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There once was a man named George Thomas, pastor in a small New
England town. One Easter Sunday morning he came to the Church carrying
a rusty, bent, old bird cage, and set it by the pulpit. Eyebrows were
raised and, as if in response, Pastor Thomas began to speak. . . .. Read more…
“Venomous snakes were being ferried from Africa to Europe in a plane. Unfortunately the person who packed the snakes forgot to lock the box in which the snakes were put. Once the plane had taken off and responding to the movement of the plane, the snakes found their way out of the box.. Passengers in the plane could see various snakes on the isle. They screamed, some fainted and the brave ones sought refugee wherever they could within the plane.”
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? Read more…
“Your circumstances may be uncongenial, but they shall not remain so if you only perceive an ideal and strive to reach it. You cannot travel within and stand still without.” – As A Man Thinketh Read more…
“Even if he fails again and again to accomplish his purpose — as he must until weakness is overcome — the strength of character gained will be the measure of his true success, and this will form a new starting point for future power and triumph. ” – As A Man Thinketh
When most young children are given a puzzle to solve or put together that is especially challenging, most will make a good effort at solving it, but if unsuccessful will soon lose interest and abandon it. Some will even become angry at their failure to solve it and may throw a tantrum.
Contrast that with the experienced puzzle player who proceeds to put the puzzle together with an air of certain confidence that they will complete it. They know that they have all of the pieces of the puzzle before them so it is only a matter of finding out which pieces work where and once that’s done the puzzle will be complete. Putting a piece in the wrong place is not a cause for concern, it’s simply another step toward putting all of the pieces in their proper place.
I think of all the times in my life when I acted like a young child in dealing with the current puzzle in my life. Instead of turning over and trying the next piece, I got angry and walked away from the puzzle, seeing the puzzle as a problem instead of as an opportunity.
Napoleon Hill, author of the classic Think and Grow Rich, knew Thomas Edison and Henry Ford personally. He said of both men that the ONLY thing that was different about them from everyone else was their persistence. Which gives rise to an interesting thought. Where would our civilization be today if either man had treated his puzzles like the impatient young child?
If you don’t have all of the pieces of your puzzle on the table, then stop, identify them and get them on the table before proceeding. If, however, you’ve got them on the table, then take the approach of the experienced puzzle player. When they don’t fit — don’t quit — try another piece or move them to another place. While you’re at it, learn another valuable lesson from great puzzle players. They don’t just enjoy completing the puzzle, they delight in putting it together.
Napoleon Hill thought Persistence was a pretty important key to success — he used the word 97 times in Think and Grow Rich and he devoted an entire chapter to it. Some of his wisdom includes, “The majority of people are ready to throw their aims and purposes overboard, and give up at the first sign of opposition or misfortune. A few carry on DESPITE all opposition, until they attain their goal. These few are the Fords, Carnegies, Rockefellers, and Edisons. There may be no heroic connotation to the word “persistence,” but the quality is to the character of man what carbon is to steel.”
Vic Jonson