Tag Archives: Motivation

Awesome

It’s OK to Be AWESOME Because YOU are!

your awesome lincoln
He wouldn’t lie!

Why is it that any person who shows confidence in their abilities is called arrogant? Why is it that anyone who likes who they are, can be passed off as self-absorbed? It appears that as people we have developed a society that is custom-made to make you feel bad about who you are no matter what.

The point is not that we should all be arrogant or self-absorbed. Everyone has things in them that are unique and, for the lack of a better word, awesome, and that should be used as motivation to allow you to reach your potential, not to make you feel bad about yourself.

Why we think we aren’t awesome

ask me about being awesome
What is it like to be so AWESOME?

The educational system in America has done wonders to promote the feeling of inadequacy that many carry around all of their lives.  If you fit into the system and learn the way that people have determined is appropriate you will thrive, but most people don’t fit into that mold.

Either a student’s talents don’t work on the schedule of a school day, or they have creative approaches to learning that are frowned upon,  rather than encouraged.

“Follow the rules,” ” don’t be different,” and “conformity” is the desired actions of our public school system.   If students can do well on standardized assessments, then funding and prestige can result.  People are not standardized. Expecting them to learn like they are is absurd, unfair, and unhealthy.

This is an institutional dimming of the creative process that causes lifetimes of harm.  If you are told when you are young that something is wrong with you, then you are going to believe it.   All of the great things throughout history were done by people, who didn’t do what everyone told them to do.  They didn’t follow the expected path, to get to the destination someone else envisioned for them.

They noticed their inner awesomeness and worked to nurture it, and create the great things that we treasure today. I often wonder how Thomas Edison or Albert Einstein would fare in schools today.  Probably not very well.  Embrace your awesome abilities, whatever they are, and don’t be afraid to be great, because you are.

Why People knock You Down

No matter who you are, you have probably met people who are so critical of everyone else’s shortcomings that are talking to them is a constant trip into misery.

It is easy to point out someone else’s mistakes and flaws, but it is also easy to recognize the fear in the person criticizing.

When the finger is pointed outward from them, they hope nobody will notice how miserable they feel about themselves and their own actions, talents, and lives.

It is true without exception, that those who judge others harshly are the ones who feel the weakest and worst about themselves.  Hug them, wish them well, and move on.

This kind of behavior is toxic and will only stop you from embracing your own inner strength, talent, and beauty.  Embrace the fact that you are awesome.

Even Awesome People Make Mistakes

One of the most consistent factors of being a human being living on the face of the Earth is that we all will make mistakes.  How else could we learn about all of the emotions, feelings, and actions it takes to play this little game of life?

Mistakes are the signposts that help lead you toward the place where your awesomeness can flourish.  Do not judge yourself too harshly because of a mistake, because it happened.  Learn from it, take direction from it, become wise, and move toward your awesomeness.  It is there just waiting for you to embrace it.

It is not Self-Centered to love yourself.

Many people have been taught, that to think positively about yourself is a form of

You should!

Arrogance will only lead to bad things.  This attitude is dangerous, because if you don’t allow yourself to appreciate your talents and strengths, then it is a short step to not liking anything about yourself.

How many great books have never been written because someone lacked the confidence in themselves to write them?  How many inventions have never benefited society because the person who had the ability didn’t love themselves enough to pursue it? The world will never know.  It is not self-centered to love yourself, in fact, it is one of the single most important things you can do.

It doesn’t mean you tell everyone how great you are, because you are great, you don’t need to pontificate about it.  Love your ability and know you can be great.  There is something that you can contribute to the world that nobody else has the ability to do because you are awesome!

Contribute, create, sing, sculpt, perform business, market, run, think and the world will scream, “You are awesome!”

All the World’s Problems Solved

When I think of all of the people I know and the talent that each possesses, it is difficult for me to feel worried about the world’s future and what will become of humanity.  Global warming, pollution, ocean health, sickness, hunger, disease all seem suddenly very solvable problems. They certainly are because with all of the greatness in people, and it is only a matter of time before the solutions to each obstacle will be discovered, created, and implemented.  It can go no other way because you are awesome, and there is nothing wrong with that.

Positive Affirmations

Something Positive
Something Positive

Positive Thinking Video Below

Some days, when I am feeling negative, or just not as motivated as I should feel, I find positive thinking myself with something motivational, and positive.  I have learned that what you put into your mind will determine much of what you experience in life.

This is a quick video that contains quotes, and thoughts on positive thinking that I have seen on Facebook, and other sites.  They were posted to motivate people, but I need them all in one place so that I can experience total immersion. They will help you get your mind in the right frame of mind.

