Never Miss the First Opportunity !!

A young man wished to marry the farmer's beautiful daughter. He went to the farmer to ask his permission. The farmer looked him over and said "Son, go stand out in that field. I'm going to release three bulls, one at a time. If you can catch the tail of any one of the three bulls, you can marry my daughter."

The young man stood in the pasture awaiting the first bull.

Bull No.1. The barn door opened and out ran the biggest, meanest-looking bull he had ever seen. He decided that one of the next bulls had to be a better choice than this one, so he ran over to the side and let the bull pass through the pasture out the back gate.

Bull No.2. The barn door opened again. Unbelievable. He had never seen anything so big and fierce in his life. It stood pawing the ground, grunting, slinging slobber as it eyed him. Whatever the next bull was like, it had to be a better choice than this one. He ran to the fence and let the bull pass through the pasture, out the back gate.

Bull No.3. The door opened a third time. A smile came across his face. This was the weakest, scrawniest little bull he had ever seen. This one was his bull. As the bull came running by, he positioned himself just right and jumped at just the exact moment. He grabbed... but the bull had no tail!

Moral of the story:-

Life is full of opportunities. Some will be easy to take advantage of, some will be difficult. But once we let them pass (often in hopes of something better), those opportunities may never again be available. So always grab the first opportunity.

Artice On "LOVE" From Swami Vivekananda

I once had a friend who grew to be very close to me. Once when we were sitting at the edge of a swimming pool, she filled the palm of her hand with some water and held it before me, and said this :

"You see this water carefully contained on my hand? It symbolizes " Love."

This was how I saw it:
As long as you keep your hand caringly open and allow it to remain there, it will always be there. However, if you attempt to close your fingers round it and try to posses it, it will spill through the first cracks it find.

This is the greatest mistake that people do when they meet love...they try to posses it, they demand, they expect... and just like the water spilling out of your hand, love will retrieve from you. For love is meant to be free, you cannot change its nature. If there are people you love, allow them to be free beings.

Give and don't expect.

Advise, but don't order.

Ask, but never demand.

It might sound simple, but it is a lesson that may take a lifetime to truly practice. It is the secret to true love. To truly practice it, you must sincerely feel no expectations from those who you love, and yet an unconditional caring."

The Habit Escalator

It has often been said that success in life comes from developing the right habits.

For example, we all know that good health comes from developing the habits of eating well and exercising regularly. The BIG question is – "How do we develop these habits?"

Well, I have good news and bad news…

The bad news is that developing a new habit IS hard work!

The good news is that it is much easier to maintain a habit once you’ve established it. Here is how I like to think about developing new habits.

Imagine a staircase that has 30 stairs.

At the top of the stairs is an escalator that leads to your goal. The hard part of establishing a new habit is to climb the ’stairs of change’ so that you can then ride up the ‘habit escalator’.

What this means in the real world is that if you can make yourself do something every day for 30 days, it will become a habit, and once you’ve established a habit things become much easier.

For example, lets say you wanted to develop the habit of getting up at 6.00am to do some exercise…

The first morning your alarm goes off you will probably be tempted to throw your alarm clock against the wall. Think of this as climbing the ’steps of change’. If you commit yourself to taking action for 30 days in a row, you will find that things will get easier.

By the 30th day, you will probably find yourself waking up just before your alarm goes off. When this happens, you have reached the top of the stairs and completed the hard work necessary to establish a new habit. At this point, your habit takes over and your action becomes almost second nature. This is the ‘habit escalator’ which is one of the most effective ways to reach your goals.
Unfortunately most people give up while they are still climbing the ’stairs of change’ and never get to enjoy riding on the ‘habit escalator’.

