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By The Dalai Lama —

1. His Holiness describes himself as a simple Buddhist monk who lives his life with simplicity, humor and great warmth. Everywhere his message is the same – the importance of love, compassion and forgiveness.

2. “I speak from my own experience. I will not propose that my way is best. The decision is up to you.”

3. All sentient beings, particularly human beings, want happiness and do not want pain and suffering.

4. There is no absolute; everything is relative, so we must judge according to the circumstances.

5. When I say ‘spiritual’ I do not necessarily mean any kind of religious faith. When I use the word ‘spiritual’ I mean basic human good qualities such as human affection, a sense of involvement, honesty, discipline and human intelligence properly guided by good motivation. We have all these
things from birth.

6. All religious teachings and traditions teach us to be good human beings. As humans, we all have the same human potential.

7. Humans have the potential not only to create happy lives for themselves, but also to help other beings. We have a natural creative quality and it is very important to realize this.

8. With the realization of one’s own potential and self-confidence in one’s ability, one can build a better world. Self-confidence is very important, as is an awareness of one’s own potential. Human beings can transform themselves by increasing the good qualities and reducing the negative qualities.

9. The smile is a very important feature of the human face. It is illogical to expect smiles from others if one does not smile oneself. Many things depend on one’s own behaviors.

10. It is important to be mindful of the benefits from long-term and short-term happiness.

11. There is both positive and negative desire. Desire is the prime mover in achieving happiness now and for the future. The antidote to negative desire is contentment.

12. Bodily health, material wealth and companions and friends are three factors for happiness. Contentment is the key that will determine the outcome of your relations with all three of these factors.

13. Friendly competition can be a stimulating factor for growth and progress.

14. The outcome of our interactions depends upon the application of intelligence.

15. Our behavior in our daily lives is the key factor in determining whether all our faculties and relationships produce genuine, long-lasting satisfaction or not. Much depends on our own attitude; motivation is the key thing.

16. One must have the ability to concentrate, to focus on events, actions and goals.

17. In summary, good conduct is the way in which life becomes more meaningful, more constructive and more peaceful. For this, much depends on our own behavior and our own mental attitude.

18. The success of our lives and our futures depends on our individual motivation and determination or self-confidence.

19. I think that a person who has had more experience of hardships can stand more firmly in the face of problems than the person who has never experienced suffering. Some suffering can thus be a good lesson for life. My own tragic experiences have had some valuable aspects.

20. Buddhist religious practice greatly emphasizes the importance of the awareness of death and impermanence.

21. I think at the time of death a peaceful mind is essential no matter what you believe in, whether in Buddhism or some other religion. At the moment of death the individual should not seek to develop anger, hatred or so on. That is very important. I think even non-believers see that it is better to pass
away in a peaceful manner, it is much happier.

22. Anger and hatred are two of our closest friends. By using common sense, with the help of compassion and wisdom, I now have a more powerful argument with which to defeat anger. It is bad for our material facilities if our mind is dominated by anger.

23. * According to my experience, it is clear that if each individual makes an effort, then he or she can change.

24. People often describe Buddhism as a ‘science of the mind’.

25. Negative emotions are those which immediately create some kind of unhappiness or unease. On the basis of compassionate motivation, anger can in some cases be useful because it gives us extra energy and enables us to act swiftly.

26. The sources of our happiness: good health, material facilities and good companions.

27. Your mental state should always remain calm.

28. I sometimes think of myself as a half-Marxist, half-Buddhist.

29. You, who I think have had a better education and more experience than myself, have more potential to change within yourself.

30. Our mental attitude is very crucial. The ultimate source of happiness is in our mental attitude; the main cause of a happy life is within.

31. While money is very useful and necessary, it is not the ultimate source of happiness.

32. I consider hatred to be the ultimate enemy. By ‘enemy’ I mean the person or factor which directly or indirectly destroys our interest. Our interest is that which ultimately creates happiness.

33. The supreme source of my happiness is my calmness of mind. That is something an external enemy cannot destroy. The ultimate source of my mental happiness is my peace of mind. Nothing can destroy this except my own anger.

34. Anger, if you do not make an attempt to reduce it, will remain with you and even increase. Through training and discipline you can change (and learn how to deal effectively with anger). You should not become dissatisfied or frustrated because this is the cause of anger and hatred.

35. Dissatisfaction is the seed of anger.

36. By bringing about a change in our outlook towards things and events, all phenomena can become friends or sources of happiness, instead of becoming enemies or sources of frustration.

37. Without anger and without hatred, we can manage (ourselves) more effectively.

38. * One of the effective means by which one can overcome the forces of negative emotions like anger and hatred is by cultivating their counter-forces, such as the positive qualities of mind like love and compassion.

39. Compassion is the most wonderful and precious thing. Basic human nature is, I believe, compassionate and gentle.

40. It is my experience that those lessons which we learn from teachers who are not just good, but who also show affection for the students, go deep into our minds. Irrespective of whether you are a believer or non-believer, compassion for the students’ lives or futures, not only for examinations,
makes your work as a teacher much more effective.

41. We depend heavily on the affection of others.

42. The human body appreciates peace of mind.

43. Our potential for compassion is there. The only issue is whether or not we realize this and utilize it. By nature we are compassionate. Compassion is something very necessary and something which we can develop (to a higher degree).

44. The Buddhist interpretation is that genuine compassion is based on a clear acceptance or recognition that others, like ourselves, want happiness and have the right to overcome suffering. On that basis one develops some kind of concern about the welfare of others, irrespective of one’s attitude to
oneself. That is compassion.

45. With genuine compassion you view others as more important than yourself.

46. My interests are not independent of others. My happiness depends on others’ happiness.

47. The whole world has become much smaller, but the human consciousness is still lagging behind.

48. If an individual is compassionate, he or she will immediately make friends. Genuine human friendship is on the basis of human affection.

49. Wisdom is extremely important in increasing compassion indefinitely.

50. I think that in your daily lives and in all sorts of your professional work, you can use this compassionate motivation (to build effective relationships).

51. Human compassion is the key factor of all human business. Every human action that is without human feeling becomes dangerous.

52. If you have respect for or interest in religion, that is good. But even if you have no interest in religion, you should not forget the importance of these deeper human values. I see compassion, love and forgiveness, as a common ground for all different religions.

53. The greater the force of your compassion, the greater your resilience. Compassion is also a source of inner strength and is very important to a successful future.

54. The only sensible thing is that all different religions work together and live harmoniously, helping one another.

55. Suffering is something that we all do not desire, but it is a consequence or an effect of ignorance.

56. We must begin to appreciate the inter-connectedness between the well-being of human beings and the natural environment.

57. There are no independent causes of one’s own happiness. In order to have a happier future for oneself, you have to take care of everything which relates to you and appreciate the interconnectedness of all events and phenomena.

58. I think the most important task of any religious practitioner is to examine oneself within one’s own mind.

59. In the history of humanity there have been very tragic events which came about because of religion.

60. Personally, I feel that much of the environmental problem really stems from our insatiable desire, our lack of contentment and our greed.61. I personally believe that war cannot ever lead to the ultimate solution of a problem. Therefore, I think it is important for all the religious traditions to take a united stand and voice their opposition to every idea of war. We must DO something to bring about an end to war and conflict. The
motivating factor which triggers the need for weapons is human emotion – hatred and anger.