Positive Thinking Gets you Moving

I wanted to have something that would allow me to quickly get moving in a positive thinking direction, and this collection of sayings has worked for me and I think it will work for you.

Simply watch the video, or a part of it, or whatever you have time for and then try and accomplish something.  It will always go smoother afterward. Positive thinking helps make the day go by better.

This group of mini-affirmations will improve your mood and allow you to be more productive.  Give it a try and let me how it contributes to your positive thinking.

Quotes For a Happy Friday

Quotes for a Happy Friday
Have a Happy Day!

Quotes for a happy Friday. One of the great things about life is that it always shows you situations that challenge you and force you to react.  Quite possibly for you, it is the first time that you have experienced this particular emotion or activity.  The best thing is that almost without exception, someone, somewhere in the history of mankind has had a similar experience and felt exactly how you felt about it.   Even better many of these people wrote their experiences down for you and memorialized their thoughts for eternity, or at least for as long as people have been able to  read.   I wanted to include some inspirational quotes that might help you get through a Friday afternoon, or Saturday, or Sunday or whatever day you choose to read this on.  I am putting them all on here just for you, so enjoy them!

Quotes for a Happy Friday part 1

A ship is safe in harbor…..But that’s not what ships were built for.  – William Shed

There is nothing either good or bad…..But thinking makes it so.– William Shakespeare

All that we are is the result of what we have thought.  The mind is everything.  What we think, we become.  – Buddha

The cave you most fear to enter contains the greatest treasure. – Joseph Campbell

Life is not measured by its length, but by its depth. – Anonymous

If you can imagine it, you can achieve it.  If you can dream it, you can become it. – William A Ward

Life is without meaning.  You bring the meaning to it.  The meaning of life is whatever you ascribe it to be.  Being alive is the meaning. – Joseph Campbell

There is one quality which one must possess to win, and that is definiteness of purpose, the knowledge of what one wants, and a burning desire to possess it.  – Napoleon Hill

The people who get on in this world are the people who get up and look for the circumstances they want and if they can’t find them, make them.  -George Bernard Shaw

Quotes for a Happy Friday part 2

The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity.  The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty. – Winston Churchill

Put yourself in a state of mind where you say to yourself, “here is an opportunity for me to celebrate like never before, my own power, my own ability to get myself to do whatever is necessary.“- Martin Luther King, Jr.

We are what we think.  All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world.  – Buddha

I try to learn from the past, but I plan for the future by focusing exclusively on the present.  That’s where the fun is. – Donald Drumpf

 

I can’t change the direction of the wind, but I can adjust my sails to always reach my destination. – Jimmy Dean

I want to sing like the birds sing, not worrying about who hears or what they think. – Rumi

The highest reward for a person’s toil is not what they get for it, but what they become by it. – John Ruskin

Men are born to succeed, not to fail. – Henry David Thoreau

I figured that if I said it enough, I would convince the world that I really was the greatest.  -Muhammad Ali

Happiness is not having what you want.  It is wanting what you have. – Unknown

Success is getting what you want.  Happiness is wanting what you get.– Dale Carnegie

The talent for being happy is appreciating and liking what you have, instead of what you don’t have. -Woody Allen

When you come to a fork in the road, take it.-Yogi Berra

Fortune favors the bold. – Virgil

He who lives in harmony with himself lives in harmony with the universe. – Marcus Aurelius

If you haven’t got charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble. -Bob Hope

It is not length of life, but depth of life. -Ralph Waldo Emerson

Everything that happens, happens as it should, and if you observe carefully, you will find this to be so.  –Marcus Aurelius

Act as if it were impossible to fail.  -Dorothea Brande

If you do not conquer self, you will be conquered by self. – Napoleon Hill

Quotes for a Happy Friday Part 3

Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.  -Maria Robinson

The future depends on what we do in the present. -Mahatma Gandhi

Dream as if you’ll live forever, live as if you’ll die today. – James Dean

Attain to the place where no one and no thing can disturb you. -Lester Levenson

When one door of happiness closes, another opens, but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one that has been opened for us.  – Helen Keller

In the hopes of reaching the moon, men fail to see the flowers that blossom at their feet.- Albert Schweitzer

All the world’s a stage, and the men and women merely players.  They have their exits and their entrances: And one man in his time plays many parts.  – William Shakespeare

If you do not change direction, you may end up where you’re heading. -Lao Tzu

History will be kind to me for I intend to write it. – Winston Churchill

“We are all a little weird and life’s a little weird, and when we find someone whose weirdness is compatible with ours, we join up with them and fall in mutual weirdness and call it love.”   – Unknown

“My life is my message.”    – Gandhi

I hope these quotes for a happy Friday make your day great.

