Positive Thinking!!
This is GREAT motivational stuff from successful people!!
[01/08]   [01/01]   [09/99]   [04/99]   [11/98]   [04/98]



Before 01/08

Mr. Bailey's Motto:
All you can take with you is that which you've given away.
(from the movie, It's a Wonderful Life)


Before 01/01

"We generally change ourselves for one of two reasons: inspiration or desperation."
-- Jim Rohn 

"The time is always right to do what is right."
-- Martin Luther King, Jr.

"Be prepared to reinvent yourself every year. Imagine starting over with no limitations or encumbrances."
-- Brian Tracy

"Whatever your present situation, I assure you that you are not your habits.
You can replace old patterns of self-defeating behavior with new patterns, new habits of the effectiveness, happiness, and trust-based relationships."
-- Stephen Covey

"There is nothing wrong with change, if it is in the right direction." 
-- Winston Churchill

"Today changes must come fast; and we must adjust our mental habits, so that we can accept comfortably the idea of stopping one thing and beginning another overnight... We must assume that there is probably a better way to do almost everything. We must stop assuming that a thing which has never been done before probably cannot be done at all."
 -- Donald M. Nelson

"You must be the change you wish to see in the world."
-- Mohandas Ghandi

"What the caterpillar calls the end, the rest of the world calls a butterfly."
-- Lao Tsu

***

Work like you don't need the money.  Love like you've never been hurt.  Dance like nobody is watching.
-- Mark Twain 

Make a game of finding something positive in every situation -- 95 percent of your emotions are determined by how you interpret events to yourself.
-- Brian Tracy 

Optimists are right.  So are pessimists.  It's up to you to choose which you will be.
-- Harvey Mackay 

"I can't do it" never yet accomplished anything.  "I will try" has accomplished wonders.
-- George P. Burnham 

Ability is what you're capable of doing.  Motivation determines what you do.  Attitude determines how well you do it.
-- Lou Holtz 

Any fact facing us is not as important as our attitude toward it, for that determines our success or failure.
-- Norman Vincent Peale 

Positive thinking will let you do everything better than negative thinking will.
-- Zig Ziglar

Don't say, "If I could, I would."  Say, "If I can, I will."
-- Jim Rohn 

Before 9/99

You create your opportunities by asking for them.
- Patty Hansen

Whom do I call educated? First, those who manage well the circumstances they encounter day by day. Next, those who are decent and honorable in their intercourse with all men, bearing easily and good naturedly what is offensive in others and being as agreeable and reasonable to their associates as is humanly possible to be... those who hold their pleasures always under control and are not ultimately overcome by their misfortunes... those who are not spoiled by their successes, who do not desert their true selves but hold their ground steadfastly as wise and sober-minded men.
- Socrates

Live as you will wish to have lived when you are dying.
- Christian Furchtegott Gellert

When you speak, you can't listen.  When you don't listen, you can't learn.
-Bernard Lind

Do not be too timid and squeamish about your actions. All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better. What if they are a little coarse, and you may get your coat soiled or torn? What if you do fail, and get fairly rolled in the dirt once or twice. Up again, you shall never be so afraid of a tumble.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson

The only difference between a rut and a grave are the dimensions.
- Ellen Glasgow

It is not the employer who pays wages--he only handles the money. It is the product that pays wages.
- Henry Ford

Leadership: the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it.
- Dwight D. Eisenhower

A Short Course in Human Relations

The six most important words:
I admit that I was wrong.

The five most important words:
You did a great job.

The four most important words:
What do you think?

The three most important words:
Could you please. . .

The two most important words:
Thank you.

The most important word:
We.

The least important word:
I.

-Anonymous

Is 99.9% good enough?
To show why it isn't, Jeff Dewar, QCI International, Red Bluff, California came up with examples of how some things would be if they were done right 99.9% of the time.  We'd have to live with:

1 hour of unsafe drinking water every month;
2 unsafe plane landings per day at O'Hare;
16,000 pieces of mail lost by the U.S. Post Office every hour;
22,000 checks deducted from the wrong bank accounts every hour;
20,000 incorrect drug prescriptions per year;
500 incorrect surgical operations each week.

