http://youtu.be/Gs069dndIYk

Now that is a music video.

It officially feels like September this morning in Central IL. The weather is changing and fall will soon be upon us.

There is something unique about the changing of the seasons. There is a special feeling in the air.

Capture that feeling. Do something different this weekend.

If you are an inside person, get outside and do something.

If you are an outside person, curl up under a blanket on the couch.

If you are a busy, active person just sit and relax.

Change it up. Awaken in yourself all the different possibilities for your life.

Make it a great day.

Jake

http://www.winstonchurchill.org/learn/speeches/speeches-of-winston-churchill/129-you-do-your-worst-and-we-will-do-our-best

This is a Winston Churchill speech that is particularly poignant on the anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks.

Two quotes in particular stood out to me:

“But there was one thing about which there was never any doubt. The courage, the unconquerable grit and stamina of our people, showed itself from the very outset. Without that all would have failed. Upon that rock, all stood unshakable.”

In the face of all the evils of the world we must have faith and belief that courage, grit and stamina from those on the side of good will win out. No matter the test, no matter the difficulty, that which is good and worthy will prevail.

“You do your worst – and we will do our best.”

When faced with the evils of the world it can be tempting to lower ourselves to those standards. Instead we need to raise ours.

The best way for us to honor those who have fallen and those who have sacrificed is to do and be our best. Others have given up their lives that we may have the opportunity to exercise this freedom. Don’t let it slip by.

Make it a great day.

Jake

We can’t help everyone, but everyone can help someone. – Ronald Reagan

This quote is such a great reminder.

Sometimes it is overwhelming to look at the world and all those that are in need of help. We just can’t help everyone.

But we can help someone.

And I would suggest we start with those closest to us: friends, family, coworkers, etc.

The key is to just get started. To begin the process of training ourselves to become more service centric instead of self-centered.

If we go out into the world each day looking for opportunities to serve we will meet a world full of opportunity.

Find a way to serve someone today.

Make it a great day.

Jake

BAD – You can tell more about a person by what he says about others than you can by what others say about him. Newspaper columnist Leo Aikman

MS – Rules for self discovery:

1. What we want most

2. What we think about most

3. How we use our money

4. What do we do with our leisure time

5. The company we enjoy

6. Who and what we admire

7. What we laugh at

AW Tozer

JW – Over time, grit is what separates fruitful lives from aimlessness. John Ortberg

EB* – Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get.

JD – Don’t cry because it’s over. Smile because it happened. – Dr. Seuss

The quote from Leo Aikman is very insightful.

How we talk and think about others says a lot about us.

Think about your own thoughts and words.

Do you assume the best or worst in others?

Do you see other’s strengths or their weaknesses?

Do you point out their faults or their accomplishments?

Our words and thoughts have power. How we choose to invest this power relative to the other people in our lives is a very important part of our philosophy.

Find a way today to think and say something positive about those in your life.

Make it a great rest of the day.

Jake

Important programming note – The Phrase that Pays will now be moving to Tuesday as we moved our leadership team meeting to Tuesdays.

I also realized that a few of the daily attitude emails last week went out to an incomplete list. If you missed these and want to find them, just go to www.thedailyattitudeemail.com to see the posts.

One more thing – if you know of anyone that would like to get these emails just send them my way or send them to the site.

End of programming notes.

Excuses are the nails used to build a house of failure. – Jim Rohn

I read this one this morning and my first reaction was that it sounded a little harsh.

After thinking about it for a minute I realized that maybe we need a little bit of harshness every once in a while.

Like the sandpaper that uses it roughness to produce a finer edge on a piece of wood, maybe we need something a little rough to knock down our pride a little.

Next time we make an excuse, let’s picture ourselves nailing a nail into a house of failure.

Imagine it as a really poorly constructed shack. A bunch of mismatched lumber with a garbage bag for a roof (or something like that). And there we are, hammering in another nail.

Got it pictured in your head?

Seem a little foolish?

Let’s stop it. End construction permanently.

No more excuses.

Make it a great day.

Jake

“If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as a Michaelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, ‘Here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

I couldn’t resist sending another of my favorite quotes on "labor".

Imagine the time and place he said this. His audience likely were people who had a legitimate frustration with their jobs and careers that were very limited because of racism.

And yet he recommends to put their all into the jobs they had. To do them so well that the hosts of heaven would notice.

There is something powerful about a job well done.

It creates self esteem for the one who does it.

It creates a better community for those around it.

It’s contagious to those close to it.

Tackle your tasks today in this manner.

Make it a great day.

Jake

http://youtu.be/20mMbEB0OhA

Oh The Places You’ll Go by Dr Seuss – YouTube John Lithgow reads the story. Graphics courtesy of the original book. Read more…

No Jake thoughts, just some encouragement to listen to this great short book from Dr. Seuss. Think about what part applies to you.

Make it a great day.

Jake

http://youtu.be/eXiwYUCe_bY

Maybe this one falls in more of the Friday morning funny category, but I couldn’t resist sending it out.

Weird Al is a great example of what is possible for a person who is creative and applies some ingenuity.

He has made a career out of spoofs and funny songs he has created.

Imagine that first day all those years ago. He walks into a music exec and says "I am going to make up goofy lyrics to go along with popular songs. It’s going to be hilarious." The guy probably kicked him out of the office.

I am sure more than a few people told him he was crazy, but look what came of it. Think of all the laughs over the years. Think of all the smiles.

If you haven’t already, think about the place where you can apply your creativity and ingenuity to serve as many people as possible….and then start heading in that direction.

Make it a great day.

Jake

http://youtu.be/o9rvhmUhPnA​

This is the last scene of a movie called "About Time". In the movie the main character can travel through time.

He starts off by explaining the secret that he had discovered through his special gift.

And that secret? Don’t travel through time at all. Live each day as if it were the one special day that he would have traveled through time to live over again.

As we start another week, let’s remember to enjoy each day. To not just rush through them. To pause for those we care about. To laugh.

Make it a great day.

Jake

No one is useless in this world who lightens the burden of it to anyone else. – Charles Dickens

In honor of Labor Day yesterday I thought I would send out one of my favorite quotes on “labor”.

Or maybe we could adjust it for Labor Day:

No labor is useless in this world that lightens the burden of it to anyone else.

As we go about our days it is easy to forget or pass up on all the little opportunities to be of service to others. To make their day a little brighter and lighter.

Don’t miss those opportunities this week.

Lighten the burden for those around you.

Make it a great day.

Jake