 

How Great I Am

How Great I am Muhammad Ali
How Great I am!

by Jonathan Hilton

There are many motivating things that I have come across over that past two years, and one of the most motivating people of the last half of the 20th century has been Muhammad Ali, championship boxer.

Not because he was a great boxer, but because he transcended boxing and provided inspiration that can be applied to every day life.

It doesn’t really matter what your goals are or what you really want to accomplish, if you believe in yourself like Ali did, you will have an excellent chance of achieving your goals.  I publish his affirmations with a sense of pride, because I know “How Great I Am.”

I am sure that Ali never thought that his thoughts from so long ago would ever amount to anything more than motivation for the fight he was about to undertake.  He even admitted himself that he was trying to convince himself and everybody else that he was the greatest, if he said it often enough and loud enough, people would start to believe him.

This is true to all of us, if you say how great you are, and believe it, you will be!

Below is the most motivational video of all time.  Watch it and you will feel that there is nothing you can’t do.

One of his poems The Legend of Cassius Clay:

This is the legend of Cassius Clay,

I Can Fly Muhammad Ali
I Am The Greatest

The most beautiful fighter in the world today.
He talks a great deal, and brags indeed-y,
Of a muscular punch that’s incredibly speed-y.
The fistic world was dull and weary,
But with a champ like Liston, things had to be dreary.
Then someone with color and someone with dash,
Brought fight fans are runnin’ with Cash.
This brash young boxer is something to see
and the heavyweight championship is his destiny.
This kid’s got a left, this kid’s got a right,
If he hit you once, you’re asleep for the night.

Ali provided the examples of great personal affirmations that anyone can use to help motivate them to accomplish any thing.

After defeating Sonny Liston the most feared fighter of his time, this affirmation was spoken:

“I knew I had him in the first round. Almighty God was with me. I want everyone to bear witness, I am the greatest! I’m the greatest thing that ever lived. I don’t have a mark on my face, and I upset Sonny Liston, and I just turned twenty-two years old. I must be the greatest. I showed the world. I talk to God everyday. I know the real God. I shook up the world, I’m the king of the world. You must listen to me. I am the greatest! I can’t be beat!”

Before fighting Ernie Terrell in 1967 Ali let the world know what he thought of his opponent.

I think Terrell will catch hell at the sound of the bell.
He’s going around saying that he’s a championship-fighter,
but when he meets me he fall 20 pound lighter.
He thinks that he’s the real heavy weight champ
but when he meets me, he’ll just be a tramp
Now I’m not sayin’ just to be funny, but I’m fightin’ Ernie because he needs the money

Last night I had a dream, When I got to Africa,
I had one hell of a rumble.
I had to beat Tarzan’s behind first,
For claiming to be King of the Jungle.
For this fight, I’ve wrestled with alligators,
I’ve tussled with a whale.
I done handcuffed lightning
And throw thunder in jail.
You know I’m bad.
just last week, I murdered a rock,
Injured a stone, Hospitalized a brick.
I’m so mean, I make medicine sick.
I’m so fast, man,
I can run through a hurricane and don’t get wet.
When George Foreman meets me,
He’ll pay his debt.
I can drown the drink of water, and kill a dead tree.
Wait till you see Muhammad Ali.

Muhammad Ali was the greatest because he not only professed his ability and went on to back it up, he also led the way for all people, everywhere, if you truly believe that you are the best, the greatest and you will succeed, then there is no power on the face of the Earth that can stop you from achieving and experiencing your greatness.  How Great I am!

Other Muhammad Ali quotes I like.

I’m retiring because there are more pleasant things to do than beat up people.

Joe Frazier is so ugly that when he cries, the tears turn around and go down the back of his head.

Frazier is so ugly that he should donate his face to the US Bureau of Wildlife.

It’s just a job. Grass grows, birds fly, waves pound the sand. I beat people up.

I’m not the greatest; I’m the double greatest. Not only do I knock ’em out, I pick the round

Since I won’t let the critics seal my fate, they keep hollering I’m full of hate.
But they don’t really hurt me none, ’cause I’m doing good and having fun.

Conclusion:

There is no person alive who can tell you that you are not capable.  There is no person alive who can tell you that you don’t have the talent.  There is no person alive who can tell you you are no good, washed up, a loser….only you can tell yourself these things.  You have the talent to be the greatest at whatever it is that you decide to do.  You simply have to believe how great you are, fight all the critics, enjoy the journey and in the end you will be The Greatest.

