Daily Motivator - June

[bluidkiti]

June 1

Fulfillment in the process

Don’t spend the whole effort wishing you were finished. Give your work the time and focus it deserves.

Remind yourself how fortunate you are to be able to have an impact. Welcome the opportunity to create new value, to make a difference.

Although the particular task you’re working on may not be glamorous or trendy, it does matter, it has value. It is certainly worthy of your respect and attention.

Don’t treat it like something you’re just squeezing in between other activities. Give the work you’re doing, whatever it may be, your best thoughts, your diligence, your concentration.

You’ll be finished soon enough. Until then, be fully present with what you’re doing.

Find fulfillment in the process, in the endeavor, in the focus and respect with which you work. You’re adding value to life, so embrace the experience and give it your best.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 2

Positive footprints

You cannot go backwards in time to undo what’s already been done. So before you go forward, consider the consequences of your actions.

You won’t be able to reclaim time that has already passed. As each moment comes, remind yourself to make good and meaningful use of it.

Regret is a terribly helpless feeling because there’s no way to change what you have already done. Keep that in mind as you make each choice.

Once you utter a thoughtless comment, it will forever be a part of what you have said. All the apologies and regrets in the world will not change that.

You can only move forward through time. As you do, take care to leave positive, beneficial footprints at every point along the way.

Make your choices the ones you’ll be pleased to live with. Speak and act to make your future self, and everyone else, thankful for all you do.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 3

Put goodness into action

Do you wish other people were more kind, generous, understanding, and tolerant? Then encourage them to be with your own actions and attitude.

No one can force genuine goodness in others. But anyone can be an example of the power of generosity, the benefits of tolerance and understanding.

Are you disenchanted with life, feeling that the world has become cruel and corrupt beyond measure? Then prove to yourself and to others how good life can be by the way you live it.

The potential for goodness still is very much alive. It lives in you and in all the other people like you.

Put into action, in your own life, the goodness you wish to see in the world. Not only can your offering of kindness improve your own outlook, it will inspire even more kindness in others.

Goodness is a choice available for each person to make in each moment. Choose what’s right, what’s good, in matters large and small, and by so doing you encourage others to choose goodness as well.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 4

Generous to tomorrow

Do something with each moment that endures beyond the moment. Utilize this day to create value that continues after the day is over.

Push yourself to do more than simply fill time with empty, fleeting sensations. Every hour you waste is an opportunity you’ll never have again.

Be so thankful for the time you have that you’re eager to make good use of it. That is how life’s richness is built.

Making meaningful use of each moment does not prevent you from enjoying those moments as they pass. Indeed, it deepens and extends that joy.

This day will soon end, yet its treasure can continue indefinitely. You have the option, right now, to make that happen.

Put right now to good, thoughtful, meaningful use. Be generous to tomorrow, to the next season, to the next generation, with the way you live today.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 5

Feeling and thought

Your anger is justified, and powerful, but not usually very practical. Your frustration is understandable, but not particularly effective.

Feel what you feel, and let the feeling connect you with authentic purpose. Then go beyond the feeling, and pursue your deeply-felt purpose with a realistic plan, with thoughts, with strategy, with action.

You have the wondrous gift of feeling, and the amazing ability to think. Make appropriate and complementary use of both.

Let your feelings inject passion into your endeavors. But stop short of allowing them to force you into foolish actions.

Use your thoughts to benefit from the power of reason and logic. Yet avoid getting so wrapped up in thought that you lose all connection to the purpose within you that exists beyond reason.

You possess, at once, the power of thought and the power of feeling. Keep those remarkable powers in balance, supporting each other, informing each other, and pushing your life in a positive direction.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 6

Little things matter

Going into debt for a small amount is no big deal, and that’s what makes it such a big problem. Those debts that are so small you don’t even think about them can quickly add up and overwhelm you.

Saving a little bit of money is no big deal, and that’s what makes it so powerful. It’s accessible, easy to do often, and can eventually add up to real wealth.

Little things matter because there are so very many of them. When you get the little things in your life right, the big things follow suit.

In your relationships, in your career, in your management of time, little things matter. In maintaining your car, in keeping your home clean, in your health and fitness, little things matter.

It’s great to make big plans and to dream big dreams. The way you actually achieve those dreams is by being diligent with the little things.