A Tribute To Marilyn Monroe

"We are all of us stars, and we deserve to twinkle."-Marilyn Monroe

Marilyn Monroe (pronounced /mɒnˈroʊ/ or /mənˈroʊ/; June 1, 1926 – August 5, 1962), born Norma Jeane Mortenson, but baptized Norma Jeane Baker, was an American actress, singer and model. After spending much of her childhood in foster homes, Monroe began a career as a model, which led to a film contract in 1946. Her early film appearances were minor, but her performances in The Asphalt Jungle and All About Eve (both 1950) were well received. By 1953, Monroe had progressed to leading roles. Her "dumb blonde" persona was used to comedic effect in such films as Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), How to Marry a Millionaire (1953) and The Seven Year Itch (1955). Limited by typecasting, Monroe studied at the Actors Studio to broaden her range, and her dramatic performance in Bus Stop (1956) was hailed by critics, and she received a Golden Globe nomination. Her production company, Marilyn Monroe Productions, released The Prince and the Showgirl (1957), for which she received a BAFTA Award nomination and won a David di Donatello award. She received a Golden Globe Award for her performance in Some Like It Hot (1959).

The final years of Monroe's life were marked by illness, personal problems, and a reputation for being unreliable and difficult to work with. The circumstances of her death, from an overdose of barbiturates, have been the subject of conjecture. Though officially classified as a "probable suicide", the possibility of an accidental overdose, as well as the possibility of homicide, have not been ruled out. In 1999, Monroe was ranked as the sixth greatest female star of all time by the American Film Institute. In the years and decades following her death, Monroe has often been cited as a pop and cultural icon as well as eminent American sex symbol.

Some Famous Quotes from Marilyn Monroe:-

"I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best."-Marilyn Monroe

"I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together."-Marilyn Monroe

"I am good, but not an angel. I do sin, but I am not the devil. I am just a small girl in a big world trying to find someone to love."-Marilyn Monroe

"If you're gonna be two-faced at least make one of them pretty."-Marilyn Monroe
"When it comes down to it, I let them think what they want. If they care enough to bother with what I do, then I'm already better than them."-Marilyn Monroe
"Beneath the makeup and behind the smile I am just a girl who wishes for the world."-Marilyn Monroe
"I've never fooled anyone. I've let people fool themselves. They didn't bother to find out who and what I was. Instead they would invent a character for me. I wouldn't argue with them. They were obviously loving somebody I wasn't."-Marilyn Monroe
"This life is what you make it. Not matter what, you're going to mess up sometimes, it's a universal truth. But the good part is you get to decide how you're going to mess it up. Girls will be your friends - they'll act like it anyway. But just remember, some come, somg go. The ones that stay with you through everything - they're your true best friends. Don't let go of them. Also remember, sisters make the best friends in the world. As for lovers, well, they'll come and go too. And babve, I hate to say it, most of them - actually pretty much all of them are going to break your heart, but you can't give up becuase if you give up, you'll never find your soul mate. You'll never find that half who makes you whole and that goes for everything. Just because you fail once, doesn't mean you're gonna fail at everything. Keep trying, hold on, and always, always, always believe in yourself, because if you don't, then who will, sweetie? So keep your head high, keep your chin up, and most importantly, keep smiling, because life's a beautiful thing and there's so much to smile about."

-Marilyn Monroe

Let's Learn From President John F. Kennedy

One of the most common questions I get asked is, “Where do I start?” To answer this question, all you need to do is to look up into the night sky.

On May 25th 1961, the American President John F. Kennedy stood up in front of the entire world and announced the dramatic and ambitious goal of sending a man to the moon before the end of the decade. Here is a brief excerpt from his speech to the Congress:

“I believe we possess all the resources and talents necessary… While we cannot guarantee that we shall one day be first, we can guarantee that any failure to make this effort will make us last. We take an additional risk by making it in full view of the world, but… this very risk enhances our stature when we are successful.” - President John F. Kennedy

In setting this goal, President Kennedy demonstrated an incredible amount of courage because at the time, no one knew whether it was physically or technically possible to achieve this goal. He also provided a great example of ‘how to get started’…

“In order to achieve success in any endeavor in life you must first

find the courage to believe it is possible” – Dr. Anthony Fernando

Often we become stuck in our current reality and fall into the trap of thinking that this is just the way things are and always will be. It takes courage to step away from our current situation and believe that something better is possible for our future.

President Kennedy believed that it was possible to send a man to the moon. This belief set off a chain of events that led over 400000 people to work for over eight years (20th July 1969) in order to transform his belief into reality.

Today I’d like to encourage you to find the courage within yourself to step up and believe that a better future is possible for you.