62. A proper way of education is the most important element in terms of hope for a better future.

63. (Talking about what is on TV): If you compare killing and sex, sex is much better! If we pretend that it is not a part of human life, that doesn’t make much sense.

64. Q: “Is it possible for an ordinary person to transform his or her fear and despair?” A. Oh, yes, it is very possible. The most important thing is to smile! I have the freedom to act according to the circumstances.

65. As the individual gains greater insight into the nature of reality, the greater the power of his or her compassion and altruism will be.

66. I would personally think that Buddhism can be defined as a sort of combination of spiritual path and philosophical system. In Buddhism, greater emphasis is given to reason and intelligence than faith.

67. According to Buddhism, it is karma, one’s own action, that really determines rebirth. Also, the state of mind at the point of death has a crucial role.

68. Spiritual development takes time; it doesn’t happen just overnight.

By Rosamund Stone Zander and Benjamin Zander; excerpts from the book follow:

P. 6 “Out of the boat…signifies more than being off track – it means you don’t know where the track is anymore…when you are out of the boat, you cannot think your way back in; you have no point of reference. You must call on something that has been established in advance, a catch phrase…”

P. 9-10 “Experiments in neuroscience have demonstrated that we reach an understanding of the world in roughly this sequence: first, our senses bring us selective information about what is out there; second, the brain constructs its own simulation of the sensations; and only then, third, do we have our first conscious experience of our milieu.”

P.10 “We perceive only the sensations we are programmed to receive, and our awareness is further restricted by the fact that we recognize only those for which we have mental maps or categories.”

P.15 “Ask yourself: What assumption am I making, that I’m not aware I’m making, that gives me what I see? And when you have an answer to that question, ask yourself this one: What might I now invent, that I haven’t yet invented, that would give me other choices?”

P.18 “All the manifestations of the world of measurement – the winning and losing, the gaining of acceptance and the threatened rejection, the raised hopes and the dash into despair – all are based on a single assumption that is hidden from our awareness. The assumption that life is about staying alive and making it through – surviving in a world of scarcity and peril.”

P.20 “There are moments in everyone’s life when an experience of integration with the world transcends the business of survival…these are moments when we forget ourselves and seem to become part of all being.”

P.21 “Survival-thinking is the undiscriminating, ongoing attitude that life is dangerous and that one must put one’s energy into looking out for Number One.”

“Scarcity-thinking is an attitude as prevalent among the well-heeled as among the down-at-heel, and remains unaltered by a change in circumstances.”

P.22-23 “What is the practice that orients you to a universe of possibility? It is a practice for revealing the hidden framework from which the world of measurement springs…ask yourself, how are my thoughts and actions, in this moment, reflections of the measurement world?”

“…when you notice yourself thinking…and you recognize that thought as your first bit of evidence that your measurement mind is at work, you ask yourself again: how are my thoughts and actions, in this new moment, a reflection of the measurement world? And how now?

“You ask yourself the question until you finally appreciate how hopeless it is to escape being shaped by the assumptions that underlie all of life….and you will be smiling…for you will have stepped into a universe of possibility.”

P.26 “Giving an A…is an enlivening way of approaching people that promises to transform you as well as them. It is a shift in attitude that makes it possible for you to speak freely about your own thoughts and feelings, while, at the same time, you support others to be all they dream of being. The practice of giving an A transports your relationships from the world of measurement into the universe of possibility.”

P.39 “The practice of giving the A both invents and recognizes a universal desire in people to contribute to others, no matter how many barriers there are to its expression.”

P.42 “Once I had given my audience an A and invented them as colleagues, they were precisely the people with whom I wanted to converse, and I was exactly where I wanted to be.”

P.43-46 Mahler & Katrine: “… how seldom we pay attention to, or even look for, the passionate and the extraordinary in children – how seldom we give children an A.”

P.50 “It works that way. As soon as you have the grace to give people A’s, all sorts of things are revealed that were as though hidden behind a veil….when the relationship itself is no longer in question, we can ask ourselves, what now do we want to create?”

P.57 “Unlike success and failure, contribution has no other side. It is not arrived at by comparison.”

P.59 “…invent oneself as a contribution, and others as well. The steps to the practice are these:

1) Declare yourself to be a contribution.

2) Throw yourself into life as someone who makes a difference, accepting that you may not understand how or why.

The contribution game appears to have remarkable powers for transforming conflicts into rewarding experiences.”

P.61 “When you play the contribution game, it is never a single individual who is transformed. Transformation overrides the divisions of identity and possession that are the architecture of the measurement model, recasting the tight pattern of scarcity into a widespread array of abundance.”

P.63 “Naming oneself as a contribution produces a shift away from self-concern and engages us in a relationship with others that is an arena for making a difference.”

P.73-74 “A monumental question for leaders in any organization to consider is: How much greatness are we willing to grant people? Because it makes all the difference at every level who it is we decide we are leading. The activity of leadership is not limited to conductors, presidents, and CEOs, of course – the player who energizes the orchestra by communicating his newfound appreciation for the tasks…is exercising leadership of the most profound kind.”

P.74 “Today was exceptional in that I learned leadership is not a responsibility – nobody has to lead. It’s a gift…

P.79-80 “..kindly remember rule number 6….don’t take yourself so g-damn seriously….”

“The practice is to lighten up, which may well light up those around you.”

P.81 “The calculating self is concerned for its survival in a world of scarcity.”

P.83 “How do we learn to recognize the often-charming, always-scheming, sometimes-anxious, frequently conniving calculating self? One good way is to ask ourselves, what would have to change for me to be completely fulfilled?”

P.89 “When one person peels away layers of opinion, entitlement, pride and inflated self-description, others instantly feel the connection. As one person has the grace to practice the secret of Rule 6, others often follow. Now, with the calculating self revealed and humored, the central self shines through.”

P.90 “…the central self, a term we use to embrace the remarkably generative, prolific, and creative nature of ourselves and the world.”

P.95 “Unlike the calculating self, the central self is neither a pattern of action nor a set of strategies. It does not need an identity; it is its own pure expression.”

P.99 “The only way to find happiness is to accept that the way things are IS the way things are.”

P.102 “Mistakes can be like ice. If we resist them, we may keep on slipping into a posture of defeat. If we include mistakes in our definition of performance, we are likely to glide through them and appreciate the beauty of the longer run.”

P.103 – 106 BEING WITH THE WAY THINGS ARE…

P.111 “Being with the way things are calls for an expansion of ourselves. We start from what is, not from what should be; we encompass contradictions, painful feelings, fears and imaginings, and-without fleeing, blaming, or attempting correction – we learn to soar, like the far-seeing hawk, over the whole landscape. The practice of being with the way things are allows us to alight in a place of openness, where the truth readies us for the next step, and the sky opens up.”

P.113 “If I were to wish for anything I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the passionate sense of what can be, for the eye, which, ever young and ardent, sees the possible. Pleasure disappoints possibility never. And what wine is so sparkling, what so fragrant, what so intoxicating as possibility?” – Soren Kierkegaard

P.114 “Giving way to passion has two steps:

* Notice where you are holding back, and let go. Release those barriers of self that keep you separate and in control, and let the vital energy of passion surge through you, connecting you to all beyond.

*Participate wholly. Allow yourself to be a channel to shape the stream of passion into a new expression for the world.”

