Adaptability in Action
In a way, human beings behave like bees. If you place several bees in an open-ended bottle and lay the bottle on its side with the base toward a light source, the bees will repeatedly fly to the bottle bottom toward the light. It never occurs to them to reverse gears and try another direction. This is a combination of genetic programming and learned behavior.
Put a bunch of flies in that bottle and turn the base toward a bright light. Within a few minutes, all the flies will have found their way out. They try all directions—up, down, toward the light, away from the light, often bumping into the glass—but sooner or later they flutter forth into the neck of the bottle and out the opening.
We often allow ourselves to become locked in our present circumstances, even if we are unhappy and really want to be reaching in a new direction. What we’re doing may make us miserable, but at least it’s familiar. One of the most important factors in achieving personal success is the willingness to try things out, to experiment, to break new ground. In fact, this is the only way to learn and progress: trial, error, feedback, knowledge, trial and success. It is a far better thing to try to succeed and fail than to do nothing and succeed.
This week:
* Try it
* Change it
* Do it
Stop stewing and start doing!
Safari: Changing Your Habits by Denis Waitley
You can change your life by changing you habits. Here are some guidepost rules regarding change:
Rule 1: No one can change you and you can’t really change anyone else. You must admit your need, stop denying your problem, and accept responsibility for changing yourself.
Rule 2: Habits aren’t broken, but replaced—by layering new behavior patterns on top of the old ones. This usually takes a least a year or two. Forget the 30-day wonder ones. I don’t know where motivational speakers got the idea that it takes twenty-one days to gain a new habit. It may take that long to remember the motions of a new skill, but after many years of being you, it takes far longer to settle into a new habit pattern and stay there. Habits are like submarines. They run silent and deep. They also are like comfortable beds, in that they’re easy to get into, but difficult to get out of. So don’t expect immediate, amazing results. Give your skills training a year and stick with it, knowing that your new ways can last a lifetime.
Rule 3: A daily routine adhered to over time will become second nature, like riding a bicycle. Negative behavior leads to a losing lifestyle, positive behavior to a wining lifestyle. Practice makes permanent in both cases. —Denis Waitley
Discipline Is a Beautiful Word by Zig Ziglar
In today’s social climate many people look with disfavor on the word discipline because they simply do not understand that discipline means “to instruct or educate, to inform the mind, to prepare by instructing in correct principles and habits.” No one who achieves greatness does so without discipline. Sybil Stanton, in her beautiful book The Twenty-Five Hour Woman, accurately states that “discipline is not on your back, needling you with imperatives; it is at your side, nudging you with incentives.” It’s true that when you discipline yourself to do the things you need to do, when you need to do them, the day’s going to come when you can do the things you want to do, when you want to do them. It’s also true that life is tough, but when you are tough on yourself, life will be infinitely easier on you.
Today many people want to be free to do as they please, but consider this: If you take the train off the tracks, it’s free, but it can’t go anywhere. Take the steering wheel out of the automobile and it’s under the control of no one, but it is useless. The reality is that until the sailor disciplines himself to be obedient to the compass, he will have to stay within sight of shore. However, once he is obedient to that compass, he can go anywhere in the world the sailboat will take him. Yes, discipline is the missing ingredient that will make the difference in your life. Discipline yourself today so you can have a better life tomorrow.
THERE WILL BE NO CLASSES ON DECEMBER 24TH
REMEMBER TO LISTEN TO WRNJ RADIO – 1510 (AM DIAL) AND 92.7(FM DIAL) – IF THE WEATHER THREATENS / MISSED CLASSES MAY BE MADE UP.
