Tag: opportunity

Standing On The Edge Of Your Greatest Possibilities

A prayer and a parachute hoping to tame the laws of gravity and return him safely to the Earth below.

I watched in awe when Felix Baumgartner gave a wave with his right hand, stood up, and stepped off his capsule 24 miles above New Mexico. I watched the footage of his jump several times, more amazed with every viewing.

During one playback I paused the footage a few seconds before Felix began his jump. The camera angle was directly above Felix, offering an encompassing view of him standing outside the capsule Continue reading “Standing On The Edge Of Your Greatest Possibilities” →

How Much of You Will Be Thrown Into The Great Dumpster in the Sky?

I imagine the story would go something like this:

It’s Judgment Day. You have a final interview with God, at which time you need to turn back in any of your unused potential. Any excess capacity that was never utilized. Any unused gifts that were bestowed upon you but simply never used. And I can see God cringe every time he asks to see what’s been left unused. He knows the answer already. Not just because He’s God, but because He knows that the vast majority simply never  live up to the greatness they were designed to achieve. God simply shakes his head as he throws the unused potential into the big rusty steel dumpster behind him.

Continue reading “How Much of You Will Be Thrown Into The Great Dumpster in the Sky?” →

Are You Grateful for Those Who’ve Guided You to Greatness?

We all have some place we’re trying to get to, we all have something we’re trying to become…

Along the way to where you are in life right now, there have been people who’ve shaped your life, who’ve made you stronger, smarter, made you aware of your greatness…

They believed in you even when you didn’t believe in yourself…

They gave you a chance, gave you an opportunity, gave you that one break that got you to the next level…

Life is about moving forward, about looking ahead, but every once in a while shouldn’t we stop for a moment and look back and recognize these people and say…

… “THANK YOU” …

 … to offer our heartfelt appreciation and gratitude for what they’ve unselfishly added to our lives?

Think of…

The parent…who wasn’t perfect but was always trying to do their best for you…

The teacher…who took the extra time to be sure you understood the lesson…

The coach…who pushed you harder because he knew you could be more…

The boss…who took a chance on you…

The friend…who has always been there…and always will be…

Are there two more beautiful words than “Thank You”?

We all hope we are appreciated, we all hope that what we do matters to those whom we do it for…

Appreciation and gratitude create a spark…a positive energy that creates physiological changes within the receiver and the sender…

When was the last time someone told you that you matter…that you are important to them?

That’s the point.

The greatest gift is expressing gratitude to those who’ve helped us become all that we are, and all that we’ve yet to become…

All it takes is a phone call…a letter…a card…

From your heart…to their’s…

“Thanks for making a difference in my life.”

Go ahead…let them know.

Create a spark…that touches the soul.

“It’s a great day to be you.”

What’s The Point of Dreaming If You’re Never Going To Let Your Dreams Come True?

Will our potential ever be anything more than something we’ve failed to live up to?

Thankfully, that’s up to us.

My Honda can go 160 miles per hour. That’s it’s potential, according to the speedometer. For various common sense reasons my car has never reached 160 MPH. Not even close, actually.

Something about a speed limit.

There are a lot of limitations placed on driving. Signs tell us how fast we can go, which lanes we can drive in. Enter Here. Do Not Enter. One Way. A lot of restrictions placed upon our desire to get where we are going.

I understand the need to regulate the rules of the road. (Ever drive in Massachusetts?) For the common good I can appreciate all the limitations and restrictions placed upon us.

But what about the limitations and restrictions we place upon ourselves?

Continue reading “What’s The Point of Dreaming If You’re Never Going To Let Your Dreams Come True?” →

Life Lessons from the Number 643

“…A united self moving forward towards fulfilling our own unique divine promise…”

There were many things I learned in school that at the time made no practical sense to me. You know, the “am I ever going to use this in real life?” question. Several decades later I can confirm that for the most part time has not made what I considered then to be impractical anymore practical.

As a dad with school-aged kids I actively get involved in their studies. I like to be aware of what they’re working on. I like to be there to help out if they get a little stuck. Dad 101…here for the kids. A more secretive motivation is to see if ol’ dad still remembers the stuff, especially when it comes to math. My math skills back in the day weren’t that good to begin with, and the newer methods of Continue reading “Life Lessons from the Number 643” →

The Importance of Being Selfish

Trust me, you want me to be selfish.