What small problem can you solve right now, that will prevent a lot of bigger problems later on? Tend to the little things, for they all combine together to make a big impact on your life.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 7

Your current situation

Consider that maybe, just maybe, where you are is a pretty good place to be. Maybe what you have to work with, right now, is exactly what you need.

You can get where you want to go from wherever you start. And the only place to start is where you are right now.

If you want to travel to Miami, there’s no point in getting upset about currently being in Dallas instead of in Chicago. Just get on a plane, or on the road, headed to Miami, from wherever you are.

Don’t wish for a different place of origin. Focus on getting to your chosen destination.

There’s nothing to be gained by complaining about what you lack. Instead, put that energy to work making use of what you have.

Embrace the reality of your current situation, right here, right now. Then get busy working your way, step by step, to where you want to be.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 8

Live it richly

There is darkness all around, until you open your eyes. The clearest, sunniest day has no brightness until someone observes it.

In every direction is abundance, primed to become meaningful value. In each moment, a profusion of energy and potential wait to be claimed and put to use.

Life can be magnificent, rewarding, consequential beyond description. What makes it all so, is the living of it.

Every few seconds for millions of years, waves have been rolling upon this shore. And today you are here to feel their power, to experience the beauty, to add meaning in your own special way.

You swirl constantly through a world of color, motion, sensation, and energy. Remind yourself what an epic opportunity, and responsibility, that is.

Through your life, the beauty is recognized, the energy is utilized, the magnificence has meaning. Every moment, live it richly, live it with profound gratitude, live it well.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 9

What to let in

Whatever happens, whatever is said, you don’t have to take it personally. You can choose what to let in and what to keep out.

The inconsiderate actions and rude comments of others do not have to bother you one little bit, if you choose. At the same time, you can care deeply about whatever you want to care about.

You can think whatever you decide to think about anything anyone says. Or you can decide not to think about it at all.

Often there will be things you must do, for social or professional reasons, that you don’t enjoy doing. Even so, you never have to let them get you down or diminish your spirit.

Deep inside, you are always the person you choose to be. You can choose to be positive, fulfilled, enthusiastic about life no matter what is happening on the outside.

Take a deep, refreshing breath and remind yourself that you’re in charge of what gets to you and what doesn’t. Then renew your commitment to embrace the best of life, and to expand it far and wide.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 10

Get yourself started

Whatever task you’re avoiding is not as difficult or unpleasant as you’ve imagined it to be. Do yourself a favor, and get it done.

Stop wasting all the energy and creativity you’re putting into fighting against the effort. Direct that energy into productive action.

You have the power to get yourself started. You have the power to immediately jump beyond your reluctance, your doubts, your excuses.

You control your mind, and your mind directs your efforts. Decide right now to put that power to good use.

No matter what you do or what you neglect to do, the time in this day will pass quickly. Choose to fill that time with worthwhile effort.

Push yourself into a productive, effective, action-oriented state. Get yourself started, get the work done, and make this a day of satisfaction and achievement.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 11

Give yourself

Give yourself dreams, goals, and plans you can look forward to. Give yourself challenges that will energize you.

Give yourself some confidence in your own perspective and abilities. Give yourself the time and patience to get things right.

Give yourself a short break when you grow weary. Then give yourself a solid push to get back to work.

Give yourself the discipline to get difficult jobs accomplished. Give yourself the persistence to continue with your efforts.

Give yourself the support and respect that come from taking good care of your health and well being. Give yourself laughter, passion, and joy.

Give yourself the irreplaceable fulfillment of giving to others. Give yourself a life overflowing in every part with purpose, meaning, and love.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 12

Present moment

No matter how young or how old, no one has any more than the present moment you have right now. Whether wealthy, impoverished, famous, or obscure, every person has the same number of hours in this day.

Now is what you have, and it is more than enough. Today is the day you have, and with it you can add greatly to life.

Let go of every impulse to wish for more. Set yourself free to actually live for more.

The past was what it was, and now it is gone. Focus all the energy and resources of now, on the good things you can do with now.

Now is the time you can make a difference. This is the place where the next part of your life unfolds.

Stop wishing, stop waiting, stop doubting, blaming and delaying. Now is your time to live, with richness, with purpose, with zest, and with love.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 13

Intentional control

Life can be difficult, no matter how you live it. Don’t make it a hundred times more difficult by living irresponsibly.