P.117 “Life flows when we put our attention on the larger patterns of which we are a part…”

P.123 “Certain things in life are better done in person.”

P.125 “Enrollment is the art and practice of generating a spark of possibility for others to share.”

P.126 “The steps are:

1) Imagine that people are an invitation for enrollment.

2) Stand ready to participate, willing to be moved and inspired.

3) Offer that which lights you up.

4) Have no doubt that others are eager to catch the spark.

“A no can seem like a door slamming instead of merely an instance of the way things are. Yet, were we to take a no less personally, and ourselves less seriously, we might hear something else. We might hear someone saying ‘I don’t see any new possibility here, so I think I’ll stick with my usual way of doing things.’ We might hear within the word ‘no’ an invitation for enrollment.”

P.139 “The life force of humankind is, perhaps, nothing more or less that the passionate energy to connect, express, and communicate. Enrollment is that life force at work…”

P.141 “…rename yourself as the board on which the whole game is being played….with this act, you can transform the world.

P.142 “…declare: I am the framework for everything that happens in my life.”

P.146-147 “…you ask yourself, in regard to the unwanted circumstances, ‘well, how did this get on the board that I am?’…this reflection may bring forth from you an apology that will knit back together the strands of raveled relationships. And then you will be standing freely and powerfully once again in a universe of possibility.”

P.148 “The practice of being the board, is about making a difference.

P.158 “Love is neither about self-determination nor sacrifice. It is a context in which two people build the life they want together.”

“Strength and independence are qualities that can enhance a relationship.”

P.159 “You do not find compassion simply by listening to people; you open the channel by removing the barriers to tenderness within you.”

P.163 Framing possibility

1) Make a new distinction in the realm of possibility: one that is a powerful substitute for the current framework of meaning that is generating the downward spiral.

2) Enter the territory. Embody the new distinction in such a way that it becomes the framework for life around you.

3) Keep distinguishing what is “on the track” and what is “off the track” of your framework for possibility.

P.168 “…mission statements are expressions of competition and scarcity.”

P.169 “A vision articulates a possibility. It fulfills a desire fundamental to humankind, a desire with which any human being can resonate. It is an idea to which no one could logically respond, ‘what about me?’ A vision makes no reference to morality or ethics, it is not about a right way of doing things. It cannot imply that anyone is wrong. A vision is stated as a picture for all time, using no numbers, measures or comparatives. It contains no specifics of time, place, audience, or product.”

P.175 “The sky is not the limit…”

P.183 “The WE appears when, for the moment, we set aside the story of fear, competition and struggle, and tell its story…the WE story defines a human being in a specific way: it says we are our central selves seeking to contribute, naturally engaged, forever in a dance with each other….by telling the WE story, an individual becomes a conduit for this new inclusive entity…”

P.183-184 the WE steps

1) Tell the WE story – the story of the unseen threads that connect us all, the story of possibility

2) Listen and look for the emerging entity.

3) Ask, what do we want to have happen here? What’s best for us? What’s our next step?

P.194 “Transformation from the I to the WE is…the intentional, ongoing dissolution of the barriers that divide us, so that we may be reshaped as a unique voice in the ever-evolving chorus of the WE.”

Abby Scott

Reviewed 10/09

By James H. Stronge; excerpts from the book follow:

1. “The focus of this book is the teacher and it is research-based…. This book chronicles the common background and identifies the common behaviors that characterize effectiveness in the classroom.” (p. vii)

2. “By focusing on teacher effectiveness, our ultimate goal is to improve the educational experiences and achievement of the students we serve.” (p. ix)

3. Chapter 1: Prerequisites of Effective Teaching
A. “Both content knowledge and pedagogical skills are vital aspects of teacher effectiveness.” (p. 6)
B. “Clearly, subject matter knowledge positively affects teaching performance, however, it is not sufficient in and of itself.” (p. 7)
C. “Researchers indicate that teachers develop from novices to masters at different intervals over time, taking from five to eight years to master the art, science, and craft of teaching.” (p. 8)
D. “Flexibility and adaptability are sometimes better than a well-written lesson plan because classrooms are dynamic.” (p. 10)

4. Chapter 2: The Teacher as a Person
A. “Stakeholders’ perceptions of good teaching….emphasize the teacher’s affective characteristics, or social and emotional behaviors, more than pedagogical practice.” (p. 13)
B. “Care in such a way that students are aware of it.” (p. 14)
C. “Students highly value teachers’ understanding of their concerns and questions.” (p. 14)
D. “Effective, caring teachers know students both formally and informally.” (p. 15)
E. “An effective teacher establishes rapport and credibility with students by emphasizing, modeling, and practicing fairness and respect…and avoids
demonstrations of (perceived) favoritism.” (p. 16)
F. “Enthusiasm for teaching, learning, and for the subject matter is an important part of effective teaching, as is encouraging students to be responsible for their own learning…An effective teacher recognizes that students vary in their motivation levels. Teachers’ enthusiasm for learning and for the subject matter has been shown to be an important factor in student motivation, which is closely linked to student achievement.” (p. 18/19)
G. “Effective teachers view themselves as responsible for the success of their students.” (p. 19)
H. “Effective teachers learn and grow as they expect their students to learn and grow… and have a positive attitude about life and teaching.” (p. 20)
I. “Effective teachers continuously practice self-evaluation and self-critique as learning tools. They are curious about the art and science of teaching and about themselves as effective teachers. They are introspective, not afraid of feedback and readily accept constructive criticism and reflect upon it.” (p. 20/21)

5. Chapter 3: Classroom Management and Organization
A. “A key difference between beginning and experienced educators is that the novice tends to leap into the content the first week of school, while the senior teacher works on creating a positive classroom climate and then works academics into
that objective.” (p. 26)
B. “The effective teacher must create an overall environment conducive to learning. This requires consistency in behavioral expectations and responses.” (p. 26)
C. “Effective management is a key component of effective teaching, as is the anticipation of potential problems.” (p. 27)
D. “Organization takes a considerable investment of time at first; however, it has tremendous payback benefits.” (P. 28)
E. “Effective teachers clearly communicate and reinforce behavioral expectations.” (p. 30)

6. Chapter 4: Organizing for Instruction
A. “Teaching is a complex activity that involves careful preparation and the planning of objectives and activities.” (p. 33)
B. “Students often want to know what is next during class.” (p. 35)
C. “Clear and consistent focus on achievement expectations is also essential to academic success… Research on teacher expectations has demonstrated that the students in the bottom third of the class receive significantly lower expectations to achieve, and much less encouragement, from many teachers.” (p 36/37)
D. “Effective teachers typically plan a blend of whole-group, small-group, and individualized instruction.” (p. 38)
E. “Since students learn at different rates, effective teachers plan academic enrichment and remediation opportunities for students… and stretch beyond their comfort zone to incorporate different learning styles.” (p. 38)
F. “Students benefit if the material can be connected to something they are already familiar with from prior school experiences or real-life situations.” (p. 38)
G. “Identifying clear lesson and learning objectives while carefully linking activities to them is essential for effectiveness.” (p. 39)
H. “Consider student attention spans and learning styles when designing lessons.” (p. 39)

