Daily Motivator - March

[bluidkiti]

March 1

Special something

It doesn’t take much to make life good. But it does take something.

It’s nothing really to set the sails at just the right trim. Yet that’s what enables you to ride on the wind wherever you wish to go.

The world offers you what you’re willing to give it. Now, today, with all you know and feel, what exactly will that be?

Wishes and concepts and dreams are empty until they have some action. Just a little is enough to get fulfillment started.

At most things you’re not an expert, and still you can do something. Time and resources are always limited, and with them there is nonetheless always something good you can do.

Choose a special something to do that’s right here within your reach. Show yourself again what a difference you can make.

— Ralph Marston

[willbe275]

Happy March the 1st family.
Thanking God for getting though the
month of February one day at a time.

[bluidkiti]

March 2

Revival and renovation

Weeds, rot, dust and rust point out places you have neglected. With a little work you can bring those places back up to their full beauty and potential.

Where there is decay and decline you have a precisely defined opportunity. Echoes of what has been show the value of what can be, and instruct you in exactly how to make it come to life.

There are parts of your life, places in your world that could benefit greatly from a revival or a renovation. They represent large investments already made that will end up being either worthless or highly valuable, depending entirely on what you do.

Maybe it’s best to let some parts of your garden return fully to their natural state. Perhaps it’s appropriate to let certain relationships fade into nothing but distant memories.

Yet you do have much in your life that’s well worth saving, not only for you but also for others. What a shame it would be not to make the effort that will revive and refresh what has too long been neglected.

Look where disarray has crept in and see if you can envision new value there. Perhaps now is a good time for a little revival and renovation.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 3

Put imagination into action

If you knew how close you are to making progress, you’d keep up the effort. But you don’t know, and that can be discouraging.

You can, however, do another powerful thing. You can imagine.

Imagine that a breakthrough is just a few minutes away. Imagine you’ve reached the goal and are filled with gratitude for your own persistence.

Imagine, then put that imagination into action. Imagine, and what you imagine will energize and drive you to make it real.

Transform the negative energy of doubt into the positive energy of action and achievement. Imagine in detail your desired outcome and let yourself be inspired by it.

There’s power in your thoughts. Make use of that power to bring about the breakthroughs and the results you seek.

— Ralph Marston

[willbe275]

There's always a breakthrough around the corner
just keep looking for it.

[bluidkiti]

March 4

Enrich your life

Pick a challenge and embrace it. Choose a challenge and do the work to conquer it.

Challenges are not always fun, usually not particularly pleasant. But challenges are essential to defining an environment where achievement is possible.

A game with no rules is not a game worth playing. It is just chaos in which satisfaction and fulfillment are impossible to attain.

Do you want to be coddled or do you want to be competent? Keep in mind that competence is a whole lot more sustainable.

Would you like to push a button and solve all your problems or would you rather discover what is meaningful to you? In working through challenge you work your way toward clarity of purpose.

How can challenge enrich your life? You owe it to yourself to continue finding out.

— 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

Darkness to see

Sometimes you need darkness in order to see. Sometimes you need silence to be able to hear.

Listen, and you find meaning not only in the sound but in the silence that envelopes the sound. Watch as daylight fades, and your vision grows more perceptive.

When you’re gulping noise, color, data, sensation, how can you possibly find value and meaning in it all? Consider taking a step back from the torrent.

Find for yourself a quiet, peaceful sanctuary, away from the glare and the constant motion. Feel your own breath and the miraculous, mysterious life it nurtures.

In that space, let go of the need to perceive everything all at once. Treasure and explore the opportunity to understand and connect with what matters most.

In the gentle darkness you can see the faintest of lights. Often those are the ones that can make the biggest difference.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 7

Work with what you have

What at first seems to be a burden may eventually become a blessing. Welcome life as it comes, the way and the flavor in which it arrives.

Then give your honest best, mindful of what matters. You have time and space and energy to work with, so do just that, work with what you have.

In the roughest of places you can find beauty. In the most challenging times you can create fulfillment.

Assess the situation, but don’t wade too deeply into judging the conditions. Keep your focus on the good work you can do, and keep doing it.

If you expect everything to magically fall into place you’ll be disappointed. Yet when you activate the true magic of your own being, your love, caring, and sharing, you’ll be amazed.

The day begins, you are in it, and it’s more than enough to get you started. There’s much to be achieved, experienced, and lived when you go ahead and work with what you have.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 8

Steady effort

Don’t give up when you’re behind. Don’t slack off when you’re ahead.

Put forth steady effort. That’s what creates progress.

You could rationalize your way out of continuing the effort, just this once, just temporarily. But a temporary halt is likely to become a permanent halt, causing you to lose all the ground you’ve gained.