Once you are armed with this belief, you can then decide exactly what it is that you want to achieve and determine the steps you need to take in order to make your goal a reality.

Whether you want to send a man to the moon, achieve financial freedom, or learn to play the guitar…It all begins with belief.

A Success Lesson From The Past

The large block of marble stood in the center of the open-air workshop. The officials who had purchased the block were eager to get their project underway and began looking for an artist who could transform the stone block into a work of art.

A suitable artist was identified and work began on the project, but as time passed, the artist gradually lost interest and eventually walked away from his commission.

Another artist was found and work commenced once more, however, this second artist also lost interest and the entire project came to a grinding halt.

The block of marble then sat neglected in the yard of the workshop for over 25 years!…

Then one day, a young man in his twenties heard about the marble block and visited the yard. When he gazed upon the stone, the young man did not see a weathered old block of marble. Instead, he saw an opportunity waiting to be realized.

He negotiated with the owners of the marble block and in due course received permission to try his hand where others had failed.

For three long years the young man chipped away at the block of stone and tap by tap he transformed his dream into a reality.

In January 1504, the young man whose name was Michelangelo, unveiled his statue of David.

The secret of Michelangelo’s success was that he was able to combine two seemingly conflicting virtues.

The first of these virtues was VISION. Whereas most people looked upon the marble block and saw a neglected slab of stone, Michelangelo saw a magnificent statue trapped within the rock just waiting to be released.

“I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free”

- Michelangelo

In addition to having the ability to visualize his ultimate desire, Michelangelo also developed the VIRTUE OF PATIENCE.

He knew that long lasting success did not come quickly or easily, but rather, it was the result of patiently chipping away at his goal each and every day.

“Genius is Eternal Patience”

- Michelangelo

Today, some five hundred years later, many of us spend time to develop a grand vision for our life, but then we quickly become impatient to make our vision a reality. All too often we become frustrated with our lack of progress and eventually give up on our goal entirely.

It is a rare individual who can combine the ability to visualize their goal with the patience to take the small daily steps necessary to transform that vision into reality.

Today I’d like to encourage you to approach your own goals in the same way that Michelangelo approached the creation of the statue of David.

Even though your current reality may resemble the worn out block of marble, challenge yourself to look deeper to find the hidden opportunity that is waiting to be realized.

Once you have identified your objective, resist the urge to become impatient. Instead, develop a mindset of quiet anticipation and chip away at your goal a little each day.

By combining the power of Vision with the virtue of Patience, nothing will stop you from creating your own masterpiece.

Happy Valentines Day!!!

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but the places and moments that take our breath away" ~ Anonymous

Saint Valentine's Day, commonly shortened to Valentine's Day,is an annual commemoration held on February 14 celebrating love and affection between intimate companions.The day is named after one or more early Christian martyrs named Valentine and was established by Pope Gelasius I in 500 AD. It was deleted from the Roman calendar of saints in 1969 by Pope Paul VI, but its religious observance is still permitted. It is traditionally a day on which lovers express their love for each other by presenting flowers, offering confectionery, and sending greeting cards (known as "valentines"). The day first became associated with romantic love in the circle of Geoffrey Chaucer in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished.

Modern Valentine's Day symbols include the heart-shaped outline, doves, and the figure of the winged Cupid. Since the 19th century, handwritten valentines have given way to mass-produced greeting cards.

Historical facts

Numerous early Christian martyrs were named Valentine.The Valentines honored on February 14 are Valentine of Rome (Valentinus presb. m. Romae) and Valentine of Terni (Valentinus ep. Interamnensis m. Romae).Valentine of Rome was a priest in Rome who was martyred about AD 269 and was buried on the Via Flaminia. His relics are at the Church of Saint Praxed in Rome and at Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin, Ireland.

Valentine of Terni became bishop of Interamna (modern Terni) about AD 197 and is said to have been martyred during the persecution under Emperor Aurelian. He is also buried on the Via Flaminia, but in a different location than Valentine of Rome. His relics are at the Basilica of Saint Valentine in Terni (Basilica di San Valentino).

The Catholic Encyclopedia also speaks of a third saint named Valentine who was mentioned in early martyrologies under date of February 14. He was martyred in Africa with a number of companions, but nothing more is known about him.