7. Chapter 5: Implementing Instruction
A. “A teacher’s repertoire of teaching strategies is an important element of overall effectiveness… Students whose teachers develop and regularly integrate inquirybased, hands-on learning activities, critical thinking skills, and assessments into daily lessons consistently out-perform their peers.” (p. 43)
B. “Lecturing…. often overloads and overwhelms students; hands-on learning…has a positive effect on student achievement… Despite the research supporting hands-on activity, it is a fairly uncommon instructional approach.” (p. 44)
C. “A teacher’s ability to give clear and focused explanations to students and to clarify expectations for achievement are important aspects of effective
instructional delivery… Clarity of explanation and expectation is a separate skill that is vital in teacher effectiveness.” (P. 45)
D. “Effective teachers emphasize meaning.” (p 47)
E. “Effective teachers place a priority on reading”. (p. 47)
F. “Good questioning is definitely an important aspect of effective teaching…Questions within a lesson should be considered as a sequence, not as isolated
units, in planning, implementing, and assessing… Wait time is an important aspect of questioning.” (p. 47/48)

8. Chapter 6: Monitoring Student Progress and Potential
A. “One of the most influential school-based factors contributing to student learning is the amount of time spent on (productive) homework.” (p. 53)
B. “Feedback on completed homework is particularly important…A teacher who does not provide regular feedback on homework only realizes 1/3 of the gain made by the educator who gives (consistent, substantive) feedback… Homework is more effective in influencing student achievement when it is graded, commented on, and discussed in class.” (p. 54)
C. “Only 14% of teachers reported assigning homework for at least one half-hour per night.” (p. 55)
D. “Assessment is a central element of the teaching process. Effective teachers follow up their assessments with re-teaching. Feedback is one of the most
powerful modification techniques for increasing learning outcomes in students.” (p. 55/56)
E. “The longer the delay in giving feedback, the less likely students will respond to the feedback and the less likely learning will be enhanced.” (p. 56)
F. “Without doubt, (substantive) feedback … enhances the learning process.” (p. 56)

9. Chapter 7: Effective Teaching: What Does It All Mean?
A. “The effective teacher:
1. recognizes complexity
2. communicates clearly
3. serves conscientiously” (p. 62)
B. “The teacher’s job requires clear articulation of expectations, encouragement, and caring, as well as content knowledge.” (p. 63)
C. “Working hard is important; but even better is working both hard and smart.” (p. 63)
D. “The effective teacher is concerned with her own continuous learning process.” (p. 63)
E. “Professional development training must be tailored to the individual teachers…Teacher success is a lifelong pursuit.” (p. 64)
F. “Outcomes count.” (p. 65)

By Peter McWilliams; excerpts from the book follow:

P. vi  “At college age, you can tell who is best at taking tests and going to school, but you can’t tell who the best people are. That worries the hell out of me.”

Part I:  Introduction to Life

P. 6   “We don’t receive wisdom; we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take for us or spare us.”

P. 9   “What is the purpose of life? Life is for doing, learning and enjoying.”

P. 12   “Our doing allows for more learning.

P. 19   “The trick is to learn to enjoy the process of learning.”

P. 21   “Life consists not in holding good cards, but in playing those you hold well.”

P. 22   “If you don’t put anything in, you won’t get anything out.”

*P. 23   Helen Keller: “Life is either a daring adventure – or nothing at all.”

P. 24   Kingman Brewster: “Universities should be safe havens where ruthless examination of realities will not be distorted by the aim to please or inhibited by the risk of displeasure.”

P. 25   “Life is experiential. In that sense, life is more of a workshop.”

P. 27  “Experience, it is said, is the best teacher – providing, of course, we become the best students.”

P. 29   “The best that life can do is present lessons to you. The learning is up to you.”

P. 39   J.K. Galbraith: “Faced with the choice between changing one’s mind and proving there is no need to do so, almost everyone gets busy on the proof.”

“Learning is the assimilation and integration of new ideas, concepts and behaviors.”

P. 45   “I’m here to suggest that there is a ‘You’ to be discovered.  The discovery of that ‘You’ is entirely your own.”

Part II:  Advanced Tools for Eager Learners

*P. 83   Eric Fromm: “Man’s main task in life is to give birth to himself, to become what he potentially is.”

P. 90   Harry Truman: “I have found that the best way to give advice to your children is to find out what they want and then advise them to do it.”

P. 105 “Use everything for your upliftment, learning and growth.  Everything…no matter what happens to you, no matter how unfair, inequitable, or wrong – there is something you can take from the situation.”

P. 107 “When we’re involved, we learn more…  The more we do, the more we learn.”

P. 108  Victor Frankl: “The last of the human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”

P. 127 “Relax.  Accept what has already taken place – then look for the lesson.”

P. 133   “Ever notice how little effect your judgments (advice) have on others?”

P. 136   “What’s in the mountain is rock.  What we, as humans, project onto the mountain is majesty.

P. 137   “The mirror – an advanced tool for learning… Relationships can be among the most amazing mirrors around.”

P. 141   “When I say I ‘listen’, I also mean watch, sense, perceive and be aware of what’s going on inside.”

P. 147   “Accountability. We see that by changing our attitudes and actions, we can change what happens to us… we become accountable.”

P. 149   “Responsibility simply means the ability to respond… One ability to respond that we always have is how we react inside to what is going on outside.

P. 150   “You create, promote or allow all the good things that happen to you.”

P. 165   Record (do a journal) each day, in some way:

— The lessons you learn

— The good that you do

— The good that happens to you

— The insights you have

–Anything else that seems of importance or interest

P.174   “What we focus on we can achieve or become.”

P. 177   “A sanctuary is an inner retreat you build with visualization in your imagination… There are absolutely no limits to your sanctuaries.”

P. 182   Albert Einstein:  “Imagination is more important than knowledge.”

Part III:  Master Teachers in Disguise

P. 185   “Learn from mistakes, fears, guilt, resentment, death.”

P. 187   “If you’re struggling too much with the teacher (yourself), you might not learn the lesson.”

P. 188   From the book “First Break All the Rules”:  “Good behavior is the last refuge of mediocrity.”

P. 191  “Ask not ‘who’s to blame’.  Ask: ‘What’s to be learned here?’”

P. 194   “To avoid situations in which you might make mistakes may be the biggest mistake of all.”

P. 201  “Anger is a habit.  It is something we learned as a child.”

P. 207   “The only difference between ‘fear’ and ‘excitement’ is what we label it.”

P. 208/9   “Most of the time fear is a wonderful ally in our quest for growth, learning and expansion.”

P. 226   “I consider addiction one of the Master Teachers in disguise.”

P. 231  “Yes, disappointment is a Master Teacher.  Its message is, ‘get moving’.”

P. 245   “If we don’t consider death, we are not fully prepared to consider life.”

P. 252   Albert Ellis:  “When you’re dead, you’re friggin’ dead!”  (Don’t worry about it!)

P. 261   Malcolm Forbes (billionaire) tombstone:  “While alive, he lived”

Part IV:  Tools for Successful Doers

P. 267   “We can learn by doing – doing anything.”

P. 269   “A purpose is something you discover.  It is a simple, positive statement of why you are here.”

P. 281   “That simple but profound question:  What do you want? You can have anything you want, but you can’t have everything you want.”

P. 284   “He who begins too much accomplishes little.”

P. 292   “The reason most people never reach their goals is that they don’t define them, or ever seriously consider them.”

*P. 316   “The greatest aim of education is not knowledge but action.”

P. 335   “Those who enjoy being on the train, and those who do not enjoy being on the train, get to the same destination at the same time.”

