Daily Motivator - March

[bluidkiti]

March 1

Building blocks of excellence

Pay attention to the details. But don’t get lost in them.

Obsessing over details can result in excellence, yet it can also result in wasted time and resources. The difference is in knowing which details matter and which details don’t.

For a business, a real person answering the phone on the first ring is a detail that matters. The typeface used on that person’s business card is probably a detail that doesn’t.

Planning a trip, deepening a relationship, building a business, life’s many endeavors involve lots of details. Dealing with all those details can quickly become overwhelming.

To ease that burden, remember to ask yourself this. In the big picture, does it really matter or does it not?

Identify the details that matter and point your energy in their direction. Apply your skills to those meaningful details that are the building blocks of excellence.

— Ralph Marston

[willbe275]

Happy March Tammy and Kracker,
Thanking God for watching over us during
the month of February one day at a time,
I pray that He will guide us through this
month with and abundance of, peace
love and good will towards one another
Amen.

[bluidkiti]

March 2

Achieve what you desire

The results you get are not simply a function of what you desire. They’re a function of what your desires inspire you to do.

On its own, without any further action, setting a goal is meaningless. For a goal to matter it must prompt you to make some change in the way you live your life.

What do you desire, in your personal life, in your career, in your level of physical fitness? What commitment are you willing to make, what actions are you willing to take, to fulfill those desires?

It can be fun to dream and to wish. What’s a whole lot more satisfying and a whole lot more work is to achieve what you desire.

Fortunately, you have the power to transform dreams into reality. You can think, you can act, you can learn, adapt, and persist.

You’re never too old, too young, too rich or too poor to set a meaningful goal and work toward it. No matter your situation, it’s always a great thing to do.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 3

Start sooner

Take a moment to think back about all you’ve done in your life. You’ll discover a lot more undertakings you now wish you had started sooner, and hardly any you wish you had started later.

What can you learn from this? Your own experience demonstrates the value of starting sooner rather than later.

Is there something you’ve been thinking about doing, saying, learning, mastering? Now is the time to stop thinking about it and start putting it into practice.

If it’s worth doing, it’s worth starting sooner. To get the most out of your effort and commitment, start sooner.

But perhaps you can’t start until you’ve made sufficient preparations. Then start sooner on the preparations.

Put as much time as possible on your side. Let go of your doubt and hesitation, and start sooner.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 4

Steps available to you

You have ability, you have opportunity, you have resources. Transform them into value.

Your needs will not be met by merely focusing on those needs. To satisfy your needs and desires, you must do what you can do with whatever you have.

You can’t do everything, yet you can do something. Conditions are not perfect, yet they do present you with certain opportunities.

Within the limitations, within the restraints, within the challenges, those very real opportunities exist. Seek to find them, to focus on them, to act on them.

Wishing for things to be easier will only make things harder. So spend your energy on productive action rather than on empty wishes or toxic resentments.

There is a path from here to where you need to be. Take the steps available to you, and put yourself solidly on that path.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 5

Embrace the difficulty

You won’t make the problem any less problematic by hiding from it. Embrace the difficulty and you begin to give yourself a measure of control over it.

Exercise your courage and improve your effectiveness at the same time. Admit the shortcomings, limitations, mistakes, and disappointments, then do something about them.

You’re not going to fool anybody by pretending there’s not a problem. What you can do is impress everyone, including yourself, by meeting the problem head-on.

Look at the situation with clarity and with the highest expectations. Throw in a little humor and good cheer.

Ask yourself, what would turn a negative into a positive? From what areas within this challenge, with what specific actions, can you extract opportunity and value?

Look honestly and bravely at the problem and what you’ll see is a chance to add new richness to life. Feel your courage take hold as you embrace the difficulty and transform it into something good.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 6

Better with every effort

In order to be smart you must ask stupid questions. In order to gain new skills and wisdom you must be willing to look like a fool.

No one rides a bicycle perfectly on the first attempt. The only way to become graceful at it is to start as an awkward beginner.

Is there something you’re reluctant to attempt because you’ll look bad at first? Well, you’ll look even worse if you’re always afraid to do it.

To get good at it you have to go through being bad at it. The way to do anything well is to give yourself permission to do it poorly for a while.