No romantic elements are present in the original early medieval biographies of either of these martyrs. By the time a Saint Valentine became linked to romance in the 14th century, distinctions between Valentine of Rome and Valentine of Terni were utterly lost.

In the 1969 revision of the Roman Catholic Calendar of Saints, the feastday of Saint Valentine on February 14 was removed from the General Roman Calendar and relegated to particular (local or even national) calendars for the following reason: "Though the memorial of Saint Valentine is ancient, it is left to particular calendars, since, apart from his name, nothing is known of Saint Valentine except that he was buried on the Via Flaminia on February 14."The feast day is still celebrated in Balzan (Malta) where relics of the saint are claimed to be found, and also throughout the world by Traditionalist Catholics who follow the older, pre-Second Vatican Council calendar.

Valentine Poem Compilation for all my readers and followers

"Love is a promise,

love is a souvenir,

once given never forgotten,

never let it disappear."

- John Lennon, Beatles singer, songwriter, political activist (1940-1980)

"Love is something eternal;

the aspect may change,

but not the essence"

- Vincent van Gogh, Dutch Painter (1853-1890)

"You know you're in love

when you can't fall asleep

because reality is finally

better than your dreams."

- Dr. Seuss, American Writer, Cartoonist (1904-1991)

** I would like to wish HAPPY VALENTINES DAY to my dearest wife Arul Letchmi and Son Thiiran for being the best ever companion in my life to keep me happy and giving hope for a brighter future ahead. I know that once in a year wishing is not the key point here as we promised. Lets make everyday A Valentines Day.. Lets cherish every single moment in life because it will be in our memories when we are old and waiting for the time to end the days on the earth..

I LOVE YOU!! 

How To Get Your Confidence Back

Getting confidence is one thing, getting your confidence back is a substantially different one. You see, people who’ve always lacked confidence in a certain area aren’t familiar with the emotion and they have a hard time grasping the associated behavior.

On the other hand, people who had confidence in a certain area at some point but they’ve lost it are familiar with the emotion and the related behavior, they’ve just lost touch with them. What they need is to get those emotions to surface again.

This is easier than inventing them from scratch, but it is also different in many ways and it requires a customized approach. Here are my top ideas on how to get your confidence back:

1. Remember the Feeling

It’s a lot easier to get a feeling of confidence when you need it if you get reacquainted with that feeling when you had it. The better you can remember that positive state of confidence you had, the more you can leverage it.
One highly effective exercise for this is past visualization. What you do is think about a specific situation in the past when you felt very confident even if now you may lack confidence in similar situations. You close your eyes, get conformable and visualize the situation.
Make the visualization as vivid as possible; remember as much of the details as you can, as if that past experience was really happening right now. As you do so, you’ll notice that feeling of self-assurance coming back strong and you’ll become familiar with it again.

2. Model Your Own Thinking

One of the most important discoveries in modern psychology is that our feelings are often triggered and reinforced by our cognitive schemas and the way we think.
The good news if you used to be confident is that you already have a way of thinking somewhere in your head that boosts confidence. What you need to do is dig it out and put it into practice again.
Past visualization is also a wonderful tool for discovering your past ways of thinking that created confidence. As you discover them, you can consciously begin to apply them in the present: talk to yourself the way you used to, focus mentally on the things you used to and you’ll begin to feel the way you used to.

3. Act As If
One of the perks of having had confidence in the past is that you also behaved confidently. That means that in your past-self, you already have a model for self-assured behavior.

Remember that behavior with as much clarity as possible and consciously begin to practice it in the present. This is acting ‘as if’ you were that confident person again. It may not be easy at first, but since you have it in you, it will quickly become natural.

The mind and the body are connected. Feelings influence behavior, but it also works the other way. As you act as if you were confident, since your mind already has a memory of such behavior, it will begin to elicit that same state of confidence associated with that behavior. Thus, you become confident by acting confidently.
Learning how to get your confidence back is a matter of using the right tools and wisely using the past to rejuvenate the present.
It is also a matter of consistent practice. It may be easier to get confidence back than to get it for the first time, but it still not easy. It requires making it a priority, practicing daily and sticking to it. As you do so, you will see remarkable changes in your attitude and progress in your life.