P. 337   Henry Ford:  “If you think you can do a thing, or you think you can’t do a thing:  you are right.”

P. 353   “In the end, people either have excuses or experiences.”

P. 354   “Almost all excuses… are motivated by fear…fear that we might be uncomfortable.”

Part V:  To Have Joy and to Have It Abundantly

P. 400   B.F. Skinner:  “Education is what survives when what has been learned has been forgotten.”

P. 420   Mark Twain:  “Let us be thankful for the fools.  But for them, the rest of us would not succeed.”

P. 427   “Everything you do you do because you choose to do it.”

P. 428   “Learn the art of patience… impatience breeds anxiety.”

P. 439   “Learn to improve your self esteem… increasing your self esteem is easy.  You simply do good things, and remember that you did them.  And feel good about yourself.”

P. 460   “If you feel you have both feet planted firmly on level ground, then the university has failed you.”

By Dr. Sanjiv Chopra, Harvard Medical School

I thought Dr. Chopra provided some useful information in this book, hence this set of notes. I did not focus comprehensively on all subjects in the book, only those that were of interest to me. Chopra is a respected MD and medical academic. His goal is to be objective in his comments, based on medical science and current research data rather than succumbing to often misleading or inconclusive marketing hype generated by special interests and/or the media. Miscellaneous interesting facts: 1) In 2010 there were 750,000 doctors in the US and 5,000 hospitals. 2) Only 1 in 1000 potential drugs make it from the lab into clinical testing. Additionally, the book contains valuable insights on CBD anxiety relief. For those seeking effective support, the book also touches on the importance of finding reliable help for alcoholics. For further information on finding quality addiction treatment resources, check out this site at https://www.bestrehab.uk/. Furthermore, for individuals dealing with substance abuse issues, the book discusses how cannabis rehab can be an effective part of a comprehensive treatment plan. If you need to seek medical services, it would be recommended to find a healthcare facility that uses ABA Therapy Billing Services to make sure that your bills will be processed efficiently.

Drugs and Vitamins

1. Aspirin is truly a miracle drug. The value of aspirin in fighting heart disease has been
proven conclusively. Additional positive effects have not been proven, but are likely.
Everyone should carry aspirin at all times. It could save your life if taken when chest
pain occurs – chew two full-dose aspirins ASAP.

2. Statins have also been proven effective against heart disease and stroke. Unless you get
muscle cramping or have liver problems, Chopra would recommend them.

3. The only other vitamin Chopra recommends is D-3, 1000 unit dose (1 pill) per day. This
is an underrated nutrient. There is not conclusive evidence that any other vitamin or
supplement is worth taking. The FDA does not regulate the vitamin/supplement industry.
While some vitamins or supplements may be helpful to some people, there is not clinical
evidence to support their value and they are largely a big waste of money.

4. “In 1937 the federal government – against the testimony of the American Medical
Association – made the possession of marijuana a federal crime. This was done to
continue to provide jobs for federal employees after the repeal of Prohibition and not for
any sound medical reasons.” Assholes. (Note: personal opinion added.) Some people use CBD for anxiety.

5. Coffee is good for you. And more is better.

6. Black tea and green tea have different chemical properties. The value of drinking tea
has not been substantiated. Significant anecdotal evidence would indicate, however, that
green tea is probably better for you than bourbon.

7. Eating fish twice a week and small quantities of nuts (but not macadamia nuts or the
whole damn jar of any nuts) is healthy. “I always have a handful of almonds or walnuts
½ hour before lunch,” says Dr. Chopra.

8. Only 5% – 10% of people lose weight – and keep it off – as the result of a diet.

9. Yes, regular exercise will, in fact, keep you healthier and enable you to live longer.

10. To help prevent cancer: 1) stop smoking, 2) exercise regularly, 3) don’t be fat, 4) limit
red meat, 5) eat fruit and leafy vegetables and 6) take a baby aspirin (81 mg) each day.

11.Get a colonoscopy when you hit 50 or earlier if you have a family history of colon
cancer. Polyps in the colon, which can be cancerous, are highly treatable if caught early.
It’s worth having that long damn tube stuck up your ass.

12. There is no proven way to prevent a cold. You might as well buy beer with the money
you would have wasted on medicine to prevent a cold. If you already have a cold, drink
margaritas and quit bitching about it.

Alternative Medicine

There has been relatively little testing/research done in the entire field of alternative
medicine. “One of the most frequently debated topics in medicine is the importance of utilizing the powers of your mind to improve your health… There are centuries of anecdotal evidence that yoga is beneficial for the mind and spirit even if the actual medical benefits have not beenproven.”

13.Acupuncture: “It sounds like hocus-pocus – except for the fact that in some cases it
appears to be quite beneficial. My personal experience is that acupuncture can be very
helpful. But it is much more difficult to reach that same conclusion using the traditional
structure of clinical testing.”

14. Meditation:
a. “I meditate daily, 20-30 minutes in the morning, 15-20 minutes in the evening,
and it is my belief that it enables me to focus better, it makes me more creative
and it improves my relationships with those around me.”
b. “There is ample evidence that meditating does result in physiological changes.
There is something going on here, we just don’t know what it is. Yet.”

Other General Comments

15. “There appears to be a direct correlation between the reduction in salt and the lowering of blood pressure – and if everybody reduced their salt intake to 3 grams a day there would be a large decrease in heart attacks.”

16. Getting 6-8 hours of sleep a day is important for optimal functioning. Take a nap, if
necessary. Naps are even more valuable for your overall health than is generally known.
A less known consequence of too little sleep is weight gain. Fat people, pay attention.

17. “The final thing I try very hard to do on a daily basis is practice kindness. The Dalai Lama says, “Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.”

By Shakti Gawain

P. 2-3 “Creative visualization is the technique of using your imagination to create what you want in your life….you are already using it every day, every minute in fact.  It is your natural power of imagination…whether or not you are aware of it.”

“In creative visualization you use your imagination to create a clear image of something you wish to manifest.  Then you continue to focus on the idea or picture regularly, giving it positive energy until it becomes objective reality.”

P.4 “…you must be willing to entertain certain concepts as being possible….The only thing necessary is that you have the desire to enrich your knowledge and experience, and an open enough mind to try something new in a positive spirit.”

“It involves understanding and aligning yourself with the natural principles that govern the workings of our universe, and learning to use these principles in the most conscious and creative way…once you do so, it may seem that you are working miracles in your life…and you truly will be!”

P.5-7  Principles to Consider:

• The physical universe is energy
• Energy is magnetic:  Energy of a certain quality or vibration tends to attract energy of a similar quality and vibration
• Form follows idea: Thought is a mobile form of energy; it manifests instantaneously (we always create something first in thought form)
• The law of radiation and attraction
  • the principle that whatever you put out into the universe will be reflected back to you
  • from a practical standpoint, it means that we always attract into our lives whatever we think about the most, believe in most strongly, expect on the deepest levels, and/or imagine most vividly
  • …so, the more positive energy we put into imagining what we want, the more it begins to manifest in our lives

P.7 “Learning to use creative visualization can become a process of deep and meaningful growth.  In the process we often discover we have been holding ourselves back, blocking ourselves from achieving satisfaction and fulfillment in life through our fears and negative concepts. Once seen clearly, these limiting attitudes can be dissolved…”

P.10 “Always end your visualization with a firm statement to yourself

“This, or something better, now manifests for me in totally satisfying and harmonious ways, for the highest good of all concerned.”

