Are you money conscious or poverty conscious?

POVERTY is attracted to the one whose mind is favourable to it, as money is attracted to him whose mind has been deliberately prepared to attract it, and through the same laws.

POVERTY CONSCIOUSNESS WILL VOLUNTARILY SEIZE THE MIND WHICH IS NOT OCCUPIED WITH THE MONEY CONSCIOUSNESS.

A poverty consciousness develops without conscious application of habits favourable to it. The money consciousness must be created to order, unless one is born with such a consciousness.

Catch the full significance of the statements in the preceding paragraph, and you will understand the importance of PERSISTENCE in the accumulation of a fortune. Without PERSISTENCE, you will be defeated, even before you start. With PERSISTENCE you will win.

Pursue money, you don’t have to love it just pursue it. You can do far more good while having money that without it.

The road that leads to poverty or riches is the same road, but you must journey in the exact opposite direction!

This article is from Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill –with some paraphrasing and additional comments from me.

A Violinist in the Metro

A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousands of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule.

A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the tin and without stopping continued to walk.

A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work.

The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tugged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.

In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theatre in Boston and the seats averaged $100.

This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people. The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?

One of the possible conclusions from this experience could be:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?

Stop! and hear the music. Don’t just carry on not realizing what you are missing, not having goals, not fulfilling your purpose. You have an important part to play.

YOU are somebody special. Don’t ignore the talent and potential in you!

Be decisive!

A Man With One Watch Knows What Time It Is; A Man With Two Is Never Quite Sure. – Anonymous

We believers should be the most decisive of all people. Christian leaders should have wills, not wishes. In James 1:8 the Bible says, A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. An indecisive person allows instability to creep into every area of his life. If we don’t decide what is important in our own lives, we will probably end up doing only the things that are important to others. The greater the degree of wishful thinking, the greater the degree of mediocrity. Being decisive, being focused, committing ourselves to the fulfillment of a dream, greatly increases our probability of success. It also closes the door to wrong options. The challenge for all of us is to be dedicated dreamers, or perhaps I should say, decisive dreamers. Harry Truman once said, “Some questions cannot be answered, but they can be decided.” Most of the time, you and I may not have all the facts available about any given situation, but we will usually have all the facts we need to make a decision. The Bible says to let the peace of God rule in our hearts. [Col. 3:15.] The Amplified Bible version tells us to let the peace which comes from Christ act as an umpire in our hearts. Be decisive. Go with the peace of God and do not be afraid to make a decision. The fact is that decisive people typically prevail and rise to the top because most people are indecisive. If you are neutral on spiritual matters, you will likely find yourself operating against heaven. Thank God we serve a decisive Lord. He has given us His peace and His Word so we can make wise decisions. We should not be the king of people who claim that God has told us one thing this week and the very opposite next week. God does not change His degrees that quickly. Nor does He ever direct anyone to act contrary to the good sense and sound judgment shown in His Word. God desires that we be decisive in our lives. As His children we should be like our heavenly Father, with Who there is “no variableness, neither shadow of turning.” [James 1:17.] We should be people of great wills. If the devil controls our will, he controls our destiny. But if God controls our will, then He controls our destiny. The choice is ours. Let’s be decisive. Let’s make the right decision! EXTRACTED FROM JOHN L. MASON’S BOOK “An Enemy Called Average”

What do you think?

“If you think you are beaten, you are,
If you think you dare not, you don’t
If you like to win, but you think you can’t,
It is almost certain you won’t. .

“If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost
For out of the world we find,
Success begins with a fellow’s will—
It’s all in the state of mind.

“If you think you are outclassed, you are,
You’ve got to think high to rise,
You’ve got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win a prize. .

“Life’s battles don’t always go
To the stronger or faster man,
But soon or late the man who wins
Is the man WHO THINKS HE CAN!”

Conquests and the other important relationship

Relationships can be tough, even in the most loving ones there will be hurt, the need for forgiveness and healthy boundaries. It’s worth remembering that when it comes to conflict:
Those who attack are simply scared!
Nowadays it’s often very easy to walk away from someone you’re not getting along with, but what do you do when the person you’re not getting along with is your primary relationship?
Stop for a moment and consider that I’m not talking about your wife, husband or significant other…

Your primary relationship is… The one you have with yourself!

On the 29 May 1953 the later to be knighted Edmund Hillary was the first man to conquer the seemingly unconquerable Mount Everest…
Can you imagine the ongoing relationship squabbles taking place inside that guy’s head? “It’s too high, no one’s ever climbed it, it’s impossible. You’re crazy to even try, you’re going to fail.”
In all likelihood all these might have been the things he heard out in the world and maybe also in the inner world of his mind. Half way up when the weather got treacherous and on his third attempt his mind and in all likelihood and his body would have been screaming for him to; give up this ridiculous dream.
However, Sir Edmund Hillary had a relationship with himself that forgave the past and held strict boundaries and as a result after three failed attempts he finally did it, he conquered Everest.
In an interview the media said, “You’ve conquered the mountain,” and Hillary said:
“No, I’ve conquered myself.”

What mountain lays before you that in order to conquer it, you must develop a healthy relationship with yourself.

by Dov Baron ?