How about computing a factor for your sales and marketing efforts.  How many missed sales calls?  How many lost orders?
Suddenly, the quest for zero-defects makes a lot of sense!

Fear can keep us up all night long, but faith makes one fine pillow.
- - Philip Gulley, Home Town Tales

Before you can win, you have to believe you are worthy.
- - Mike Ditka

If  you think you can or if you think you can't, you're right!
- - Unknown

Integrity is telling myself the truth.  And honesty is telling the truth to other people.
- - Spencer Johnson

Before 4/99

The world stands aside to let anyone pass who knows where he is going.
- - David Starr Jordan

Things don't go wrong and break your heart so you can become bitter and give up. They happen to break you down and build you up so you can be all that you are intended to be.
- Charlie Tremendous Jones

Anybody can do just about anything with himself that he really wants to and makes up his mind to do.
- Norman Vincent Peale

The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.
- E. Hubbard

The way to develop self-confidence is to do the thing you fear...
-- William Jennings Bryan

The fewer facts you have in support of an opinion, the stronger your emotional attachment to that opinion.
- Anonymous

- "I have missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I have lost almost 300 games. On 26 occasions I have been entrusted to take the game winning shot......and missed. And I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why.............. I succeed."
- Michael Jordan

Health is merely the slowest possible rate at which one can die.
- Anonymous

True happiness consists not in the multitude of friends, but in their worth and choice.
- Samuel Johnson

If you have made mistakes...there is always another chance for you...you may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing we call "failure" is not the falling down, but the staying down.
-- Mary Pickford

There is no fruit which is not bitter before it is ripe.
- Publilius Syrus

Failure can be divided into those who thought and never did and those who did and never thought.
- Reverend W.A. Nance

Our language has wisely sensed the two sides of being alone.  It has created the word "loneliness" to express the pain of being alone and it has created the word "solitude" to express the glory of being alone.
- Paul Tillich

Worry gives a small thing a big shadow.
- Swedish Proverb

Try not to become a man of success but rather a man of value.
- Albert Einstein

When spider webs unite, they can tie up a lion.
- Ethopian proverb

Winners and losers are self determined. Only winners will admit it.
- Unknown

Even as we dream, we begin to succeed....even as we succeed, we begin to dream again.
- Unknown

I started where the last man left off.
- Thomas Edison

Keep in mind that the true measure of an individual is how he treats a person who can do him absolutely no good.
- Ann Landers

Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever acheive greatly!
- Robert Kennedy

There are many things that will catch my eye but there are only a few that will catch my heart....it is those that I consider to pursue.
- Tim Redmond

Experience is not what happens to you, it is what you do with what happens to you.
- Aldous Huxley

The tougher and closer the competition, the more I enjoy golf.  Winning by easy margins may offer other kinds of satisfaction, but it's not nearly as enjoyable as battling it out shot by shot right down to the wire.
- Jack Nicklaus, Professional Golfer

Beaten paths are for beaten men.
- Eric Johnson, American Businessman/Government Official

I will always be someone who wants to do better than others. I love competition.
- Jean-Claude Killy, Skier-Three Time Olympic Gold Medalist

You don't have to be a fantastic hero to do certain things-to compete.  You can be just an ordinary chap, sufficiently motivated to reach challenging goals.  The intense effort, the giving of everything you got is a very pleasant bonus.
- Sir Edmund Hillary, First Man to Climb Mount Everst

People seldom walk over you until you lie down.
- Elmer Wheeler, American Engineer

Don't look back. Someone might be gaining on you. When you look back, you know how long you've been going and that just might stop you from going any further.
- Satchel Paige, First Black Pitcher in the Major Leagues

I didn't want to quit and say for the rest of my life, "Well, maybe I could have been..."
- Frank Shorter, Distance Runner-Olympic Gold Medalist

No man will make a great leader who wants to do it all himself, or to get all the credit for doing it.
- Andrew Carnegie

Beaten paths are for beaten men.
- Eric Johnson, American Businessman/Government Official

The key to happiness is having dreams -- The key to success is making them come true.
- Anonymous