“If doubts or contradictory thoughts arise, don’t resist them or try to prevent them.  This will tend to give them a power they don’t otherwise have.  Just let them flow through your consciousness and return to your positive statements and images.”

P.11 “IT IS IMPORTANT TO RELAX!!!”

P.13 “Don’t get stuck on the term ‘visualize’.  It is not at all necessary to mentally see an image.”

P.14 “There are actually two different modes involved in creative visualization.  One is the receptive, the other is active.”

• In receptive, we relax and allow images or impressions to come to us without choosing details of them; we take what comes.
• In active, we consciously choose and create what we wish to see or imagine.

“Occasionally a person has completely blocked his ability to visualize or imagine at will…usually arises from a fear and it can be worked through if the person desires to do so.”

P.15 “As a rule, creative visualization comes naturally, and the more you practice it, the easier it will become.

P.16-18  Four Basic Steps for Effective Creative Visualization

• Set your goal
• Create a clear idea or picture
• Focus on it often
• Give it positive energy

P. 21 “An affirmation is a strong, positive statement that something is already so.  It is a way of making firm that which you are imagining.”

P. 22  “The practice of doing affirmations allows us to begin replacing some of our stale, worn out, or negative mind chatter with more positive ideas and concepts….it can completely transform our attitudes and expectations about life, and thereby totally change what we create for ourselves.”

P.24-25 Important things to remember about affirmations:

• Always phrase in the present tense, not the future.  It is acknowledging that everything is created first on the mental plane, before it can manifest in objective reality.
• Always phrase affirmations in the most positive way that you can.  Affirm what you DO want, not what you don’t want.
• The shorter and simpler the affirmation the more effective.
• Always choose affirmations that feel totally right for you.
• Always remember when doing affirmations that you are creating something new and fresh.  You are NOT trying to redo or change what already exists.
• Affirmations are not meant to contradict or try to change your feelings or emotions.  It is important to accept and experience all your feelings, including the so-called negative ones without attempting to change them.
• When using affirmations, try as much as possible to create a feeling of belief, an experience that they can be true.  Temporarily suspend your doubts and hesitations, and put your full mental and emotional energy into them.

P.28 “This is the process known as enlightenment…it is an ongoing evolution for every individual, which cannot be complete until all our fellow beings are sharing in it. So we are all equally responsible for our own enlightenment and the enlightenment of all fellow beings on our planet.”

P.28-29 “…the first and foremost lesson to be learned is just to LET GO.  You must relax, stop struggling, stop trying so hard, stop manipulating things and people to try to get what you want and need, in fact just stop doing so much and have an experience of just being for awhile. 

When you do this, you suddenly discover that you’re really perfectly okay, in fact you feel quite wonderful, just letting yourself be, and letting the world be, without trying to change things.  This is the basic experience of being here now and it’s what the Buddhist philosophy means by “letting go of attachment”.

P.29 “Let us imagine that life is a river.  Most people are clinging to the bank, afraid to let go and risk being carried along by the current of the river.  At a certain point, each person must be willing to simply let go, and trust the river to carry him or her along safely.  At this point, he learns to ‘go with the flow’ and it feels wonderful.”

P.33 “Don’t feel discouraged if you don’t immediately feel totally successful with your creative visualization.  Remember that most of us have years of negative thought patterns to overcome.  It takes time to change some of these life-long habits.”

“Two things I have found most important in my growth process with creative visualization are:

• Regular reading of inspiring and uplifting books to help me keep in touch with my highest ideals and aspirations
• Having a friend or a community of friends who are also tuned into learning to live more consciously and who will support you and help you in your efforts.”

P.34 “If it feels like you are forcing, pushing, straining, don’t do it.  If it feels positive, releasing, opening, strengthening, inspiring, do it.”

P.36 “Often people attempt to live their lives backwards.  They try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want, so that they will be happier.  The way it actually works is the reverse.  You must first be who you really are, then do what you need to do, in order to have what you want.”

P.37: Three necessary elements:

• Desire
• Belief
• Acceptance

The sum of these is your intention.

P.42 “Going with the flow means holding onto your goals lightly (Even though they may seem important) and being willing to change them if something more appropriate and satisfying comes along.

P.45 “Prosperity programming means having the understanding of consciously taking the point of view, that the universe is totally abundant…”

P.47 “We have to understand in a deep way that having what we want in life contributes to the general state of human happiness and supports others in creating more happiness for themselves.”

P.49 “In order to use creative visualization to create what you want in life, you must be willing and able to accept the best that life has to offer you – your ‘good’.

P.53 “Once we begin to learn to accept the goodness of the universe, we naturally want to share it as well, realizing that as we give out of our energy, we make space for more to flow into us.”

P. 60 “Healing always comes from within.” 

P.98-99 “…the trickiest part of getting what you want in life is just figuring out what you really want!  And yet it is certainly the most important part of all.”

“Remember also that setting goals does not mean that you have to pursue them through effort, striving or struggling.  It does not mean that you have to become emotionally addicted to achieving them.  On the contrary, setting goals can help you flow through life more easily, effortlessly and pleasurably.”

P.102-103 Some general rules to setting goals:

• Be fairly simple and realistic (for short range goals)
• When you find that you have not accomplished some of your goals (which will inevitably happen) do not criticize yourself or assume that you have failed.  Simply acknowledge clearly to yourself that you have not accomplished that goal, and decide whether it is still a goal for you.
• When you find that you have accomplished a goal, even a small one, be sure to acknowledge yourself for that.
• Don’t take on too much at once.  Set goals that feel good to you.  If you feel overwhelmed, confused or discouraged…simplify.

“Your goals should make you feel good – uplifted, expanded, pleasured, challenged.  If not, find ones that do!”

P.121 “A basic need of all human beings is to make a positive contribution to the world and to our fellow beings, as well as to improve and enjoy our personal lives.  We all have a great deal to offer the world and to each other, each in our own special and unique way.”

Abby Scott

Reviewed 10/09

By Eckhart Tolle —

1. “This book’s main purpose is to bring about a shift in consciousness, to awaken… If the awakening process has begun in you, this book will accelerate and intensify it.”

2. “This book is about you.”

3. “There is a realization that the ‘normal’ state of mind of most human beings contains a strong element of what we might call dysfunction or even madness… This dysfunction is a form of collective mental madness; Hinduism calls it maya, the veil of delusion.”

4. “Buddhism sees suffering (dukkha) as a characteristic of the human condition.”

5. “Wars, motivated by fear, greed, and the desire for power, have been common occurrences throughout human history, as have slavery, torture, and widespread violence inflicted for religious and ideological reasons.”

6. “By the end of the 20th century, the number of people who died a violent death at the hand of their fellow humans would rise to more than one hundred million… And the madness has not abated… Driven by greed, ignorant of their connectedness to the whole, humans persist in behavior that, if continued unchecked, can only result in their own destruction.”

7. “Fear, greed, and the desire for power are the psychological motivating forces behind, and the cause of, incessant conflict in personal relationships.”

8. “The blueprint for dysfunction that every human being carries within is THE EGO.”

