Here are some archived TAKES. Enjoy!!
FROM MOUNTAINEER TO MOTIVATOR: LIFE LESSONS by John Amatt
To succeed in life, whether personally or professionally, we have to take risks. The world is changing so fast that yesterday's way is not suited to the future. If we fail to adapt to changing circumstances, we fall into the trap of complacency, which I believe is the biggest danger in life.
As a child, I was very insecure and shy. I wanted to be successful, but lacked confidence. When I discovered climbing, I found something I was good at. I began to be recognized by my peers and this gave me the ambition to climb harder and higher routes. I discovered that nothing was impossible if I could find the courage to try.
In extreme mountaineering, you are always in dangerous situations, as there are plenty of dangers such as rockfalls, avalanches or crevasses over which you have no direct control. It is vital to be constantly aware of these dangers and not to panic. In climbing, mental control is just as important as physical prowess. I have found that staying calm and evaluating the situation leads to better decision-making.
Both individual determination and teamwork are critical to success when climbing. Your need to rely on the support of your team and share in the achievement. But at the same time, personal focus and determination to keep going despite any adversity is an important contribution to team success.
My greatest achievement in climbing is being the first ever to conquer the 5,000-foot Troll Wall in Norway. This rock face is the highest and most vertical in Europe. A stone dropped from the summit will touch nothing until it lands on the valley floor one mile below.
Prior to our climb, the experts in Europe had said it was impossible to scale the Troll Wall. But with three companions, I decided to try. It took ten days to make the climb and we slept on ledges no more than a foot wide.
Afterwards, I said to myself: 'If I can do that, I can do anything.' Everest has been my greatest endurance test. It took five years to organize, three weeks to walk the 150 miles from Kathmandu to base camp, and six weeks to climb the final 11,000 feet to the top of the world - the highest point on earth at 29,035 feet. Then you have to spend two weeks removing all the equipment and walking back.
Adventure to me is not hanging on a rope on the side of a mountain. That is just one arena where adventurous people can constantly challenge themselves. If we look at every day as an adventure we can challenge ourselves and continue to grow throughout our lives. That is the ultimate adventure.
I am the person I am today because of the learning that took place in the mountains, so I wanted to motivate others to climb the metaphorical mountains in their own lives. It was a natural evolution into motivational speaking to corporate groups around the world.
The greatest lesson that businesses can learn from my experiences are to stay focused, and never give up. Many people today are unwilling to take personal responsibility for the results of their own actions. Our society breeds a culture where we always look for blame in adverse situations. Our governments surround us with safety nets, we have insurance policies for every eventuality, and the legal profession encourages us to sue for compensation when something goes wrong.
Our civilization was built by adventurous people who had the courage to try new things. They endured through adversity and learned lessons from it, then worked together in teams to achieve difficult goals, and adapted to the new world of opportunity every day. We must learn lessons from the past and apply them to the present if we are to succeed in this millennium.
DEVELOPING POSITIVE CHARACTER TRAITS IN YOUR CHILDREN by Rhia Roberts
A while ago my family and I went sledding and as I watched my children climbing up the slope I started thinking…
Many people are convinced that most of today's societal problems are because of the "me" generation; youngsters are just out for themselves and pay no heed to others or their needs. Indeed, a common belief is that today's youngsters won't do anything unless there is something in it for them.
Yet, while sledding, I saw a different side to youngsters. I watched my two oldest children (then five and four) take my youngest (then two years old) by the hand to help her up the slippery slope each time they went up. They would have been faster without her, but not once did they try to sneak by her without helping. And when the sled carrying my two daughters was aimed toward the embankment, it was my five year old son who ran to them to stop them from falling and hurting themselves.
Don't get me wrong; these children sometimes fight amongst themselves and, on occasion, behave horribly. But I can take them shopping and know that they won't ask for anything, I can talk to them about tsunami or hurricane victims and know that they will offer to send some of their own money to the cause, and I can ask them to play with those children left on the sidelines and know that they will do their best to befriend them.
Perhaps, therefore, the "me" generation is to blame for much of society's problems - not the youngsters who want everything, but the adults in their lives who have taught them to selfishly think only of themselves and to want it all.
Most adults have been disillusioned at some time or another; sadly, many pass that disillusionment, with all its negative connotations, down to their children. Then the children learn to put themselves first and foremost!
Most young children want to help. We can encourage that feeling to continue into adulthood by teaching the lesson my children learned while sledding: Life is a slippery slope with promises of bumps and bruises, but we can all make it to the top if we remember to help those who need it.
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THE RELATIVITY OF YOUR LIFE by Barbara Rose, Ph.D.
We live in the world of the relative. What and whom we surround ourselves with, how we spend our waking hours, and the type of person we become is in direct relation to all that surrounds us.
Many of our choices are conscious. They are the simple choices such as; “I prefer a black car to a green car, so I am buying the black car.”
Many of our choices are unconscious. They represent those areas of our lives where we feel disenchanted, disappointed, empty, frustrated, and unfulfilled. Our heads may tell us one thing, such as: “I have to stay in this job to pay my bills” when in reality, we dread facing our workday each morning.