 To accomplish great things we must not only act but also dream, not only plan but also believe.
- Anatole France

 The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.
- Vince Lombardi

Success is the progressive realization of a worth-while objective.
- Anonymous

Natural ability without education has more often raised a man to glory and virtue than education without natural ability.
- Cicero

Before 11/98

Success is simply a matter of luck - ask any failure. - Earl Wilson

The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life.  Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do.. It is more important than appearance, giftedness, or skills. It will make or break a company...a church...a home...a school...a business.  The remarkable thing is we have a choice every day regarding the attitude we will embrace for that day. We cannot change our past...we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude...I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it. And so it is with you...we are in charge of our attitudes. - from "Strengthening Your Grip" by Charles Swindoll

Self-trust is the first secret of success.  - Ralph Waldo Emerson

The question should never be who is right, but what is right.   - Glenn Gardiner

A competitor will find a way to win.  Competitors take bad breaks and use them to drive themselves just that much harder.  Quitters take bad breaks and use them as reasons to give up. - Nancy Lopez

Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions.   Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you too can become great. - Mark Twain

I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed. - Booker T. Washington

The basic difference between an ordinary man and a warrior is that the warrior takes everything as a challenge while an ordinary man takes everything as a blessing or a curse. - Don Juan, "Tales of Power"

Mediocrity knows nothing higher than itself, but talent instantly recognizes genius. - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, British author

Act as though it were impossible to fail. - Winston Churchill

A day dawns, quite like other days; in it, a single hour comes, quite like other hours; but in that day and in that hour the chance of a lifetime faces us. - Maltbie Babcock

Before 4/98

The more similar the services, the more important the differences.
Accentuate the trivial. - Harry Beckwith

Those without vision run into the same walls and make the same mistakes.
Those with vision see themselves where they can be...and have hope!
        -Bill-osophy 101

No matter where you are in life, you can always have a goal!
    -Bill-osophy 101

Give me a stock clerk with a goal, and I will give you a man who will make history. Give me a man without a goal, and I will give you a stock clerk.
    -J.C. Penney

The key to life is accepting challenges.  Once someone stops doing this, he's dead.
    -Bette Davis

Either attempt it not, or succeed.
    -Ovid

There is nothing beyond the reach of determination.
    -Unknown

You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it!
    -Margaret Thatcher

Men are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds.
    -Franklin D. Roosevelt

The difference between 'ok' and 'awesome' is but one thought, one decision, a first step.  It starts with believing in yourself.
    -Bill-osophy 101

Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right.
    -Henry Ford

Yesterday is a canceled check, tomorrow is a promissory note, today is the only cash you have, so spend it wisely!
   -Kay Lyons

Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls
and looks like work.
    -Thomas Edison

People do not lack strength.....they lack will.
    -Victor Hugo

Progress always involves risks.  You can't steal second base and keep your foot on first.
    -Frederick Wilcox

So...take the first step!
    -Bill-osophy 101

Don't say that you're not in a sport to win.  No apologies are needed.  Somebody is going to win, you or your
opponent. You make that decision - but before you do, remember it doesn't matter if you win or lose until you
lose.

You cannot run away from a weakness, You must sometimes fight it out or perish; and if that be so, why not
now, and where you stand?

    -Robert Louis Stevenson
      Scottish Novelist, Essayist, and Poet

I love to sweat, work, and practice...then win.  But to sweat, work and practice...then lose.  I can't see that at all.
    -Lee Kemp
      Wrestler, Three Time World Champion

I had speed, a punch, and courage-either win or die.
    -Jack Dempsey
      Professional Boxer

I like to train, I enjoy challenges, but most of all I like winning.
    -Sugar Ray Leonard
      Professional Boxer, World Champion

Winning is living.  Every time you win, you're reborn.   When you lose, you die a little.
    -George Allen
      NFL Coach, Sports Commentator

Nobody likes to lose - just stay away from those who don't mind losing.
    -Joe Garagiola
      Major League Catcher, Sports Broadcaster

The only yardstick for success our society has, is being a champion.  No one remembers anything else.
    -John Madden
      NFL Coach, Sports Broadcaster

I'm in the game to be number one.  I can't be satisfied with less.  Being number one is fantastic; it's the greatest thing in the world.   Not wanting to be number one is something I just can't understand.
    -J.R. Richard
      Major League Pitcher

One of the great lessons I've learned in athletics is that you've got to discipline you life.  No matter how good you may be, you've got to be willing to cut out of your life, those things that keep you from going to the top.