Modest skill with steady effort is able to outperform high skill with occasional effort. Be consistent and you’ll set yourself up to be effective.

Make it your priority to make the effort. That’s especially important when you don’t want to.

It’s not particularly glamorous but it is extremely powerful. Steady effort gets good stuff done.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 9

A choice to make

You have a choice to make. You can choose to live your best life today, right now, or you can choose something less.

You can choose courage, truth, fortitude. Or you can choose to give in to weakness.

You can choose to lift up those around you. You can choose to be diligent, kind, filled with joy and energy.

You can choose action. You can choose to live with positive purpose, focus, intention.

Or you can choose to waste the richness that’s yours to make use of. You can choose to decline the good opportunities that appear in every moment.

What you choose makes all the difference in the quality of life you live. You always have a choice to make, and every day, every time, you can choose the best.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 10

Take a breath

You crash against the wall of someone else’s incompetence. Take a breath, and put it in perspective.

You’re frustrated by all the work you have to do and the obstacles that stand in your way. Take a breath, and let that frustration fall away.

Take a breath, and turn your attention toward all you are thankful for. Consider the many possible good experiences you have to look forward to.

Refuse to get caught up in resentment for factors you cannot change. Take a breath, and feel all the potential goodness that lives inside you.

Inspire yourself by imagining the many ways you can express that goodness in the real world. Inspire others by acting on what you imagine to make it happen.

When the world’s confusion pulls your awareness away from who you are, what you care about and why, take a breath. Give yourself the chance to get back where you truly belong.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 11

Hopes and expectations

Give your world the energy of hope. Give your life the benefit of positive expectations.

Your hopes and expectations alone will not cause anything to happen. What they will do is encourage you, inspire you, and push you to create value, to promote goodness.

Be hopeful, expect the best. Then act on your hopes, put your time, efforts, and resources behind your expectations.

Give yourself a detailed vision of the best place life can go. Then get yourself up and get going in that direction.

What exactly can you dare to hope for today? Let that hope take hold, envision what will get you there, and act on your vision.

Don’t let the moments pass by with nothing in them. Each one provides a new opportunity to work toward fulfilling your best hopes and expectations.

— 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

This is your day

Life happens today. Whether you’re prepared for it or not, this day is here for you to live.

A time will come when you’ll realize the value of what you have right now. The sooner that realization comes, the better.

This is probably not what you would envision as your ideal day. Yet this is the day you have, the only one you can currently work with.

You could wish for and wait for a better situation. Or you could go ahead and make good use of the situation as it is.

What you have today is the opportunity to make progress. That opportunity does not depend on what has already happened, but rather on what you do about it now.

This is your day to live, to act, to learn, to experience. Do so now, as fully and richly as you are able.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 14

Habit of discipline

You can make a difference. You can do it with discipline.

In the short term you’re able to endure actions or situations that are less than desirable for the purpose of creating highly desirable gains in the long term. That’s discipline, and it can be leveraged to an almost infinite degree.

Whatever you seek to achieve, create, or experience, discipline can get you there. The real, enduring power of discipline comes when you make it into a habit.

Once you do that, what originally seemed like a big, burdensome sacrifice becomes an expected part of your life, and not so bad after all. As you experience more and more benefits from your habit of discipline, that further motivates you to continue it.

There’s some small sacrifice you can make today, tomorrow, the next day and the next, that will eventually lead to big rewards. In this way, you can choose again and again to invest in your future.

What areas of your life could benefit from the power of discipline? You have what it takes to make that happen.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 15

Resilience

Falling down is not pleasant. It does, however, teach you how to get back up.

That’s an essential skill to have. After all, you can’t avoid all life’s misfortunes but you can position yourself to handle them with resilience.

There’s the potential for setbacks in every ambitious course of action. But those setbacks don’t have to be permanent catastrophes.

A well-developed resilience gives you the confidence to take on well-calculated risks. That gives you access to some of life’s most fulfilling rewards.

It’s important to keep safety in mind when you venture forth. But if you go to extremes to avoid all bad experiences you’ll also end up missing the good experiences.

Instead, take the knocks, the falls, the failures in stride. The more quickly and confidently you get back up, the more of life’s richness you’ll be able to know.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 16

Take notice

Notice what works and do more of it. Notice what doesn’t and ask yourself why.

Notice what changes and think of how to adapt. Notice what doesn’t and learn the value of being reliable.

Notice how problems can be filled with opportunity. Notice how the challenges help you to grow.

Notice how truth always comes to the surface. Notice as kindness improves any situation.

Notice beauty that increases the more you look. Notice there’s always something you never noticed before.