Other areas of unconscious choices lie in the area of unfulfilled relationships. The kind of people we share our time with. The type of romantic relationships we have.
There is only one way to tell if it is your conscious mind, or unconscious beliefs, that created these choices for you:
Ask yourself how deeply fulfilled you feel with those people.
Do you feel supported, nurtured, respected, valued, honored, cared for and loved? Or do you feel drained, taken for granted, hurt, depleted, disrespected and used?
Your greatest truth lies in your heart. You KNOW the answer. That answer creates the dawn of your opportunity to replace an unfulfilled life with a fulfilled one. It creates a tremendous growth opportunity. The growth opportunity of your life!
Who you are, who surrounds you, what you have, what you would prefer to have, and most importantly what you deserve, are all chosen by YOU.
It takes tremendous courage to face your deepest truth. For most people, myself included, it takes a paradigm shift.
Your paradigm is your general view of something.
If you think certain people who comprise a certain portion of the population are not good, your paradigm will shift when you meet someone of that exact group of people who shows you that they are not ALL that way.
THAT is a paradigm shift.
What about how YOU are? What is your general view of you?
For me, it took untold heartache, countless hours of therapy, and deep self questioning before I found the inner courage to align my conscious thoughts (I deserve the best) with my unconscious belief that I was not worth much at all.
Guess which belief was running the show? It was the unconscious one. The belief that I was not worth that much brought me the circumstances that showed me what I was tolerating, relative to what I could have.
Once your unconscious beliefs are brought to light, or come up to the surface, they dissipate. When that happens, a deep and positive inner shift takes place. You have grown.
No longer will you live any area of your life where you feel you are treated like dirt. You will only work in the type of job you absolutely love. You will only be in a relationship where you are treated beautifully. You will also feel worthy enough to extend yourself to others with an open heart, without having a fear that you will be hurt.
You will feel strong, confident and much more of the REAL you. The real you is relative to those parts of your life that do not feel like they truly belong.
What kind of company do you keep? Do you hang out with criminals or people who help uplift humanity? Which do you really prefer deep within?
Do you have a spouse or lover who adores you, or one who treats you like garbage? Which do you prefer?
This is the relativity of your life. All of our choices, both conscious and unconscious, lie in our self worth.
Look at your life and you will find the indicator of your self worth. It is a deep, transformative process to uproot the unconscious beliefs that have created pain in our lives.
As your beliefs about yourself change, so too will your life change. It is all relative to what lies within.
You will know when you have grown. Your outer life will mirror your inner life in a healthier, more positive and life enhancing way.
It may be scary, however, choosing the best will show you the real truth: that you ARE the best. Relative to the old you, the changes in your life will be profound. It will feel like a whole new life. The life you DESERVE to live.
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DISAPPOINTMENTS by Bobby Cary II
A husband got into big trouble after his wedding anniversary. His wife told him the day before, "Tomorrow there better be something in the drive way for me that goes from zero to 200 in 2 seconds."
The next morning the wife went outside and found a small box in the driveway. She opened it and found a bathroom scale.
All throughout life we all deal with some type of disappointment, whether it is disappointment from our job, family or friends. Disappointment is inevitable. It is not a matter of "if" it comes, it is "when" it comes.
Several days before my 15th birthday, my dad informs me that they have bought me a car. You can imagine the excitement I felt. He went on to say that it was being delivered on the morning of my birthday. I walked around to cloud nine and remember thinking, "Oh man, only rich people get their cars delivered to them; this must be quite the car!"
That morning, I stood in my parents' driveway waiting for my car to arrive. My heart is pounding against my chest, in my mind I picture a red convertible sports car and can feel the wind blowing through my hair as I take that baby from 4th to 5th gear. I can hear the duel exhaust screaming as I put the accelerator to the floor. I got excited!!
Several minutes later, I notice a tow truck coming down the street and to my amazement the driver pulled into my parent's drive way. It wasn't my beautiful red sports car, it wasn't car at all. I figured the tow truck driver had made a wrong turn and needed directions.
I walked up to the truck and in my most polite tone asked if I could help him. He said is he was looking for-and gave my address. I can only assume that all the blood must've drained from my face, because the driver asked if I was okay.
I couldn't believe it! It wasn't a red sports car like I had pictured in my mind. Instead, on the back of this tow truck sat a hideous, multi-colored, 1972 Ford Courier pick up truck. "You've got to be kidding me, is this some kind of cruel joke?"
When I say multi-colored, this truck had approximately 20 different colors on it. This truck had no idea what color it wanted to be. It was used for the paint shop of the auto repair facility where my dad worked and there are no words to describe the ugliness of this truck.
My dad walked out of the house and gave directions where the monster was to be released. Evidently my dad saw the disappointment in my face and told me that we had one year to work on the truck and get it in tip-top shape. I was disgusted!
Through out the next year I would work on my truck every afternoon and every weekend. It took forever to remove all the paint. One year later, after many hours of labor, we hadn't gotten to the painting stage but at least all the dents were straightened and running. The truck was a beautiful brown primer color. The only way to get a shine on this truck was spray the primer with water and admire it before the water dried.