From the moment you were born you’ve been improving your skills and abilities. Give that positive trend new avenues where it can continue.

Admit you don’t know, accept that you can’t do it, and then challenge yourself to learn. Encourage and enable yourself to get better and better with every effort.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 7

A job well done

It’s a great feeling when you know you’ve done something well. Think of what you could do today to give yourself that feeling.

When you make a difference, it makes a difference for you. Suddenly you’re more enthusiastic, more keenly aware of life’s best possibilities.

A job well done improves your outlook on life and raises your confidence level. It enables you to connect with your skills, capabilities, and resourcefulness.

Is there any task you’ve neglected that you could focus on today? Is there anything you’ve been doing halfheartedly that you could give more diligence and attention to?

It can be all too easy to grow cynical and disappointed with life. Yet whenever you choose, you can create a powerful reminder of life at its best.

Give yourself and your world the benefit of a job well done. Discover all over again how positive and effective you can be.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 8

Making a difference

Life in all its forms has made a difference long before you were around to see it. Vast stretches of hard, unyielding volcanic rock were transformed into soft, fertile soil by the power of life.

The oxygen that sustains you in every moment is constantly replenished by life itself. Much of the value in your world comes from the reality that life, in its very essence, makes a difference.

Not only can you make a difference, you can choose what difference to make. Every day you make that choice, and every day it matters.

You can positively affect the course of your own life and the lives around you. It is a magnificent opportunity and a great responsibility.

What you think, what you choose, what you do, it all makes a difference far beyond what anyone can imagine. So it’s best to make your choices based on love, wisdom, gratitude, respect, and generosity.

All the time, you can make a difference, you do make a difference. What positive and uplifting difference will you make right now?

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 9

Best version of you

No feeling lasts forever. If the way you feel is holding you back, change it.

Right now you can replace futility with hope. Right now you can transform apathy into enthusiasm.

Have you had a disappointing few minutes, or day, or month? Here is where the disappointment ends and a more fruitful, fulfilling life begins.

You will always face challenges and difficult situations. Yet you don’t ever have to let any outside conditions get you down.

You decide who you are, how you feel, where to focus your attention and energy. Decide in a way that uplifts your life and the lives around you.

The world is as it is. Meet that world with the very best version of you, and do the good work to bring more positive possibilities to life.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 10

Beyond frustration

Frustration can put you in a foul mood and ruin your effectiveness. But it doesn’t have to.

You can notice your frustration, learn from it, take positive action based on it. You don’t have to let it become an excuse.

On its own, whatever is frustrating you is not forcing you to be one way or another. The source of frustration may be out of your control, yet your own response is very much up to you.

Don’t let frustration goad you into needless anger, rudeness, or other destructive behavior. Instead, see it as a prompt to reaffirm your own positive direction.

Whether your frustration is with yourself or with your situation, there’s nothing to be gained by perpetuating it. Make it your choice to move quickly beyond that frustration.

Don’t allow frustration to make you into someone you would not want to be. Rise above it and commit yourself once again to living at your very best.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 11

Activate your resourcefulness

Some people have access to great and varied resources. Others have a characteristic that can be even more valuable, resourcefulness.

No matter what you have or don’t have, you can find ways to make better use of it. By employing your resourcefulness and learning from the experience, you strengthen that resourcefulness.

Resourcefulness is a child of gratitude. The more appreciative you are for whatever you have, the more ways you can find to make good use of it.

Without sufficient resourcefulness, time, resources and opportunities get wasted. That doesn’t do anyone any good.

A life of fulfillment is not primarily about what you start with. It’s more about what you do with it.

How can you make use of what’s available to get from where you are to where you desire? Allow gratitude to activate your resourcefulness, and you’re well on your way.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 12

Live the promise of now

Celebrate this moment that is now because now is where you live. Make good use of now because now is what you have, everything that is.

You can conceptualize the past and the future, and that can be useful. Yet now is the only time where you can actually be.

Now is when you can make progress. Now is when you can enjoy the richness of life.

All the things you’ve ever done have brought you to now. You’re already highly invested in now, so be sure to live it fully.

Now also holds great potential for all you can be. What you do with now will impact all the days ahead.

Give now the respect, attention, energy, and action it deserves. Live the promise, reap the value, of now.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 13

Bring your courage forth

You must give up some degree of certainty in order to act. You must give up being where you are in order to move forward.