Is not that a great principle for all of living?  The people who will really accomplish great things in life are those who are willing to discipline their lives, who maintain their health, their vitality, their efficiency through this process of rigorous disciplining of what they take into their bodies - what they do in life.  It's a very important thing in terms of championship living.
    -Bob Richards
       Pole Vaulter-Two Time Olympic Gold Medalist

Setting a goal is not the main thing.  It is deciding how you will go about achieving it and staying with the plan. The key is discipline.   Without it, there is no morale.
    -Tom Landry
       NFL Coach

They may beat us by outcoaching me.  But I resolved a long time ago that nobody would ever beat me by outworking me.
    -Woody Hayes
       Former Head Football Coach, The Ohio State University

The time will come when winter will ask what you were doing all summer.
    -Henry Clay
       American Statesman

The dictionary is the only place success comes before work.   Hard work is the price we must all pay for success.  I think we can accomplish almost anything if we are willing to pay the price.  The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand.
    -Vince Lombardi
       NFL Coach

I found this sandbank by Pearl River near my hometown, Columbia, Mississippi.  I laid out a course of 65 yards or so. Sixty-five yards on sand is like 120 on turf, but running on sand helps you make your cuts at full speed.   I try to pick the heat of the day to run in, but sometimes that sand will get so hot you can't stand in one place.  It'll blister your feet.  You get to the point where you have to keep pushing yourself. You stop, throw up, and push yourself again.  There's no one else around to feel sorry for you.
    -Walter Payton
       NFL Halfback

I believe there is a price tag on everything worthwhile, but it is seldom a monetary one.  The price is more often one of dedication, extra effort, and loneliness.  Each person decides whether he or she wants to pay the price.  If you do, you achieve beyond other people.
    -Jim McKay
      Sports Broadcaster

If you don't invest very much, then defeat doesn't hurt very much and winning is not very exciting.
    -Dick Vermeil
      NFL Coach

Nothing good comes in life or athletics unless a lot of hard work has preceded the effort.  Only temporary success is achieved by taking short cuts.

Set a goal and go after that goal with integrity, self-confidence and a lot of hard work.
    -Roger Staubach
      NFL Quarterback, Sports Broadcaster

The relentless quest, the thing that keeps you going day after day, is your determination. There are no short cuts - only goals to be set and goals to be reached - competition to be faced - adversity to overcome.  Only the truly dedicated will ever come close to attaining their goals.

The difference between the possible and impossible lies in the man's determination.
    -Tommy Lasorda
      Major League Manager

I use the word "hungry" to describe what I mean when I talk about desire.  Being hungry provides you with the physical and mental energies necessary for success.  The sacrifices that are necessary become easier when one places a goal or objective at a high level.
    -Ara Paresghian
      College Football Coach, Sports Broadcaster

I hope that I may always desire more than I can accomplish.
    -Michelangelo
      Italian Painter/Sculptor

You never become successful by dreaming.  You become successful by working to the best of your ability and having faith in yourself.  To reach your goal, three main ingredients are necessary - self discipline, determination and desire.  There will always be dark days, but with this foundation you will be able to face the challenge.
    -Bernie Parent
       NHL Goaltender

I think a lot of people get too concerned with their competition.  They fall into the habit of worrying about everyone else.  I don't pay attention to what others are doing.  I feel strongly that if I have correct goals, and if I have the determination to keep pursuing them the best way I know how, everything else falls into line.
    -Dan Dierdorf
      NFL Offensive Tackle

To succeed, you must be dedicated to whatever you hope to do, and you must set you mind to it completely.  If you make up your mind to do something, you'll find that it can almost always be done.  You must seek perfection, though you may never quite attain it.  Do not delude yourself with short cuts.   There are no short cuts in reaching the goals you set for yourself.
    -Ken Norton
      Professional Boxer