“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” ― Theodore Roosevelt

I have been listening to the audiobook “Daring Greatly” by Brene Brown.

She uses this quote as a centerpiece to her idea that daring greatly by being vulnerable is the key to living a wholehearted life.

What pops into your head when you read this quote?

A conversation you need to have with someone?

A bad habit that needs to be kicked to the curb?

A new habit that needs your focus?

Find a way to dare greatly today.

Make it a great day.

Jake

MS* – “If a book about failures doesn’t sell, is it a success?” ― Jerry Seinfeld

EB* – “I came from a real tough neighborhood. Once a guy pulled a knife on me. I knew he wasn’t a professional, the knife had butter on it.” ― Rodney Dangerfield

JW* – “A word to the wise ain’t necessary, it’s the stupid ones who need advice.”― Bill Cosby

JD – “This is my depressed stance. When you’re depressed, it makes a lot of difference how you stand. The worst thing you can do is straighten up and hold your head high because then you’ll start to feel better. If you’re going to get any joy out of being depressed, you’ve got to stand like this.” – Charles M. Schulz

Since I forgot to get quotes from everyone yesterday, I thought I would find a few funny ones to send out and hopefully brighten everyone’s day a little.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Put off thy cares with thy clothes; so shall thy rest strengthen thy labor, and so thy labor sweeten thy rest. – Francis Quarles

Jim Rohn says “make rest a necessity, not an objective.”

These quotes remind me of another theme around Labor Day – working hard enough to need rest.

Rest and replenishment are needed only when they are coupled with work and effort.

When we apply maximum effort towards our goals and aspirations, rest will be a necessity to recharging and refueling for the next day.

Go all out today. Make rest a necessity.

Make it a great day.

Jake

Two short phrases were stuck in my head as I thought about Labor Day – “labor of love” and “labor as if you were doing it for the Lord”.

Both were a reminder about how our attitude towards something can really make the difference.

It’s easy to see work and labor as negatives.

It’s easy to do our work as if it didn’t matter and was merely something we had to do.

But it can be more than that.

We can labor as if we were doing it for the Lord.

We can labor out of love.

As we all get back to work today, let’s do our best to work with a different attitude. Let’s work for and towards something higher and more noble.

Make it a great day.

Jake

https://youtu.be/Gs069dndIYk

Psychedelic man.

September is here already. Time flies when you are having fun.

Time to pull out those goals and plans you wrote down early this year and reevaluate again.

See you where you are on track and where you need an adjustment.

And then make the commitment to push through for the end of the year.

Make it a great day.

Jake

It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare; it is because we do not date that things are difficult – Seneca

When I read this quote I thought of walking across a balance beam.

If we stop and rebalance every inch, it is a difficult and arduous process.

If we commit and walk steadily across it is easier.

When we aren’t willing to risk and proceed too cautiously, we sometimes make things harder than they need to be.

Commit and push through.

Make it a great day.

Jake

JD – Before God we are all equally wise – and equally foolish. – Albert Einstein

JW – Cast your cares on the Lord and he will sustain you; he will never let the righteous be shaken. – Psalm 55:22 NIV

EB – The best preparation for tomorrow is doing your best today. – H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

MS – If God can work through me, he can work through anyone. Francis of Assisi

The quote from EB above has been written on the sales white board in my office since Meaghan put the board together for me last month.

All we have to work with is the present.

In order to see our goals happen and to see our dreams come true we have to do the best we can with the time we have.

How we spend today matters.

What we choose to do with our time matters.

Today matters.

Make it a great day.

Jake

"Tranquility is a Choice. So is Anxiety. The entire world around us may be in Turmoil. But if we want to be Peaceful within, WE CAN." – Unknown

At some point, a lot of the world got this one mixed up.

For some, it is almost a goal to create more anxiety and worry.

We tend to see it as a badge of honor to be the most busy or the most complicated or the most worried.

We watch TV shows and movies that highlight the dramatic parts of life.

We somehow get it in our head that this is the way things are.

But it’s not the way it has to be.

We can choose tranquility and peace.

We can relax and smile.

Make it a great day.

Jake

https://youtu.be/MFzDaBzBlL0

This is a great video that is worth the time.

An engineer’s friends play a trick on him and “reverse” his bicycle. They changed the direction the handlebars turn.

He learns the literal truth behind the idea of you can never forget how to ride a bike.

And we can learn a few lessons from this experiment too.

We are never too old to learn something new.

Learning isn’t always easy.

Things might not be as they seem.

Question what you know.

Challenge yourself.

Have fun along the way.

Make it a great day.

Jake

From what we get, we can make a living; what we give, however, makes a life. – Arthur Ashe

I thought this would be a good reminder to start off the week.

A reminder that by focusing on giving first we can have a better life.

Look at your calendar for the week.

Any major opportunities to give stand out?

Look at your task list for the week.

Any chances for giving a little more?

If nothing stands out, add something.

Make sure giving makes it on the list for the week.

Make it a great day.

Jake