9. “Most ancient religions and spiritual traditions share the common insight – that our ‘normal’ state of mind is marred by a fundamental defect. However, out of this insight into the nature of the human condition arises a second insight: the possibility of a radical
transformation of human consciousness… This transformation is variously called enlightenment, the end of suffering, liberation, or awakening.”

10. “To recognize one’s own insanity is, of course, the arising of sanity, the beginning of healing and transcendence.”

11. “Throughout history religions, to a large extent, became divisive rather than unifying forces… they could make themselves ‘right’ and others ‘wrong’ – and the ‘nonbelievers’ they not infrequently saw as justified in killing.”

12. “The more you make your thoughts (beliefs) into your identity, the more cut off you are from the spiritual dimension within yourself.”

13. *”The new spirituality, the transformation of consciousness, is arising to a large extent outside of the structures of the existing institutionalized religions.”

14. “How ‘spiritual’ you are has nothing to do with what you believe but everything to do with your state of consciousness.”

15. “If the structures of the human mind remain unchanged, we will always end up recreating fundamentally the same world, the same evils, the same dysfunction.”

16. “Heaven is not a location but refers to the inner realm of consciousness… ‘A new heaven’ is the emergence of a transformed state of human consciousness, and ‘a new earth’ is its reflection in the physical realm.”

17. “All we can perceive, experience, think about, is the surface layer of reality, less than the tip of the iceberg… Everything is connected with everything else.”

18. “An illusory sense of identity – this is the ego… The good news is: If you can recognize illusion as illusion, it dissolves. The recognition of illusion is also its ending.”

19. “… thinking without awareness is the main dilemma of human existence.”

20. “Ego-identification with things creates attachment to things, obsession with things, which in turn creates our consumer society and economic structures where the only measure of progress is always more. The unchecked striving for more is a dysfunction
and a disease.”

21. “A large part of many people’s lives is consumed by an obsession with things… As a spiritual practice, I suggest that you investigate your relationship with the world of things through self-observation.

22. “Sometimes letting things go is an act of far greater power than defending or hanging on… The decision to make the present moment into your friend is the end of the ego.”

23. “… with each thing she gave away, her joy deepened.” “Renouncing all possessions has been an ancient spiritual practice in both East and West.”

24. “The ego tends to equate having with Being… the more I have, the more I am. The ego lives through comparison. How you are seen by others turns into how you see yourself…The ego’s sense of self-worth is in most cases bound up with the worth you have in the eyes of others. You need others to give you a sense of self.”

25. “The need for more – wanting – keeps the ego alive much more than having.”

26. “Basic comforts could be easily met for all humans on the planet, were it not for the imbalance of resources created by the insane ‘need’ for more, the greed of the ego.”

27. “Whenever tragic loss occurs, you either resist or you yield. Some people become bitter or deeply resentful, others become compassionate, wise and loving. Yielding means inner acceptance of what is. You are open to life.”

28. *”Complaining is one of the ego’s favorite strategies for strengthening itself… Some egos that perhaps don’t have much else to identify with easily survive on complaining alone.” “Resentment is often the emotion that goes with complaining.”

29. “Resentment adds even more energy to the ego.” “By not reacting to the ego, you will often be able to bring out the sanity in others.”

30. “The ego loves to complain and feel resentful not only about other people but also about situations.”

31. “The facts are always neutral” – what’s important is our reaction to the facts; and this is totally within our ability to do in a positive (or less negative) way.

32. “Sometimes it becomes obvious that the ego doesn’t really want change so it can go on complaining.”

33. “Ego implies unawareness.” “Ego takes everything personally… Ego confuses opinions and viewpoints with facts. Every ego is a master of selective perception and distorted interpretation.”

34. “Complaining as well as faultfinding and reactivity strengthen the ego.” “When you complain, by implication you are right and the person or situation you complain about or react against is wrong… You need to make others wrong in order to get a stronger sense of who you are.”

35. “A long-standing resentment is called a grievance. One strong grievance is enough to contaminate large areas of your life and keep you in the grip of ego.”

36. “Trying to let go, to forgive, does not work. Forgiveness happens naturally when you see that it has no purpose other than to strengthen a false sense of self.”

37. “The certainty that ‘I am right and you are wrong’ is a dangerous thing in personal relationships as well as in interactions between nations, tribes and religions.”

38. “If you believe only your religion is the Truth, you are using it in the service of ego.”

39. “The human ego in its collective aspect as ‘us’ against ‘them’ is even more insane than the ‘me’, the individual ego, although the mechanism is the same. By far the greater part of violence that humans have inflicted on each other is not the work of criminals or the
mentally deranged, but of normal, respectable citizens in the service of the collective ego.”

40. “Greed, selfishness, exploitation, cruelty and violence are still all-pervasive on this planet.”

41. “Anything that you resent and strongly react to in another is also in you.”

42. “War is a mind-set. When you are in the grip of a mind-set such as war, you will see only what you want to see and then misinterpret it.”

43. *”All that is required to become free of the ego is to be aware of it, since awareness and ego are incompatible. Awareness is the power.”

44. “The unconscious drive behind ego is to strengthen the image of who I think I am… The hidden motivating force is always the same; the need to stand out, be special, be in control; the need for power, for attention… for opposition, enemies.”

45. “The underlying emotion that governs all the activity of the ego is fear. The fear of being nobody the fear of nonexistence, the fear of death.”

46. “A genuine relationship is one that is not dominated by the ego.”

47. “The source of all energy is within you.”

48. “The ego does not want an end to its ‘problems’ because they are part of its identity…Feeling sorry for yourself, you have an identity as someone who is being treated unfairly by life or other people, fate or God.”

49. “In many cases, happiness is a role people play, and behind the smiling façade, there is a great deal of pain.” “The primary cause of unhappiness is never the situation but your thoughts about it.”

50. “Be aware that what you think, to a large extent, creates the emotions that you feel.”

51. *”Don’t seek happiness. If you seek it, you won’t find it.” It is an outcome, not an objective.

52. “Awareness is the greatest agent of change.”

53. “You are neither inferior nor superior to anyone. True self-esteem and true humility arise out of that realization.”

54. “The extent of the ego’s inability to recognize itself and see what it is doing is staggering and unbelievable.”

55. “To become free of the ego is not really a big job. All you need to do is be aware of your thoughts and emotions – as they happen.”

56. “The stronger the ego in you, the more likely it is that in your perception other people are the main source of problems in your life.”

57. Those people who work without ego are extraordinarily successful in what they do. Anybody who is one with what he or she does is building the new earth.”

58. “A collective ego manifests the same characteristics as the personal ego, such as the need for conflict and enemies, the need for more, the need to be right against others who are wrong.”

59. “Kafka, Camus, TS Eliot, James Joyce: they recognize alienation as the universal dilemma of human existence.”

60. “We are a species that has lost its way.”

61. “The only place of power: the present moment.” (Very Buddhist) “The majority of people on our planet: what a heavy burden of past they carry around with them in their minds.”

62. “Any negative emotion that is not fully faced and seen for what it is in the moment it arises does not completely dissolve. It leaves behind a remnant of pain… Children in particular find strong negative emotions too overwhelming to cope with and tend to try
not to feel them.”

63. “It’s not so much that you cannot stop your train of negative thoughts, but that you don’t want to.”

64. “What you do to others, you do to yourself.”

65. “Know Thyself. These words ere inscribed above the entrance to the temple of Apollo at Delphi, site of the sacred Oracle… Before you ask any other question, first ask the most fundamental question of your life: Who am I?”