Conquests and the other important relationship

Relationships can be tough, even in the most loving ones there will be hurt, the need for forgiveness and healthy boundaries. It’s worth remembering that when it comes to conflict:
Those who attack are simply scared!
Nowadays it’s often very easy to walk away from someone you’re not getting along with, but what do you do when the person you’re not getting along with is your primary relationship?
Stop for a moment and consider that I’m not talking about your wife, husband or significant other…
Your primary relationship is… The one you have with yourself!
On the 29 May 1953 the later to be knighted Edmund Hillary was the first man to conquer the seemingly unconquerable Mount Everest…
Can you imagine the ongoing relationship squabbles taking place inside that guy’s head? “It’s too high, no one’s ever climbed it, it’s impossible. You’re crazy to even try, you’re going to fail.”
In all likelihood all these might have been the things he heard out in the world and maybe also in the inner world of his mind. Half way up when the weather got treacherous and on his third attempt his mind and in all likelihood and his body would have been screaming for him to; give up this ridiculous dream.
However, Sir Edmund Hillary had a relationship with himself that forgave the past and held strict boundaries and as a result after three failed attempts he finally did it, he conquered Everest.
In an interview the media said, “You’ve conquered the mountain,” and Hillary said:
“No, I’ve conquered myself.”
What mountain lays before you that in order to conquer it, you must develop a healthy relationship with yourself ?

THE SIX BASIC FEARS

0000000000000000000000 ————————————–There are six basic fears, with some combination of which everyone suffers from at one time or another. Most people are fortunate if they do not struggle with all six. Here they are listed in the order jn which they are most common:

The fear of POVERTY
The fear of CRITICISM
The fear of ILL HEALTH
The fear of LOSS OF LOVE OF SOMEONE
The fear of OLD AGE
The fear of DEATH
The top three are at the route of most other worries. All other fears are of minor importance, they can be grouped under these six headings. But the good news is that fear is manageable. Fear must be managed!

FEAR – False Evidence Appearing Real
It’s a lie, a false lie! (As the King from the King and I musical says) It’s a false lie!
We exhaust a lot of energy and waste a lot of thinking time about stuff that probably will never happen and if and when ever it does its never as bad as you thought it was going to be in the first place. We need to notice when we worry, we need to decide its not going to be so bad even if it does happen. Things always work out for the good anyway. We need to monitor, it control it and eradicate and fear worry from our thinking completely
There are many symptoms of worry and of course many causes, too many discuss here. Suffice to say that you should not be worrying and you need not worry at all. If you are, read some books, Google, get some help. Worrying often does far more damage that the actual thing that you are worrying about.
A state of mind is something that one assumes. It cannot be purchased, it must be created – Napoleon Hill
FEAR eats one alive. STOP it now!

Power Lists

For your encouragement I send out motivational lists every weekday. (different ones each day of course 🙂
People who receive the mail are finding it highly inspirational. I know you would benefit from it also.

The 3 differant lists are 10 things that I am (Self-Image)
10 things that I am happy and grateful for (Attitude)
And 10 things that I will have in the future that I am grateful for now. Vision and goals

The idea is that I send my list to you and you send me your lists (accountability)
People are inspired by receiving my list and shape there destiny by doing their own!
Some people just do one of the lists or just 3 or so of each or just enjoy my lists.

This quotation by author Ester Hicks, covers the reasons why the lists are so powerful:
You must become happy with that which you are (list 1)
and with that which you have, (list 2)
while at the same time being eager for more! (List 3)
– that is the optimal creative vantage point; to stand on the brink of what is coming, feeling eager, optimistic anticipation, with no feelings of impatience, doubt or unworthiness hindering the receiving of it – Ester Hicks

These are some examples:
List 1
I am going to have a great day
I know I can
I am adventurous
I embrace change
I use positive metaphors
I am a spiritual being
I am committed to a constant and never ending improvement in my friendships!

List 2
I am grateful, very grateful that I have hands and feet, fingers and toes!
I am grateful that I have very nice, easy going, quite neighbours.
I am grateful that I live in a booming growing area and a safe suburb.
I am grateful that we are winning at cricket and that I like it and that I can watch it

List 3
I am grateful that I have reach all my financial targets for 2009
I am grateful that I went to Scotland on holiday

Send me your e -mail address to roy@redbowtie.co.za and I will include you on he mailing list.

Be Blessed, Roy

The Cookie Thief

A woman was waiting at an airport one night,
With several long hours before her flight.
She hunted for a book in the airport shops.
Bought a bag of cookies and found a place to drop.

She was engrossed in her book but happened to see,
That the man sitting beside her, as bold as could be.
Grabbed a cookie or two from the bag in between,
Which she tried to ignore to avoid a scene.

So she munched the cookies and watched the clock,
As the gutsy cookie thief diminished her stock.
She was getting more irritated as the minutes ticked by,
Thinking, “If I wasn’t so nice, I would blacken his eye.”

With each cookie she took, he took one too,
When only one was left, she wondered what he would do.
With a smile on his face, and a nervous laugh,
He took the last cookie and broke it in half.

He offered her half, as he ate the other,
She snatched it from him and thought… oooh, brother.
This guy has some nerve and he’s also rude,
Why he didn’t even show any gratitude!

She had never known when she had been so galled,
And sighed with relief when her flight was called.
She gathered her belongings and headed to the gate,
Refusing to look back at the thieving ingrate.

She boarded the plane, and sank in her seat,
Then she sought her book, which was almost complete.
As she reached in her baggage, she gasped with surprise,
There was her bag of cookies, in front of her eyes.

If mine are here, she moaned in despair,
The others were his, and he tried to share.
Too late to apologize, she realized with grief,
That she was the rude one, the ingrate, the thief.
by Valerie Cox