Take notice of what’s here, of what could be, of what matters, of what you can do to add value to it all. Notice life in all its expressions, and do your best to live it well.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 17

Being more patient

Patience costs nothing yet it can change everything. Patience will add power throughout your life.

You gain nothing when you seek to jump ahead of the moment. Instead, give your activities and experiences the time and attention they deserve.

Patience lets you see things you would have otherwise missed. Patience enables you to communicate clearly, accurately, in rich detail.

Patience strengthens relationships. Patience leads you toward wisdom and deep understanding.

Rather than merely skimming the surface, with patience you can experience great richness in the full story. Calm anxiety, increase intention and reduce carelessness, with patience.

Remind yourself often that you can be more patient. There’s much to be gained when you do.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 18

Activate your power

There are plenty of powerful outside forces that affect your life. But that doesn’t mean you are powerless.

You have the power to select your thoughts. You have the power to translate those thoughts into effective action.

You have the power to choose your attitude. You have the power to direct your attention toward what is important and away from what isn’t.

What does it take to engage the full force of your own considerable power, and to keep it up? It’s a matter of pointing yourself toward a meaningful enough purpose.

Admit to yourself who and what you truly love. Build an understanding of the things you care so much about that you’re unwilling to compromise them in any way.

Based on authentic purpose, set your intentions. And activate your power to bring those intentions to life.

— Ralph Marston

[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

Nexus of life and beauty

Where and in what way can you create beauty today? Pick one corner of life and make it beautiful.

There is no limit to what beauty consists of. A well-organized shelf, a restored photograph, a heartfelt letter to a friend, all can be beautiful.

Beauty can exist in anything, but the essential test of the beauty you create is this. Are you putting time, effort, focus, and something of yourself into it?

If so, then you are creating beauty. Because you’re extending your own unique beauty outward.

Other people may like it or not, understand it and agree with its expression or not. Nonetheless, the beauty you honestly create has value because of your work to bring it into being.

Beauty is meaningless without life and life is terribly dreary without beauty. Seek to be a nexus of life and beauty, giving new value, and positive purpose, to both.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 21

Embrace reality

Events don’t always unfold the way you expect. But just because you didn’t expect to be in a particular situation does not make that situation any less compelling.

Life will not always bend to your desires. Yet just because you don’t like what’s happened is not a reason to deny that it happened.

The way forward begins with and depends upon acceptance. Live right now according to the actual reality of right now.

Waiting for things to get back in line with your desires and expectations is a waste of precious time. This is your day to live, and you owe it to yourself to extract maximum benefit from every moment.

Rather than lament what you could have done if life had been different, focus in on what you now can do. Respond to disappointment with the transformative power of your own actions.

Acknowledge, accept, and embrace reality. That will illuminate a whole new set of opportunities for progress and fulfillment.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 22

Decide exactly

Give yourself a specific, meaningful task. Give yourself a compelling reason to put forth effort and a readily accessible object for that effort.

Good intentions that are vague have no value, no ability to get you moving. Make your intentions clear, detailed, and relevant to your immediate situation.

When you know exactly what to do there’s an excellent chance you’ll do it. Capitalize on the fact that you’re goal-oriented by nature, and provide yourself with a precise goal.

Give sufficient thought to your choice of intention, but don’t get lost in that thought. Once you’ve identified an appropriate course of action, begin to take that action.

If for some reason your intention isn’t the best idea, by putting it into action you’ll find out soon enough. When, on the other hand, it is a good idea, you’ll be well on your way to making it happen.

You’re skilled at making a difference, so put that skill to use. Decide exactly what to achieve, and give yourself the great experience of getting it done.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 23

Where value can be added

In a troubling situation, ask yourself the following question. What can I do that would enable me to be thankful for this?

Ask yourself that question, then listen to the thoughts that start popping into your mind. You’ll be moving toward a positive, effective response rather than a panicked and harmful one.

The trouble itself is bad enough. Don’t make it worse with fear, panic, and overreaction.

When troubling situations arise, there’s a natural tendency to want to do something. That’s all well and good, as long as you’re careful not to do something that exacerbates the problem.

Poor conditions do not have to lead to poor judgment. Choose to focus on the potential value, on genuine good that can be done, and improve the quality of your response.

You can do much better than a hasty reaction in panic mode. Have the presence of mind to look for where value can be added, and do what you can to make that happen.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 24

Continuing value

The past is over but it still has meaning. Because you’re always carrying value from the past into the present.

It’s impossible to live in the past. Yet all around you are treasures the past continues to deliver to you.

The language that gives meaning to these very words was developed over long periods of time in the past. The device on which you’re reading them, and the networks over which they’re delivered, grew from a more recent past.