Exercise positive, intentional control of your life. Otherwise you’ll be tossed around by random events and frivolous impulses.

Decide precisely who you want to be, where you want to go, what you want to experience. Then focus your energy on making it all happen.

Give yourself the benefit of a plan, for the day, for the month, for the decade. Experience all the great benefits of harnessing your time, energy, and activity for meaningful purpose.

You can do so much more than merely getting by. You can make progress, and then make more progress.

Show yourself how much you value yourself and the life you have. Live it in each moment, in every situation, with discipline and positive purpose.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 14

Just keep going

Don’t let failure get you down. Don’t let success go to your head.

Learn from what happened, be thankful for the experience. And just keep going.

Listen politely to the criticism, consider it carefully, and just keep going. Graciously acknowledge the praise, then let it go, and just keep going.

Find pleasure in the good times, gain strength during the hard times. And just keep going.

When you’ve done what you set out to do, select a new goal, and just keep going. When you have trouble making any progress at all, remember the reason why, and just keep going.

You can succeed, you can prevail, no matter what does or does not happen. Just keep going.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 15

Wondrous possibilities

Silently, steadily, relentlessly, this planet spins round and round. Night becomes day, winter melts into spring, again and again without fail.

Unimaginable is the sum of energy necessary to make it all happen. Yet here it is, continuing on and on as an everyday experience.

To know the wonder of this existence, even for a single day, is to be fortunate beyond calculation. The power, the beauty, the spectacle, the potential, all stretch out from you in every direction.

Think for a moment about what you’re choosing to do with it all. Are you making the most of the wondrous possibilities in which you’re constantly immersed?

Sometimes it’s easy to forget how good you have it. Sometimes life’s disruptions, big and small, can make it seem that things are not so good at all.

Yet here you are, alive, aware, and connected to the wondrous possibilities. Realize what that all means, and use it to make some new wonder, right now.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 16

Space for joy

There is always space for more joy in this world. Fill that space with joy of your own making.

You need no special condition or reason to be joyful. Give joy, spread joy, live joy just because you can.

Let yourself be amazed by the fact that a whole universe exists for you to experience and enjoy. Stream your own joy into whatever unique corner of the universe you happen to find yourself.

What can you do to remind yourself and others how great it is to be alive today? What words, thoughts, and activities can you initiate to express joy from your own perspective?

Carry joy into the most unlikely situations, for that’s where joy can make the biggest difference. Share joy with even the most unreceptive people, for they are who yearn for it most.

Look out and imagine all of existence as a massive container for joy. Devote yourself to adding new joy every chance you get.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 17

Free yourself

Don’t make yourself into a permanent victim of a temporary condition. Forgive, get over it, move on.

The vast majority of people don’t care that you’ve had your feelings hurt. They have better, more enriching things to focus on, and so do you.

Breathe in, breathe out. Gather pure strength from your past, and use it to move positively into the future.

Learn from what’s happened, laugh at what’s happened. Know that it’s over, and refuse to let it hold you back or get you down.

When someone has hurt you, that’s never a good reason to keep hurting yourself with anger and resentment. Smile, and be thankful that your future is yours to choose.

Your life is filled with great possibilities. Free yourself to keep on following the very best ones.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 18

Make sure it matters

What if many of your problems are problems solely because you think they are? Could you perhaps bring yourself to think differently about them?

Might there be things you get upset about just because you’ve decided they upset you? Imagine how your quality of life could improve by simply deciding differently.

Certainly there are problems you must solve, issues you must address, as you make your way through life. Yet there are also situations that mostly waste your time and energy, that are best just left alone.

Before investing yourself in anything, step back a little bit and take a clear, dispassionate look. Ask yourself if it really matters, if it’s worth precious time and attention, if it’s an opportunity to make a difference.

Get away from the habit of reacting and responding merely because it’s the way you always have. Take positive control of your intentions, of the things you spend your life attending to.

Before you hurry, before you worry, before you create new stress, make sure it matters. Give the most to life, get the most from life, by staying focused on what’s important.

— Ralph Marston

[willbe275]

Those last to reading really hit home....

[bluidkiti]

June 19

Set your expectations high

What you expect is what you work toward. What you work toward determines what you end up creating and experiencing in your life.

Your expectations for the future guide and energize your efforts in the present. So your best option is to make those expectations positive and desirable.