66. “Knowing yourself goes far deeper than the adoption of a set of ideas and beliefs… it has nothing to do with whatever ideas are floating around in your mind. Knowing yourself is to be rooted in Being, instead of lost in your mind… Your sense of who you are determines what you perceive as your needs and what matters to you… What matters to you is not necessarily what you say or believe, but what your actions and reactions
reveal as important and serious to you.”

67. “If peace is really what you want, then you will choose peace.”

68. “How you react to people and situations, especially when challenges arise, is the best indicator of how deeply you know yourself… Nobody can tell you who you are.”

69. “You cannot receive what you do not give… Ask yourself often: ‘What can I give here; how can I be of service to this person, this situation?”

70. “Both abundance and scarcity are inner states.”

71. “Don’t confuse knowing about yourself with knowing yourself.”

72. “Nature can help you become realigned with the wholeness of life.”

73. “Only if you resist what happens are you at the mercy of what happens, and the world will determine your happiness and unhappiness.”

74. “There are two ways of being (making yourself) unhappy. Not getting what you want is one. Getting what you want is the other.”

75. “Unhappiness or negativity is a disease on our planet. What pollution is on the outer lever is negativity on the inner.”

76. “The affluent world is trapped in ego.”

77. “People believe themselves to be dependent on what happens for their happiness.” (As opposed to creating their own happiness.)

78. “One of the most common ego-repair mechanisms is anger, which causes a temporary but huge ego inflation.”

79. “If you don’t become speechless when looking out into space on a clear night, you are not really looking, not aware of the totality of what is there.”

80. “’This, too, will pass.’ Simple words; so powerful… Be at one with what happens; there is a wisdom in non-judgment.”

81. “Winston Churchill defined the history of humanity as ‘one damn thing after another.’”

82. “Laughter is extraordinarily liberating as well as healing.”

83. What the ancient sages of India called ananda is the bliss of Being: the ability to see beauty; to appreciate simple things, to enjoy your own company, or to relate to other people with loving kindness.”

84. “If you take credit for what you have accomplished, the ego has returned.”

85. “Some people feel more alive when they travel… They become more present.”

86. “As soon as you rise above mere survival, the question of meaning and purpose becomes of paramount importance in your life… There is no substitute for finding true purpose.”

87. “Outer purpose alone is always relative, unstable, impermanent… You should connect your outer focus to your inner, primary purpose, so that a deeper meaning flows into what you do… Fulfilling your primary purpose is laying the foundation for a new collective
reality, a new earth.”

88. “The mind has a deep-seated habit of seeking the fullness of life in the future where it cannot be found; the only point of access to it is the present moment.”

89. “Be true to life by being true to your inner purpose.”

90. “Personal tragedy carries great potential for spiritual awakening… Nothing happens that is not part of the greater whole and its purpose.”

91. “Not what you do, but how you do what you do determines whether you are fulfilling your destiny.”

92. “If you are not in the state of either acceptance, enjoyment, or enthusiasm, look closely and you will find that you are creating suffering for yourself and others… If you can neither enjoy or bring acceptance to what you do – stop.”

93. “Joy does not come from what you do, it flows into what you do and thus into this world from deep within you.”

94. “Enthusiasm means there is deep enjoyment in what you do plus the added element of a goal or a vision that you work towards… Enjoy the journey.” “Emerson: ‘Nothing great has ever been achieved without enthusiasm’… Enthusiasm brings an enormous empowerment into what you do.”

95. “To sum up: Enjoyment of what you are doing, combined with a goal or vision that you work toward, becomes enthusiasm.”

Glenn Detrick
11/08

By Steven Covey —

The Seven Habits represent a holistic, integrated approach to personal and interpersonal effectiveness.

1. P.18 If we want to change the situation, we must first change ourselves. And to first change ourselves, we must first change our perceptions.

2. P.27 Two people can see the same thing, disagree, and yet both be right.

3. P.37 To relate effectively…we must learn to listen. And this requires emotional strength.

4. P.43 Be the kind of person who generates positive energy and sidesteps negative energy rather than empowering it.”

5. P.44 TS Eliot: “We must not cease from exploration and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we began and to know the place for the first time.”

6. Habit: the intersection of knowledge (what to do and why), skill (how) and desire (want/motivation).

7. P.51 If I am intellectually interdependent, I realize that I need the best thinking of other people to join with my own… Interdependence is a choice only independent people can make.

8. P.60 No one can persuade another to change…

9. P.61 Be patient with yourself. You can replace old patterns with new – if you really want to. The 7

Habits:
A. Be proactive
B. Begin with the end in mind
C. Put first things first
D. Think win/win
E. Seek first to understand, then to be understood
F. Synergize
G. Sharpen the saw — renewal

10. P.70/1 Between stimulus and response, man has the freedom to choose. Our behavior is a function of our decisions, not our conditions. Victor Frankl: Freedom to choose. We all have response ability, the ability to respond.

11. P.72 Eleanor Roosevelt: “No one can hurt you without your consent.”

12. P.75 What matters most is how we respond to what we experience in life.

13. P.76 The difference between people who exercise initiative and those who don’t is literally the difference between night and day.

14. P.83 Proactive people focus…on the things they can do something about.

15. P.88 Proactive people aren’t pushy. They’re smart, they’re value driven, they read reality, and they know what’s needed.

16. P.89 Any time we think the problem is “out there”, that thought is the problem.

17. P.90 If I really want to improve my situation, I can work on the one thing over which I have control – myself.

18. P.92 The power to make and keep commitments to ourselves is the essence of developing the basic habits of effectiveness.

19. P.93 Knowing that we are responsible – response able – is fundamental to effectiveness and to every other habit of effectiveness.

20. P.96 “What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared with what lies within us.” Oliver Wendell Holmes

21. P.101 Peter Drucker and Warrne Bennis: “Management is doing things right/well. Leadership is doing the right things.”

22. P.106 The most effective way I know to begin with the end in mind is to develop a personal mission statement or philosophy or creed. Visualize the goal, the end.

23. P.137 An effective goal focuses primarily on results rather than activity.

24. P.143 Without involvement there is no commitment.

25. P.149 Organize and execute around priorities. Prioritize!!

26. P.154 Peter Drucker: “Effective people are not problem-minded. They are opportunity-minded.”

27. P.194 The cause of almost all relationship difficulties is rooted in conflicting or ambiguous expectations around roles and goals.

28. P.239 We typically seek first to be understood. Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.

29. P.244 The amateur salesman sells products; the professional sells solutions to needs and problems.

30. P.245 Constant probing is one of the main reasons parents do not get close to their children.

31. P.265 As a teacher, I have come to believe that many truly great classes teeter on the very edge of chaos.

32. P.270 An effective attitude is: “If a person of your intelligence and competence and commitment disagrees with me, then there must be something to your disagreement that I don’t understand, and I need to understand it.”

33. P.277 The key to valuing differences is to realize that all people see the world, not as it is, but as they are”… “The person who is truly effective has the humility to recognize his own perceptual limitations.

34. p.301 Goethe taught: “Treat a man as he is and he will remain as he is. Treat a man as he can and should be and he will become as he can and should be.”

35. There is good news and there is bad news. The good news is, you are in charge and control of yourself. The bad news is, you are in charge and control of yourself; there are no excuses.