Pretty much everything you know about is old news, because it has already happened. As eager as you might be to discover what’s next, take care not to abandon the value of all that has been.

Much of that value, even from centuries ago, can continue to benefit you as you speed into the future. Just because some particular truth is old does not make it irrelevant.

Indeed, some of the most relevant things are the ones that have survived the longest. Keep that in mind as you continue to inhabit the rich and potent frontier between the past and the future.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 25

Value of the journey

Be eager to make the difficult journeys. Because each journey always gives value to its destination.

If you arrive without any effort, how can you appreciate the place where you’ve arrived? How will you recognize the value of where you are if you have not borne the cost of getting there?

There’s a reason why children are eager to do things for themselves even when they don’t have to. They understand the irreplaceable value of the journey.

Pleasure, ease, and convenience have their place. Yet a life of fulfillment requires more.

When you’ve climbed a mountain, the view is much more meaningful than if you had merely been whisked to the top. Every step of the journey adds richness to the destination.

You deserve more than merely being where you want to be. Give yourself the great adventure of working your way there.

— 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

Time to live well

Invest in the happiness of others and you won’t have to struggle to find your own happiness. Don’t hold too tightly to your possessions, your plans, your opinions, your feelings.

Find joy in letting go of what has been. Discover new richness in allowing the goodness of what can be.

Remind yourself often to appreciate and explore the miraculous nature of your existence, of all existence. Let the beauty that is manifest illuminate and inspire you toward the far greater beauty that is possible.

Indulge yourself in kindness toward all those who can benefit from it, including you. Allow the healing power of love to find expression in your actions.

Carry peaceful confidence wherever you go and leave rowdy arrogance behind. Make a positive difference when you can, and graciously accept when you can’t.

This is your time to live well. Do what you know is your best.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 28

New consequences

You can’t go back in time and erase your past mistakes. But you can go forward and make sure you don’t repeat them.

Although regret is painful, that pain has a useful, positive purpose. It’s a constant reminder that your choices have very real consequences.

Today you have the opportunity to stop tomorrow’s regrets before they happen. Today you can line up future consequences in your favor.

Yes, you made some regrettable choices and you’re living with the results of those choices. Yet you’re now in position to reap some value from your mistakes.

Decide to transform the lingering pain of regret into a fresh sense of determination. After all, you’re paying the price for your past mistakes so you might as well claim their benefits.

Whatever regrets were born in your past, let them guide you now to a more positive future. New consequences are coming, so do all you can to make them the best.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 29

Meaningful use of time

You cannot create more hours in the day or more days in the year. Yet you can always make more meaningful use of the time you have.

That does not mean cramming every part of the day full of busyness and activity. It means prioritizing all you do, with the highest priority on what matters most.

Can you identify activities in your life that consume time yet provide negligible value to anyone, including you? Would it really be so difficult to give less time to them?

Time can be a highly valuable resource or it can be a wasted resource. It all depends on whether or not the time you spend adds to the richness of life.

Every minute you invest in one direction is a minute you’ve chosen not to invest in all the other possible directions. Make sure your choice benefits life while acknowledging the value and potential of life.

What is meaningful to you? Whoever or whatever that may be, the most impactful way to give your support is with your time.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 30

Who you think you are

Think of yourself in terms of your greatest potential, your highest values, your most effective skills. Then take the actions consistent with the person you think you are.

You know you have standards that you’ve failed to meet. Ask yourself what you can do to improve that situation, and act on your answers.

You’ve thought for a long time about what you could do to make life better. Begin now to put more of those thoughts into practice.

Seek to bridge the gap between the best of who you think you are, the best of who you imagine you could be, and the reality of your day to day behavior. Find and follow opportunities to live your life in accordance with your vision.

There is a caring, thoughtful, creative, competent, effective person inside you. Let that person see more of the light of day and let all of life benefit from the good you can do.

In the challenge of living out your highest expectations your own unique greatness comes to the surface. Make it your business every day to enable that to happen.

— Ralph Marston

[bluidkiti]

March 31

Positive feedback loop

You determine what you think, say, and do. Those things you think, say, and do, in turn, shape you, who you are, how you live.

It is a self-reinforcing trajectory, a positive feedback loop. What’s important to consider is, which way is it headed?

What specific positive feedback loop are you creating and enabling in your life? How well does it line up with your deepest desires and your most treasured values?

Your experience of life feeds upon your choices, and your choices feed upon your experience. Because of this, the smallest change can become magnified to exert profound influence.

Your smallest thoughts, your most trivial actions matter. Whether they’re harmful or beneficial, you’re giving life and sustenance to them, exponentially expanding their consequences.

Live every moment in a way you’d like to see amplified. Because in many aspects it will be.

— Ralph Marston