And I want you to be selfish, too.

Being selfish doesn’t seem like a good idea. Especially if building community and relationships is important to you. After all, being selfish is about being self-centered. It’s about the “me” and not the “we”. The focus on individual accomplishment and development can’t possibly be beneficial to the collective good of our society.

I disagree.

Continue reading “The Importance of Being Selfish” →

2,134 Ways To Be Happy: Confessions From The Functionally Unhappy

WARNING:

This post contains a BIG BOLD STATEMENT.

It seems like a lot of people are looking for happiness. Walk through any bookstore and count the number of times you see the words “happy” or “happiness”. If you had $5 for each time you saw those words you could probably make a mortgage payment. Just for fun, Google the word “happiness”. The last time I did, Google came back with over 75,400,000 entries. I found sites about happiness quotes, happiness poems, happiness articles, happiness blogs, happiness affirmations, happiness posters, happiness videos, even happiness retreats. I found happiness everything.

I can’t help but wonder…with such an overly abundant supply of happiness support materials, are we in the middle of some sort of Continue reading “2,134 Ways To Be Happy: Confessions From The Functionally Unhappy” →

How Tomatillo-Red Pepper Relish Can Change Your Life

I don’t know how to eat.

You’d think after some 50,000 meals that I’ve had in my lifetime I would have figured out this eating thing. It’s not the physical act of ingesting food that’s got me stumped. It’s not the chewing, and my fork skills are excellent.

It’s the tasting.

Food, for the most part, is something that I simply consume. It’s no different than regular unleaded is to my Honda Accord.  When the tank gets empty it’s time to refuel. Spending a great deal of my time on the road affords me the opportunity to sample a wide variety of not-so-good-for-you fast foods.  Far too many of my meals begin with a static-filled conversation involving a speaker and a window.

Continue reading “How Tomatillo-Red Pepper Relish Can Change Your Life” →

This Will Make You Think…#24

“I’d rather regret the things I’ve done than regret the things I haven’t done.”

— Lucille Ball

Up until recently most of my own regrets were related to the things I have yet to do. Things I’ve thought about and backburnered or simply dismissed for various “justifiable” reasons. Dreams and ambitions never allowed to be anything more. In the context of our own capacity to maximize the talents, gifts, and abilities we all have been given, things yet undone is greatness unrealized. It is capacity unfilled.

What is it that remains undone for you? How much of your own greatness remains unrealized?

Today is not a time for regret. Rather, it is a time for recognizing and recommitting to fulfilling the divine promise that resides in all of us. A time to rediscover and to nurture the greatness that lies within.

Waste no energy looking back lamenting what has yet to have been attempted. Instead, use that energy to propel you to maximize all that you are capable of accomplishing. Begin getting done what remains undone. It’s the first step towards fulfilling your purpose.

It’s a great day to be you!

The Perfect Gift: 3%

Looking for the ultimate gift this holiday season?

Give yourself 3%.

I just purchased my all-new 2010 calendar. Just waiting for December to end and up on the wall she goes.

It was about this time last year that I purchased my all-new 2009 calendar, waiting for 2008 to run its remaining course. In some ways 2009 was a breakout kind of year. Certain goals, such as starting this blog, transitioned from concept into reality. LivingHalfFull.com has been read in 49 US states (hello W. Virginia?) and in 59 countries around the world. As much as I look back upon the successes of 2009, in other parts of my life, the only thing that changed was my age.

All I have gotten is older.

A STINGING REALIZATION This past year’s 365 days presented themselves to me as opportunities for growth in so many areas of my life. Yet in many areas of my life all I am is just another year older. Years, like life, can easily just slip away, one innocently wasted unfocused moment after another. I’ve incorporated the “I’m just too busy” mantra into my life for years. I’m really quite good at it. But of the 8,760 hours we have in a year, couldn’t I have found even a little time to work on areas of my life I’d like to improve upon?

Continue reading “The Perfect Gift: 3%” →