 

The End of The World

If you knew the world was ending tomorrow, who would you make sure you visited today?

end of the world
The Mayans thought it was going to happen in 2012, yet here we are!

by Jonathan Hilton  Day 54

Knowing the world would end tomorrow would make me want to see a lot of people today, for a number of reasons, but I think that this question is good motivation to look at how we value people and how we let relationships drift away into indifference for a multitude of reasons.

So I am going to split the people into categories and explain the reasons for each.  One thing is for sure it would be one busy day.

Family First

First of course there would be family that I would want to see, so that I could make sure that they were ready for the impending destruction.  I would want to say thank you for all that you did in my life and that I am very grateful for the kindness and that I love them all very much, ask if there was anything I could do for them on that last day.

Each relationship in that familial web is important and I would hope that I could get to them all.  I know how much I miss the ones that are gone already, they are with me every day and I am not sure about what would happen if the world ended, but as long as I was able I would be carrying them with me.

Forgiveness
I have a clear conscience in this area

Friendship Is Important

Second I would want to visit all of the friends that I have met over the years to say good bye and reminisce about good times shared, and all of the funny memories we had, so that I could tell them how much I appreciated spending some time on this journey with them.

There are many friends from all of the different phases of my life and I guess I would have to use Skype to talk with some of them, but if I could I would talk to them.

The people I grew up with are as dear to me today as anyone, because there is a shared experience of childhood that could not be faked or manipulated.  We knew each other, both the good and the bad, and there was a support and caring there that still exists today.  My high school friends shared a different time with me, but still significant.  The ties you make as a youth are strong even if you don’t see each other on a regular basis.  They don’t break easy.

I went to two different colleges and there are two distinct groups of friends there but they are the people that I really grew up finally with and started to learn about the world.   I have nothing but smiles and great times to share just one more time before the world ends.

Then of course as an adult, there were a lot of people I met through the jobs I have had, but not a lot of them were friends, they were coworkers for the most part.  These “friendships” were clearly only for a short time and they did teach me something, but it is the past where I have found my true friends.

This One Goes Out To You

Next I would find the three people who I was ever in love with in my life.  It might be awkward because I haven’t seen any of them in years.  but I would want to tell each of them that regardless of my actions, I take responsibility for them.  They had an impact

peaceful lake
A nice peaceful place for the end of the world

on me and I have carried it with me for my entire life.  Not the bad things but the good times the memories that made me a better person. They still are making me better today.  I am grateful that we shared whatever we shared.

Forgive Everyone

Time is getting short so I would want to at least call some people I feel like there are unresolved issues with.  To tell them that I forgive them and am sorry for my part in any pain they experienced.

Life is full situations that provide you with a choice, I made some that were universally good and some that might be construed as bad for everyone.  Whenever the end does come these petty things are not going to be on my mind. I send best wishes to those who are angry and hope they find happiness before their ending.  I forgive them for anything they did to me.

Finally

That being done, if I had any time left I would go to a spot that was special to me, there are several and await the end of the world with anticipation, and not be afraid in the least bit. What good would that do? The world is ending and there isn’t anything you can do about it, might as well enjoy the spectacle.

Is there any other song appropriate for this post?

My Watershed Moment

If you could choose one book as a mandatory read for all high school students, which book would you choose?

Any Book by William George Jordan!
Any Book by William George Jordan!

by Jonathan Hilton  Day 33

To find a  great work of literature that would be appropriate for a high school curriculum would be easy, but my own opinion is that I should choose a book that will foster thought as well as provide a guide on life.

 Too much of our school curriculum are designed to teach people how to perform tomorrow, ignoring the here and now.

 My choice provides a lot of guidance and information rolled into one fantastic package.  Self Control, Its Kingship and Majesty by William George Jordan provides readers with the motivation and inspiration to reach to become better people and to try to understand life that is happening in the here and now.  Everyone in the world should read this book and here is why.

 Sparks In My Mind

gratitudeIn my own life there have been a lot of important moments and accomplishments, that at the time meant something wonderful. My journey into thought and actually becoming more aware began the day I started to read this book.  I had never heard of William George Jordan, most people never have, but that does not make his words any less powerful to digest.

My mind was like an old mansion with a lot of dust on the furniture and cobwebs all over the place because it had never been properly used up to its capacity.  The reading of this book was like throwing the windows open and allowing the first cleaning crews in to make the place presentable.