Every bit of progress you’ve made has been an expression of courage. Today you can extend that progress with more courage.

In places you least want to go, doing what you least want to do, you gain your most valuable rewards. You have the courage to do great things, if you will let yourself use it.

You have good reasons to fear the unknown. Yet you also possess the skills to perceive and adapt to all kinds of situations you cannot yet imagine.

Don’t be reckless, but do be courageous. You owe it to yourself, and to all of life, to transform potential into richness.

Today you’ll encounter opportunities to bring your courage forth. Notice those opportunities and choose to act on them.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 14

Give goodness today

Give yourself a little extra kindness today. You deserve it.

Spread that kindness to those around you. They deserve it, and you deserve the good experience of sharing.

Give your life a unique and positive experience today. Expand your understanding of what it means to be you, of how good it is to be alive.

Remind yourself of all you can be thankful for today. Deepen your appreciation for all that is.

You put a great amount of effort and commitment into living. Be sure to fully enjoy and share the fruits of all that dedication.

Give goodness today, to yourself, to others, to the world. There’s always room for more.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 15

Make it good

You don’t have to get it perfect today. Give yourself permission to be satisfied with your best.

You don’t have to get to everything on your list before lunchtime. Allow yourself to do what you’re able to do, as you can do it.

You don’t have to be right about everything. Admit when you’ve been wrong and correct your mistakes.

You don’t have to be all things to all people. Know who you are, know what makes sense for you, and stick with that.

You don’t have to impress and amaze the world with everything you do. Give yourself the freedom to be the authentic person you are, skilled, flawed, hopeful, and realistic.

Live life not as some idealized fantasy but as the genuine experience of whatever comes your way. Embrace each moment for what it is and you’ll find you have everything you need to make it good.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 16

Honest with yourself

Accept nothing less than complete honesty from yourself. You deserve it from yourself, and you owe it to yourself.

When you seek to deceive yourself, your effort fails on both sides of the transaction. As deceiver and as deceived, you end up with nothing of any value.

Let yourself know what you need to know, to see what is there to see. Allow yourself to feel what you must feel.

As difficult as it may be to deal with truth, it’s better than the alternative. Choose to build your strength in truth rather than watching it be chipped away by falsehood.

Do not treat lightly the wisdom you’ve spent your life accumulating. Listen to it, consider it, act on it, with respect and gratitude.

Be honest with those who trust you, who depend on you, who have given so much to you, who matter to you. That includes, especially, yourself.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 17

Today

Today is a big deal. Give it the respect, attention, focus and effort it deserves.

What you do today makes a difference. What you do today can create value that endures long after the day is over.

It might be tempting to delay your actions until things get better. But today you have the opportunity to actually make things better.

That’s an opportunity not to be wasted. Seize upon it, act upon it now, while you can.

Today is far from perfect. Yet it’s plenty good enough for you to make great use of.

Whatever you’ve done in the past, whatever plans you have for the future, today is here right now for you. Remind yourself what a big deal that is, and act accordingly.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 18

Do what you’ve been talking about

When you have a choice between talking about what you’re going to do and doing it, the best option is clear. Just go ahead and do it.

Everyone knows talk is not action. That’s why no one pays much attention to what you say, no matter how loudly or colorfully you say it.

Lots of people pay attention to what you do. That’s especially true when what you do makes a difference in their lives.

Some folks might believe what you say, but many will not. Yet what you do is impossible to ignore or deny.

If your words are not having sufficient impact, put some positive action behind them. Better yet, skip the words and go straight to the action.

Don’t let yourself be impressed by your own empty words, because no one else will be. Do what you’ve been talking about instead of continuing to talk about what you’re planning to do.

— Ralph Marston

[willbe275]

Action speak louder than words.
God bless you and have a great day.

[bluidkiti]

March 19

What will other people think?

Do you want to think more creatively? Then stop thinking so much about what other people would think.

The most compelling creative ideas will resonate deeply with some people, and they will offend other people. It’s pretty much impossible to have one without the other.

Your best choice is to base your creativity on what is true, useful, and authentic to you. Let others shoulder full responsibility for what it means to them.

What will other people think? They will think what they think, regardless of how much or how little you anticipate it or try to influence it.