The moment had finally arrived. With great pride I slid the key in the ignition and to no avail, if didn't start! Pounding the steering wheel in anger, I remember thinking, "This is NOT happening!"
Finally, my dad and I managed to get it running again and off I went for my first adventure in my "new" truck. After a quick stop to pick up a good friend, we were out on the town in the brown beast. I drove around for several hours and we started for home. The truck ran for a grand total of 5 hours and left me sitting on the side of the highway. I remember thinking and feeling this has to be the worse birthday in history.
I have learned through experience that there is something to learn from all our disappointment. It is through disappointment that we are strengthened. It is up to us to find the good in every bad situation. Instead of asking "why me?" start asking "what can I learn from this?" In every disappointment there is a lesson to be learned. However, it is up to you to look for the lesson.
You may be wondering what that hideous truck taught me.
I'm not sure what it taught me. One thing I do know for sure is that truck brought closeness between me and my dad that never before existed. It gave me an opportunity to actually learn who my dad was a person. We spent many hours together working on the truck and it gave him the opportunity to do what he loved to do, work on a vehicle and teach his son some valuable lessons about life. I didn't realize all this at the time, but as I sit here and write this, it has opened my eyes to the realization that my dad wasn't that bad after all.
No matter how much disappointment comes into your life, look through it and find the positive lessons within. You are a strong willed individual and you have the ability to overcome any and all obstacles that come into your path of life. You can overcome any form of disappointment and can become a stronger, smarter and a more confident person. I have faith in you and your ability to overcome.
LOOKING FOR A FRIEND? by John Maxwell
If you don't have many friends, don't fret or have a pity party. Instead of dwelling on what you don't have, think about what you can give. Look for a few people who interest, begin to communicate that you care in small ways, and invest in their lives. It may begin with something as simple as a word of encouragement. Give them room. If they don't respond, don't force it. And don't sulk. There are hundred of potential friends out there! Finding the right friend begins with being the right friend.
MAY YOU ALWAYS FEEL LOVED by Sandra Sturtz Hauss
May you find serenity and tranquility in a world
You may not always understand.
May the pain you have known and conflict you have experienced
Give you the strength to walk through life
Facing each new situation with courage and optimism.
Always know that there are those whose love and understanding
Will always be there, even when you feel most alone.
May you discover enough goodness in others
To believe in a world of peace.
May a kind word, a reassuring touch, a warm smile be yours
Every day of your life,
And may you give these gifts as well as receive them.
Remember the sunshine when the storm seems unending.
Teach love to those who know hate,
And let that love embrace you as you go into the world.
May the teaching of those you admire become part of you,
So that you may call upon them.
Remember, those whose lives you have touched
And who have touched yours are always a part of you,
Even if the encounters were less than you would have wished.
It is the content of the encounter that is more important than it's form.
May you not become too concerned with material matters,
But instead place immeasurable value on the goodness in your heart.
Find time in each day to see the beauty and love in the world around you.
Realize that each person has limitless abilities,
But each of us is different in our own way.
What you may feel you lack in one regard
May be more than compensated for in another.
What you feel you lack in the present
May become one of your strengths in the future.
May you see your future as one filled with promise and possibility.
Learn to view everything as a worthwhile experience.
May you find enough inner strength to determine your own worth by yourself,
And not be dependent on another's judgement of your accomplishments.
May you always feel loved.
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ROOTS by Joy Hale
Roots--more complex than that tangled part of an underground plant;
A place to draw from, an essential part of growth;
My beginnings that shaped and nurtured the future me.
When my world feels shaky, as if my roots are being torn away,
And loved ones begin to depart,
I have only to reflect on these golden memories that we call yesterday
The smoothness of a baby's skin;
A wrinkled smile that lights up the room;
Words of wisdom suggested with love;
Sad occasions where prayers are mingled with tears;
Happy holidays where love and laughter and good food abound;
Hands joined in prayer connecting with one another and with God.
And then I know that my roots are secure.
For as a root draws water from the soil,
I, too, can draw strength from that innermost part of my private self
Knowing that my roots are not gone
But are tenderly and lovingly multiplying,
Sending out new growth in the never-ending scheme of life --
Which has perfect order.
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START FOR YOURSELF by Rapport-Ja
Start for yourself
Face your greatest fears
And take the new step of faith
Because only who can see the invisible
Can do the impossible.
God opens a door before your eyes
It's up to you to find out
Help yourself and explore the things outside.
If only you could see the genuine smile
Through the eyes of an innocent child
That gives you different insight
Sometimes it's better to be like a child
They take the challenge of life
No matter what comes out
You will see them playing around.
If you want to cope-up with your grief,
You must help and start for yourself
Minimize your self-centeredness,
Maximize your faith and strength for living
Because, God, you are still alive!
There are more things to explore outside.
Even the air you breathed, the voice you've heard,
The things you've seen,
Are enough to analyze,
You are still fortunate to be alive!
You are blessed to take another day
To feel the sun's ray
Hey, didn't you know that you are nature's greatest miracle?
If you have any comments, feedback or submissions, please feel free to contact me at vibe@doctorvibe.com. Be well!!