Welcome to the Q page.
More soon. Thanks for reading. I like quotes. So, as I come across quotes I like, I will share them with you. I like quotes that motivate and quotes that make me ponder things from a new angle.
Quick Tips will typically be a link to a web page, article, or a short how-to.
Quips-Now, I’m not real sure what I am going to do here. I like humor. I like words. I like using humor in my training, speaking and consulting. Let’s see how it goes. If I get too many complaints, I might do more, or less.
For January 15, 2015
Quotes
Peter McWilliams
Be willing to be uncomfortable. Get comfortable being uncomfortable. It may get tough, but it’s a small price to pay for living a dream.
Winston Churchill
Broadly speaking, short words are the best and the old words best of all.
Teddy Roosevelt
Nobody cares how much you know until they know how much you care
Quick Tip on Effectiveness
Every once in a while, examine things you do often as if you have never done them before. Look at those things that you constantly do and ask yourself:
- If I had to explain why I do this in this way, justifying that it is the best possible way to do this, could I make a strong argument?
- Even if this is the best way to do this thing I am doing, is this thing a chore or a treat?
- If this thing that I am doing is a chore, what would happen if I just stopped doing it?
- If the answer is nothing, or not much, then stop doing this hated thing.
- If this thing must be done, is there someone else who can do this thing better than I, more quickly than I, with more enjoyment that I, or more cheaply than I?
- Is there someone who might love doing this thing who is doing something they hate and I love? Could we trade?
Quip of the day
Joh Cameron says, when someone is trying to be hurtful:
If I had feelings, they would be hurt.
Actually I do have feelings. I am a softy and those feelings are maybe a molecule deep below the surface. The reason my feelings are so hard for others to hurt is because my feelings are mine. Nobody can make you mad. You make yourself mad because you were frustrated, or annoyed, or impatient and you didn’t deal with that feeling. You let something, or made something, turn into anger.
So, maybe your quip from John Cameron should be:
If I thought enough of you to let you affect my feelings, they might be hurt
Which is kind of mean spirited, but then again some people need to verbally slapped. A little kinder version would be the phrase people use in the south.
Bless your heart
More soon. Thanks for reading.
May 6, 2015
Quotes for the day
Let us speak fairly, deal courteously, and keep ourselves armed and ready
Teddy Roosevelt
People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing, that’s why we recommend it daily.
Zig Ziglar
Success is not a result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.
Story and Quick tip of the day
Every once in a while, I will run into a problem at home that will get me thinking about process. I love to improve process. I’ve been very busy rewriting the second thriller in my series, ReKill, and have let a few things go.
I walk by the garage on the way to the house as I come back from walking my dogs. I noticed a steadily increasing drip on the spigot near the entrance to the garage. As it got worse and worse, someone, and I won’t mention who in case you think they are a nag, suggested I should do something about this drip before one of our nosey neighbors said something.
I looked at the drip and the slightly corroded spigot and asked myself, “Is this part of the water company’s problem, or is it covered by maintenance or do I have to pay for the fix?”
I thought about calling the people that take care of maintenance. I thought about calling my brother, who is a fantastic man and runs the best sprinkler repair business in the world. I thought about calling the water company.
What I did instead was get the tool box out and an adjustable spanner and tighten one nut. The drip went away.
Point: Sometimes we make a big deal out of something when five minutes effort-which included moving the car, getting out the toolbox, tightening the nut, enjoying my success, and putting everything back-will take care of it.
Questions you could ask yourself:
Do I have any nuts that need tightening?
Are any of these nuts people who simply need a little tightening up?
Is your spending out of hand and simply tracking it for a month will get you back in line as a saver?
Is your life suffering from deferred maintenance?
What irritants would simply go away with a few minutes effort?
QUIP OF THE DAY
“Imagine that?”
This is a very useful phrase. Someone has just shared something really stupid that the people who supposedly “govern” us have done.
“Imagine that?”
Or, one of your friends discovers that her new boyfriend is the arrogant asshole you told her he was instead of the confident go-getter she thought he was.
“Imagine that?”
Or, you finally do something a smart person suggested-like tightening a nut-and a problem goes away.
“Imagine that?”
Have a fantastic day.