Expect the most favorable outcome. Then let that expectation push you to take persistent, positive action.

You cannot know with certainty if or when your positive expectations will all be realized. Yet you can benefit from them no matter what.

Although not all of your efforts will bear fruit, you’re much better off making those efforts than doing nothing. And your expectations provide a driving force to power those efforts.

Set your expectations high, and set yourself to work in their direction. Enjoy the benefits of knowing where you’re going, and of going where you choose.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 20

Always more you can learn

Are you sure about that? Certainty is nice, and feels good, but it’s not always accurate.

Sometimes certainty can get in the way of truth. You can be so sure of one thing that you’re unable to see anything else.

Know what you know, believe what you believe, yet have some humility. No one knows it all, and everyone can benefit from discovering more.

You’ve changed your mind before, and you’re likely to do so again. Keep yourself open to the possibility that you could be mistaken.

Make finding the truth a higher priority than proving you’re right. Your knowledge grows stronger, more useful, when you’re not stubborn about it.

Be confident in what you know, but don’t let yourself become so arrogant you dismiss everything else. There’s always more you can learn.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 21

Savor the effort

When you hurry through a task, you’re signaling to yourself that you don’t want to be doing it. By slowing down a little, you can become much more engaged.

Fast and furious is not sustainable. You’re in danger of burning yourself out before the job is finished.

No, you don’t want to dawdle and procrastinate. But neither do you want to rush so fast as to build up a disdain for the work.

Allow yourself to settle in to the task. Give to it the entirety of your focus, your care, your enthusiasm.

You’ve chosen to do the work, and your best option is to do it well. You’re spending the time, so do yourself a big favor and become fully engaged with the effort.

Often you can finish sooner, and better, by going a little slower. Step back from the frenzy, savor the effort, and enjoy the experience of a job well done.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 22

Break the cycle

Are you disappointed with yourself? Have you failed in certain ways to live up to your own standards, expectations or intentions?

If so, there’s no need to double down on your disappointing behavior. You have the opportunity, right now, to change direction.

Don’t allow disappointment in yourself to continue setting you up for even more disappointment. This is your moment to break the cycle, to change direction.

The whole reason you’re disappointed is because you know you can do better. Now is your chance to do better.

Feel the disappointment, understand what caused it, then let it go. Free yourself to be more purposeful, more productive, more highly motivated.

A quick, simple choice can transform the restrictive feeling of disappointment into the invigorating energy of action and fulfillment. Make that choice, get out from under the disappointment, and fulfill the great potential you know is yours.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 23

Today has arrived

The past is gone, and no longer in a position to hold you back. On this new day, every disappointment is already behind you.

Today has arrived, and with it you can make real and lasting progress. Today you’re purposeful, determined, willing and able to do whatever you must.

Now is when life can begin to be the best you can imagine. Today is the day that more things in your life can start to go right.

Stretching out in front of you are countless possibilities. Let them energize you, motivate you, push you into action.

You have no reason to hold yourself back any longer. You have every reason to add new joy, purpose, meaning and fulfillment to life.

In this moment, allow life to support you, encourage you, and pull you toward the best you can be. Firmly take hold of the opportunity that is now, and show the world how great it is to be alive.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 24

Power of feelings

Your feelings are powerful. You can control and make good use of that power.

Your feelings can impair your ability and sap your energy if you let them. But you don’t have to let them.

It may seem like your feelings are imposed on you from the outside. Yet your thoughts, your actions, even your posture and facial expression, can significantly alter those feelings.

When you’re lethargic, looking downward, thinking negative thoughts, you’re not going to feel very good. Stand up, step forward, look upward, think of the positive possibilities, and you’ll feel much more like taking effective action.

If you don’t feel like doing anything, that’s understandable. It’s also something you can quickly change.

Learn from your feelings, experience their richness, let them inspire you, but don’t let them become excuses. Choose those feelings that push you to do what’s in everyone’s best interest, including yours.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 25

Strength in action

You are strong when you want to be. Put that strength into action in the service of something good and meaningful.

You are purposeful and persistent when you choose to be. Today, and every day, choose to be.

Don’t let inactivity cause that strength to wither away unused. Refuse to allow life’s best possibilities to pass you by.

Honor your strength, be grateful for it, support and expand it, by keeping it in action. Feel the extent of your strength by using it to make a positive difference in life.