Are You Still Afraid Of Failure?

Fear is like a toxic poison – it seems you can’t get rid of it by any means and it prevents you from living the life you always wanted to live. I was being “poisoned” with fear for myself and continuously worried about the events that might take place in the future, which included – besides many other things – messing up with my grades or not being able to master the defiances of my life. Even though I wasn’t a scared chicken at all, fear remained a part of my thoughts and often prevented me from falling asleep. Generally speaking I would say that all my worries had one thing in common: the fear of failure. Overcome the fear of failure

1. Having the right mindset about failure

When I was about 20 years old, I’ve made an interesting conclusion that would help me to view failure from a completely different perspective. I started to acknowledge failure as exactly what it is: an unavoidable part of everyone’s life – nothing more and nothing less. I knew that I had failed in the past and that I was going to fail every once in a while in the future, even if I did my very best to avoid this. There was simply no way around it, so I started to change my attitude towards failure in general. I realized that, even though I experienced every failure as a dolorous event that slammed me on the ground, every one of them helped me in the long term to become the man that I am today. My failures had not only helped me to improve myself and avoid similar mistakes in the future, but also opened up many other opportunities and chances for me; I just had to spot and identify them.

2. What’s better: failing vs. not having tried at all?

I nearly forgot to tell you what the “interesting conclusion” was I’ve talked about in the above. Back when I was 20 years old I had realized that there was only one way for me to avoid every failure straight away from the beginning: by not trying at all, which is – at least for me – identical to not having lived anyways. I reasoned that the sole attempt of trying to avoid any kind of failure by any means would lead to the irrevocable mistake of not trying at all, which isn’t a promising option.

3. Imagining the “grandparents-scenario”
When I’m an old man, I would like to tell my grandchildren about all the challenges I endured during my life, laugh with them about the clumsy mistakes I made and show them all kinds of opportunities that have come into my life after I had failed. Nevertheless, one thing that I never ever want to have to tell my grandchildren are the words, “it could have been“! I really don’t want to look back on my life only to discover all the great chances and exciting events I’ve missed, because of my fear of the possibility to fail every once in a while. The – what I call – “grandparents-scenario” tremendously helps me to clarify that it is not failure I should be worried about, but what results out of this fear: being too scared to do what I had planned to do!

4. Taking one step at a time

When we’re facing really big challenges in our lives, we tend to get overwhelmed quite fast, simply by looking at the full extent of what lies in front of us. The most likely response towards this unknown situation is fear, which finally might paralyze and prevent us from approaching the challenge. The best advice that can be given in these situations is to approach the challenge one step at a time, even if you might experience some fear. Doing so will help you to get used to the new situation and will reduce your fears of the possibility that you could fail, especially when you experience your first sense of achievement.

And always keep in mind… There is no reason to be afraid of failure, if you never want to ask yourself the question, “what would have happened, if I had tried?”

5 Motivational Quotes by Authors of the Classics

The number of great posts here about the importance of reading the classics to improve oneself made me think that I should share with your some of my favorite motivational quotes by some of my favorite classical authors. If the classics can help us educate ourselves, then their authors, many of whom have struggled and persevered in the writing of these massive cultural books, can certainly help us motivate ourselves.

Here is a selection of five quotations from my quotebook; I often turn to many of these quotes when I find myself in the midst of an enormous challenge or when my spirits flag on some of the more stressful days. I hope they can be of some use to you.

“I was working on a proof of one of my poems all the morning, and took out a comma. In the afternoon I put it back in.” –Oscar Wilde

This quote by the famous playwright Oscar Wilde motivates me to constantly pay close attention to the details of all aspects of my life, especially my writing and blogging. At first glance, the quotation speaks to the frustrating nature of writing; however, I believe it also shows that without being extremely motivated, one could never have the patience to succeed in the face of so many annoying, seemingly trivial details. However, ultimately, those details are just as important in life as the overall flow of things.