Boldly express who you are, how you feel, what you believe. Offer sincere value, and allow it to be accepted as it will be accepted.

Put your focus on creating according to your highest and best impulses. Confidently know that it’s okay for everyone else to make of it what they will.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 20

All the work necessary

Pay attention to today’s new possibilities. But don’t be so consumed with them that you abandon the work you’re doing to fulfill yesterday’s possibilities.

Start new things. And finish what you start.

Once you’ve embraced a possibility, see it all the way through. Do all the work necessary to transform it from possible value into existing value.

It feels great to get excited about new possibilities. Yet to fully justify that excitement, you must go beyond it.

You must do the difficult and not so glamorous work of bringing what’s possible into reality. Otherwise there’s no reason to get excited about the possibility in the first place.

Choose those possibilities to which you can give your full commitment. Then maintain that commitment until each exciting possibility has been forged into magnificent reality.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 21

Earn the pleasure

The good times do not last. And that’s precisely why they are so good.

Pleasure has no meaning if it’s the only thing you know. Those times in between the good times are what make the good times enjoyable.

When the party is over, go to bed. When the vacation comes to an end, unpack, do the wash, go back to the office.

Good times will come again, soon enough. In the meantime, live your life, do your work, earn the pleasure that is to come.

Even the most enjoyable experience you could imagine would become drudgery if it never ended. Keep life enjoyable by allowing the joys time to renew and refresh.

Good times end, yet more will come. Bide your time, earn the pleasure, and make the enjoyment even better next time.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 22

Truly and courageously you

Don’t bother with worrying about what you are expected to want. Dig deep into your awareness and understand what you really do want.

It’s easy to let yourself be told what you should do. Yet life’s richness comes from the freedom and responsibility of deciding for yourself what’s best to do.

You will make mistakes and you will own those mistakes. And by so doing you will also, with considerable effort, follow an authentic way forward.

You know that your purpose is not to check off the boxes on someone else’s list. Your purpose is to create a unique experience of life.

Yes, there is much value you can exchange with others. Yet that value comes from living in truth as you know it, not from blind obedience or imitation in either direction.

Give to all of life the benefit of your unique, authentic perspective. Enrich yourself and all those around you by being truly and courageously you.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 23

Power in the little things

Little things done often can be more effective than big things done occasionally. Make a little positive difference enough times and you’ll soon discover you’ve made a big difference.

A small kindness is a little thing you always have the opportunity to offer. Do it a hundred times, or a thousand, and you’ll change your life, as well as the lives of others, for the better.

Little things are simple, easy, accessible, repeatable. Little things give you a continuing way to invest in the goodness of life.

Little things provide a way to take action without the need for elaborate planning or scarce resources. And the more action you take, the more value you create, the more fulfillment you experience.

Look around eagerly with kindness, respect, understanding and good cheer. Notice all the little things you can do today.

Remind yourself often to avail yourself of the little things. And watch as life grows in richness and meaning by the minute.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 24

However it may come

Ease your burdens by acknowledging those burdens. Liberate yourself by admitting you are not perfect.

Deepen your understanding by realizing how you’ve been mistaken. Gain control over fear by confronting your fears.

You can’t make the difficult and uncomfortable things go away by pretending they don’t exist. You gain the upper hand on those difficulties by being clear and honest about them.

Your life will never be completely free of trouble. Yet you do not have to be defined or dominated by any of those troubles.

You can choose to accept that life has downs as well as ups, that your existence is not flawless. By so doing, you free yourself to successfully deal with it all in ways that give your life richness and fulfillment.

Discover how confidently you can take life as it comes, however it may come. Continue to make value, beauty, and goodness from it all.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 25

Absurdity

Absurdity can be compelling, convincing, and certainly entertaining. Yet if something is too good to be true, too much on point to be true, or too awful to be true, it’s probably not true.

Take care not to make decisions too quickly based on what’s extreme, on what’s absurd. Give the absurdities a look if you must, but make it a wary and detached look.

Desperately wanting something to be true doesn’t make it true. Absurdity can promise to validate your viewpoint, or easily solve your problem, yet its promises are empty ones.

It can be hard to know who or what to believe. Yet when what you’re being told is absurd on its face, you can be certain you’re not getting the full picture.