Right now, you can do something about the problems and opportunities, about the things that frustrate you and the things that inspire you. Right here, you can call your strength into action.

Get up, get going, get to work doing what you do best. Stay strong, and grow even stronger, by keeping your strength in action.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 26

Comfortable or fulfilling

Comfortable clothes, a comfortable work environment, a comfortable place to sleep can all be highly enabling. Yet after a point, the desire for more and more comfort chips away at your willingness and ability to create real fulfillment.

Junk food and idleness are comforting, yet they come at the expense of good nutrition, regular exercise and fitness. Blaming others is comforting, yet it blocks you from the power and fulfillment of taking responsibility.

Scrolling through social media is comfortable, but accomplishes nothing of lasting value. Real fulfillment comes from getting out and participating in face-to-face social interactions.

Complaining about your problems brings a degree of comfort. Yet a much more effective and fulfilling option is to get busy and do the work that will address those problems.

If your comfort is getting in the way of true fulfillment, it will soon cease to be comfortable. Then what you’ll end up with is neither comfort nor fulfillment, but regret.

Momentary comfort is a poor substitute for lasting fulfillment. Choose always the path that leads to fulfillment.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 27

When the price is paid

You cannot avoid paying the price in life. What you can do is choose how and when the price is paid, and that determines what you receive in return.

Your best choice, by far, is to pay the price before you get the reward. You pay the price by filling your time with disciplined, purposeful activity, and you’re rewarded with the outcome of your choice.

In doing so, both the price you pay and the reward you receive are beneficial. Being productive is itself enjoyable and fulfilling, and the fruits of your labor can improve your life for years or decades.

A much less desirable choice is to get the reward before you pay the price. The reward in this case is getting to spend a lot of time putting forth no effort, and the price you pay is to have your life filled with regret for all that wasted time.

In such a scenario, the value of the reward is not really that great, and it doesn’t last. The price you end up paying later, regret, is a terrible burden, one you’ll have great trouble getting rid of.

Be eager always to pay the price before you obtain the reward. By doing so you’re sure to make the price much lower and the reward much greater.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 28

Peak of experience

Today you are more experienced than you’ve ever been in your entire life. Today you stand at the very peak of the mountain that is your own experience.

Over the years, you’ve pushed forward toward this moment. Each day you’ve added to the height of your mountain of experience, gaining yet another higher perspective.

At certain times along the way, you’ve found moments of peace and beauty in the green valleys and still forests. At other times, you’ve been challenged by the fierce storms and rocky ground as you climbed your way higher.

Right now is the moment all the other moments have been leading up to. Right now you stand at the summit on your mountain of experience.

Take a moment to take in the view, and remind yourself of something. Never before has your experience been as comprehensive or as valuable as it is today.

Now is your opportunity to climb even higher, to put all you know to good and purposeful use. With gratitude and determination, get going, and make your mountain of life experience ever higher.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 29

Make meaning

What comes free and easy to you, has little or no meaning to you. Those things that have meaning to you are the things to which you give something of yourself.

To experience satisfying, profound meaning in life, you must put forth energy and effort to make that meaning. You must invest time, thought, your attention and resources to forge that meaning.

As such, every difficulty you encounter serves as an opportunity to make your life more meaningful. Every challenge through which you must navigate is a chance to add meaning and substance.

Take care not to become mesmerized and enslaved by the easy things. They can rob you of the chance to create deep and fulfilling meaning.

Instead, seek those people, ideas, and pursuits that bring out the best in you. Engage in activities that challenge you to learn, to grow, to continually improve.

Most things that are free and easy are worth what they cost you, which is nothing. Choose instead to invest yourself, to bear the cost of those things that matter, to fill your life with more and more great meaning.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

June 30

Energizing vision

What story are you telling yourself about your life today? Is it impairing or empowering?

What truth about today is forefront in your awareness? Is it a truth that inspires you into action, or does it make you want to hide away from life?

You can change your story. You can focus on a more energizing truth.

Allow yourself to love yourself without condition. Encourage yourself to create a vision, right now, of the ideal way this day can unfold for you.

Make that vision your story. Make that vision the truth from which you operate.

Powered by that vision, that story, that truth, push yourself forward. Reap the many benefits of focusing your energy in the most positive, meaningful direction.

— Ralph Marston