you decide to put your fears aside and start. It takes courage to be awesome. That is why it is so rare and why we should appreciate those currently succeeding.

Awesome Things

In your life today, there will be an opportunity to support or diminish awesome in some way. It may be your awesome that you don’t follow through with, or it may be someone else attempting to be awesome whom you either choose to support or ridicule. Your words, even though you don’t know it, might be the push someone needs. Be conscious today of the potential awesome happening all around you and be a supporter of all those trying to be great, including yourself. Be conscious of your thoughts, words, and actions. If you can help someone improve even just a little, you make the world a better place. What could be more awesome than that?

Positive thinking will let you use the ability which you have, and that is awesome. ~ Zig Zigler

Carpe Diem

June 19, 2021 Jonathan Hilton Leave a comment

At what time in your recent past have you felt most passionate and alive?

Carpe Diem Jonathan Hilton — Today is the day.

I have felt most passionate and alive right now, and there is nothing that could top this moment in time until tomorrow!

Many people will look far into the distant past for this answer or maybe dream of a day in the future that might be more perfect, but to me, right here and right now is the place where I feel most passionate and alive.

Get More Passionate Right Now

There is really no other way to be, is there? If you are not passionate and alive today, then it is time to make some changes and get more passionate about the life you are living. As I am right now looking out the window and seeing the bright light of the early morning start to defeat the darkness of the night, I can only think about the

need a change jonathan hilton — Sometimes we all do!

possibilities that today contains in it.

I can’t wait to find out what is coming. Is it good? Is it bad? We will see, but the experience of today has never happened before, ever!

It is amazing how many people can just let an opportunity to enjoy life slip past them and treat today like a carbon copy of Tuesday of last week when there is absolutely no such thing.

Enjoying the difference is what allows your life to grow and change in big ways.

Someday never Comes

I think it is a huge mistake to think that it is OK to suffer and be a little unhappy today because tomorrow will be better and bring me what I want, need, or desire.

Tomorrow may never come, and once you start making excuses about chasing your passion, you may do it for the rest of your life, living for the hope that tomorrow you will have the courage to change.

I know that there is no better opportunity than today. What makes you feel alive is the belief and ability to live your life with the hope that you will achieve your goal and take one small action step that will lead to you finding it.

Choose to Live With Passion

Feeling alive should be a part of every morning because if you aren’t feeling this way or

feeling passionate and alive jonathan hilton — Be like Nike

you find life too much of a drag, and it saps you of the positive feelings life gives you.

If you don’t like how you feel about things, then it is time to stop doing them. Choose to do something else that feels better to you.

This sounds really simplistic, but honestly, ask yourself how often you have chosen to be unhappy, chosen to be dissatisfied, chosen to be afraid, chosen to go with the flow.

Find your passion and choose to follow it, and each day will allow you to feel the most passionate and alive than you have felt in your life.

I know for sure that I have this moment in life to make the best of that I can, whatever that may involve, and that is all I can really be concerned with, yesterday is gone, and I can’t get it back tomorrow may never come.

See a Little Light

Inspiration

I Feel So Much Gratitude!

March 28, 2018 Jonathan Hilton Leave a comment

Thank You — I was very shy about letting anyone know what I wrote.

by Jonathan Hilton

I was scared to death! Petrified! White knuckle, grab a hold of something, close your eyes and scream scared of what other people would think of my writing. So much so, I really hesitated to ever show it to anyone. I had one friend who I would “let” read what I thought. They were very safe and supportive.

Finally after a bit of coaxing, I started to take a few tentative steps out into the world of blogging. It was a world that is very strange to me, I just never realized how many other people write and share their work. What an amazing discovery this world has been. It is a world of dynamic personalities, interesting thoughts and great knowledge.

I was pensive at first because I am careful by nature I guess, and looked at a few blogs, and finally got up my courage to leave a couple of comments. I was amazed that not only did most of the blogs I commented on read my comments but they replied back!

I read another bloggers account of reading spam and pretending that it was real interaction, because at least it felt like someone had read my thoughts. That was me for sure. So getting actual feedback from real people was like winning the Super Bowl!

thank — Thank you so much for following one of my blogs in any way!!

Other people actually read what I wrote. What a great feeling! Now even though I have never met in person any of these people, their stories and writing is a vital part of my daily life.

Finish a job at work, sneak over and see what is happening in the blog world. See a story that inspires, a video that puts me in awe, or a picture that makes me scared of reptiles. What ever it is generally, specifically I am inspired. Creativity comes from this inspiration and I want to express my gratitude for those who have followed me in as special a way as I can!!!

Thank you so much for making my life a richer experience. I placed each person in a random order because I love all of you so very much. If I forgot anyone it is not because you are not in my heart, because you are, it is because I somehow missed you!