“I admit that twice two makes four is an excellent thing, but if we are to give everything its due, twice two makes five is sometimes a very charming thing too.” –Fyodor Dostoyevsky

I very much enjoy this quotation because it reminds me that creativity can be a great motivational agent. All too often we remained trapped in the status quo; we don’t think to look for the pleasures that can come from imagination and the unknown. Dostoyevsky reminds me here to look for and thrive on the unexpected, to be charmed by things I cannot control or that seem impossible. By seeking impossibility, I can overcome my own limits.

“Life is a luminous halo, a semi-transparent envelope surrounding us from the beginning.” –Virginia Woolf

I love this quote because it speaks to how delicate and beautiful life can be. This quote motivates me to constantly enjoy the envelope of my life, to ‘stop and smell the roses,’ so to speak. Woolf was well know for her writing about the passage of time, how it often can speed incessantly forward or slow to a near stop as we pass through each life’s experience. This quotation reminds me that, regardless of how quickly or slowly each moment passes me by, it is a beautiful thing and I must appreciate it.

“Why not seize the pleasure at once? How often is happiness destroyed by preparation, foolish preparation?” –Jane Austen
Many times I have failed to take advantage of a wonderful opportunity because I delayed in order to make sure I had carefully evaluated all of my options. Such evaluation is a good thing, usually, unless it takes the form of subconscious procrastination. Austen encourages us to seize the moment of our happiness. First we must learn to recognize that opportunity, and then we must act. I still struggle with this to this day; however, I have gotten better as time has passed.

“It seems to me we can never give up longing and wishing while we are alive. There are certain things we feel to be beautiful and good, and we must hunger for them.” –George Eliot

Finally, this quotation by Eliot keeps me dreaming and yearning for good in my life. This desire motivates me to do everything I can to achieve my goals and to succeed. Without this desire, I would remain stagnant and anxious. But, because I have something to look forward to each day I wake up, I am an active person who feels confident that I’m actively living a better live.

How To Be Lucky In A World Of Unlucky People

Have you ever met anyone who seemed to live with Lady Luck? This person had the Midas Touch, with everything in their path turning to brilliant gold beneath their feet. Even if they knew they were lucky, they probably admitted so with the caveat that, “they made their own luck.”
And you thought, “Yeah, right, how am I supposed to do that?”
Truth is, there are plenty of things you can do to give yourself more luck, and none of them involve rabbit’s feet or voodoo. Learn to incorporate the following things in your life and you might find that luck becomes as natural as breath.

1. You Need a Network

Isolated, few opportunities will fall your way. New jobs, fresh fortune and random strokes of great luck are often the simple result of being plugged into the right network at the right time.
Make it a habit of trading contact information with everyone you meet, then touching base every so often. Keep your exchanges friendly, natural, and helpful at all times.
Multiply the people that know who you are and what you do, and you will multiply life’s ample opportunities.

2. Shift Your Perspective

Mishap and misfortune happen to everyone. You WILL always have setbacks, but it’s important to remember you can’t live in denial. You must actively shift your perspective to a more positive outlook and keep searching for the hidden opportunities that exist in every situation.
Many people are resistant to re-framing their life view because they don’t think it’s “realistic” to look for a positive way to view negative situations, yet even the Great Depression saw the steady rise of many “lucky” millionaires.
Lucky people understand that there might not be any way of changing the past, but they can always change their minds and see life in a way that allows them to move forward rather than wallow in place.

3. Put Yourself Out There

Do you know anyone who sits on the couch or surfs the Net all the live long day with something to show for it by the time the sun sets?

I didn’t think so.
The more you participate in life, the more great luck will leap your way. The more active you are, the more opportunities you will have to find yourself in the right place and right time. Instead of waiting at home, hoping luck just happens along, go out and find it, then bring it back home where it belongs.

4. Be Grateful for What You Do Have

Gratitude puts you in the right frame of mind and makes it easy to recognize the right opportunities. When you incorporate gratitude into your life, it is easy to see all the lucky things that have already been happening to you each and every day.

That sense of wonder and natural humility is the true antidote for feeling unlucky.

5. Learn to Take Chances
You won’t always succeed when you take risks, but remember, every chance taken is a new opportunity to learn and will make every forward step simpler than the one before.
And remember, without risk there is no reward. Sure, only betting on a sure thing might mean you’ll never lose. But how often will you win?
We DO make our own luck. Start living like you mean it, and you’ll be lucky, too.