By design, absurdity draws you in, plays on your emotions, fires your passion. With all that happening, remind yourself there’s a good chance someone has set out to manipulate you.

Rather than jumping to the conclusions implied by cheap absurdities, seek a deeper understanding. Live and act based on what makes good sense rather than on those absurd, sensational things that don’t.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 26

Beneath the surface

Appearance matters. What matters even more is the substance upon which the appearance is based.

The way you say what you say is important. Of much greater importance is the truth in what you say.

Pay attention to how things look, to how your ideas come across. Pay more attention and put the bulk of your energy into the quality and integrity of your thoughts and ideas.

Be sure to get the finishing touches right. Be even more diligent about getting the underlying facts, and work, and structure right.

What most people see is what’s on the surface. Yet what determines your quality of life is the amount of truth and goodness that exist beneath the surface.

Offer a good and appealing face to the world. And behind that face, fill your life with depth, with substance, with understanding.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 27

Be crazy enough

Be crazy enough to live with joy. Be foolish enough to care.

Be curious enough to make mistakes. Be humble enough to learn.

Be grateful enough to appreciate it all. Be passionate enough to promote and expand the best that can be.

Be brave enough to say what’s true. Be strong enough to really be you.

Be serious enough to pull your weight. Be cheerful enough to laugh all along the way.

Be honest enough that you’re constantly trusted. Be hopeful enough to keep going and going, no matter what may appear on your path.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 28

Impulses

Avoid being dominated by your impulses but don’t completely ignore them either. Your impulses provide a window into who you are, what you’re feeling.

Many impulses appear foolish to your rational mind. Yet there is a whole lot more to you than just logic and reason.

Tamp down those impulses that are clearly and obviously foolhardy. Yet ask yourself, where do they come from, what are they trying to tell you?

What seems crazy today could very well prove to be brilliant a year from now. Impulses can bring things to the surface that you don’t even know you know.

Impulses remind you of what you’ve forgotten. They connect you to possibilities that are not yet fully evident.

Exercise discipline over your impulses while at the same time respecting their visceral wisdom. Your impulsive side is there for a reason.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 29

Move past wishing

Your wish won’t make it so. Move past wishing and get yourself doing.

Reality does not respond to mere wishes. To bend reality in the desired direction, someone must take action.

The best person for that job is you. When it’s your wish, or the wish of someone you care about, it’s up to you to do the work.

It’s a good thing that wishes don’t come true on their own accord. If you could get anything just by wishing, nothing would offer any meaning, value, or fulfillment.

As it is, every genuine desire gives you the opportunity to make a difference using skill, effort, commitment and more. Life has great potential for richness because it is built on more than empty wishes.

Your wish will do nothing until you do something. In that truth is a world of opportunity and fulfillment.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 30

Make a great day

Is this day not meeting your expectations? Then make it into something better.

You’re creative, you’re resourceful, you have time, energy, and desire. Make good use of it all.

This world is an amazing place, but it’s not just going to hand you an ideal life experience. It’s up to you to transform positive opportunity into rewarding reality.

Don’t let yourself be tempted to blame outside circumstances when you’re having a lousy day. Step up, take responsibility, and make it into a much more fulfilling day.

Find a little bit of goodness, focus on it, connect to it, then expand on it. The only reliable way to experience a great day is to get yourself involved in making it so.

You have the power to dramatically improve your experience of life right now. Do a big favor for everyone, especially yourself, and make use of that power to make a great day.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 31

Bring peace to mind

Your thoughts soar and then they plummet, followed by wandering, jumping, and falling off track. Take a moment, take a breath, let go of the need to think this or that, and bring peace to mind.

Your thoughts are powerful and important to you, but they are not all of you. You can do just fine without them for a while, as you give them a well-deserved rest.

Your curiosity is wonderful and amazing, yet you don’t have to know everything about everything. Your judgment, analysis, and consideration give great value to your life, but you are more than orderly logic.

Give your thoughts a break, a chance to reset. Give yourself the experience of peaceful being.

Feel without having to understand what you feel. See without your vision being muddled by anticipation of what you might see next.

Offer your thoughts the opportunity to improve by letting go of them for a while. Trust your thoughts enough to leave them alone, and when you come back to them they’ll be better than ever.

— Ralph Marston