 This power of words, has  led to further investigation and expansion, that seems to have no end, nor do I want it to.  Yet this entire journey would not have been possible without the key the thoughts of William George Jordan gifted to me a hundred years after it was originally published.

Good Seeds Lead to Strong Crops

In any mind, especially the young, what you put into them is going to have a distinct influence on what you are able to yield out of them.  Playing video games and watching television are not seedsgoing to permanently harm anyone, but there is not a lot of thought stimulated by these activities.

Reading this book, really reading and thinking would change lives and allow students to take their minds further, because there is great advice for how to live.  This Guidance applies to life today as well as it did to life at the beginning of the 20th Century.

 These seeds of thought would be planted and for some they would grow quick and for others it might take years, but if young minds are exposed to high ideas these ideas can’t  have anything but a positive effect on people.

Ideas That Transcend Time

The thoughts and writings of William George Jordan really do apply to today as much as they did in 1907.  Thinking well of others and becoming aware of how you think are the tumblr_m928cpPNDF1rb890co1_1280kinds of Thoughts that will resonate with all people at all times.

For me, I had never comprehended that how I thought was affecting my life and if I didn’t like what was happening in my life then I had to make changes in the way that I was thinking.  The idea that I had control over this thought process was empowering and has been the basis of my personal growth.

 If I had never read this book, I am not sure that would have happened.  Another theme was the crime of the tongue, how gossip is demeaning to all.

 Jordan not only states this but goes on to explain in detail why it is so.  Another great one is how blind allegiance to duty is not only foolish but unhealthy.  Blindly following anything without questioning is not a good way to live your life.

There are many great thoughts like this that I may have heard of before but never had explained to me in an appropriate way. These lessons resonated and pounded my brain like a bell tolling.  Think! Think! Think!  The dignity of self-reliance, Think!  Worry the great American disease, think!  Syndicating our sorrows, think! Failure as success, think! The royal road to happiness, think! There is a weight in these thoughts that stays in your mind.

It touched my Soul and Still Does

kingship-self-control-william-george-jordan-cd-cover-artSo many books I have read since that time and learned a lot of different ideas and studied philosophies of life but none had the impact on me personally as the collection of books written by William George Jordan.

It is great advice, great motivation and also inspiration.  I feel like the first step that I had in the journey to actively become a better human being stared the moment I started to read the words in this book.

It could only have a positive impact on the lives of others and the best part is that you can get his books digitally for next to nothing.

This is the greatest bargain in the history of man.  Incredible knowledge at your disposal and it doesn’t cost a thing.

If you could choose one book as a mandatory read for all high school students, which book would you choose?

My video tribute to William George Jordan!

  • 4 Ways To Harness Your Mind
  • Of what I have known about Books.

The Stories You Provide!

Inspiration
Inspiration comes from who we see and what we experience every day.

by Jonathan Hilton

The more I look for topics to write about and expound upon, the more my writing process comes clearly into my mind.  I write best when I have someone specifically in mind to write about, because it is like I am explaining my thoughts or emotions to them, or that I am giving them advice.  Often I know the advice would never be received directly, so I just give it on the pages of my writing.

Since these people of inspiration are all around me, they may not even know that I have been inspired by them.  I can look at almost every one of the approximately 200 articles I have written on this website and remember clearly the lesson or situation that prompted the thoughts or feelings that caused me to put it to paper.  This clearly  shows me that people do not recognize the impact that they have on others just by  living life as an example.

As we approach the new year of 2013 I am endeavoring to dig deeper into those relationships that I have had in the past to wring out the valuable experiences that I have been fortunate to experience in my lifetime.  That means that if you have ever met me than you will probably be the motivation for some piece of writing that I have done in the past or I will do over the next year or two.

writing inspirations
All things create stories in your mind, all you have to do is tell them.

I have never mentioned a name or directed a thought directly at someone because my intention is not to publicize anyone’s short comings or problems.  I simply have had experiences with people in my life that have taught me lessons from their positive actions or from their negative behavior.  Each situation has value, it is just much more fun to remember the positive, and often more valuable to recall the negative behavior some have displayed.

What this means as we head into a new year is that I am going to be writing and publishing a lot of material over the next year and when you read it, you just might see something of yourself in that writing.  I am grateful in advance for all of the experiences and looking forward to sharing them in the future.  It is definitely true that there is inspiration all around us and all we have to do is look for it, to find it.

I am planning on continually publishing articles about inspiration, but I am also going to be sharing short stories from all aspects of my youth, because they were great and they helped make me what I am today.  I can not wait to get started.