Showing posts with label Courage. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Courage. Show all posts

Tuesday, 9 December 2014

Simplify to Succeed


To Succeed – Simplify



by: Scott F Paradis




Remember back to high school algebra, how we wondered what use the formulas and all that work would be in real life. Those quadratic equations were, in a word, intimidating. We challenged ourselves, maneuvered and manipulated, stewed and considered, reduced and pureed, until finally we could determine “x” or at least leave the equation of unknown variables in its simplest form. Have you used the equations much since then?




Well, the incite, the answer, the solution to all that time and struggle is not found in coefficients or factors. The life lesson of advanced math is in a concept – simplify. Math is a means for reducing complexity, in abstracts as in life. We succeed when we deal with life in manageable chunks and reduce multifaceted circumstances to their easiest form. To succeed – simplify.




Look at what is happening around us: the political turmoil, the financial madness, the burgeoning technology, the quiet and not so quiet pleas of desperation. Life seems to be accelerating, sweeping more and more people into its tumult. The population is growing rapidly. We are polluting the environment at an unprecedented pace. The people controlling the resources are fighting handily to ensure the apple cart is not upset and they seize ever more of the pie. We continue to shuffle the deck chairs as the ship sinks or strum the fiddle as the great city burns. While the financial titans, captains of industry and the pawns they control continue to belch out the smoke and readjust the mirrors the masses are left wondering: Who do we believe? Which way do we go?




The question has been asked, “Where have all the leaders gone?” To secure their fortunes and ensure their legacies, of course. This daunting task is not for “them”. The task before us is ours to address – ours to solve. We are wasting our time, energy, talent, and ultimately our lives, fighting over the spilled milk when we must devote our assets: intellectual, financial and physical; to the substantial challenges that confront us. The issues, on scale, are all complex. Like quadratic equations they appear intimidating. However, we all lose when we allow complexity to overwhelm us. To succeed, we must simplify. And the simple answer, in the final analysis, comes down to relationship.




The biggest challenge of an individual life, reflected in the health of society at large, is to connect with other journeying souls. Unfortunately, for all the technology of modern life, from high definition television, to high tech automobiles and other forms of advanced transportation, to smart phones, and sophisticated computers, we keep making life more complex. Technology is being employed not as a means to a better life, but as a distraction – to entertain and manipulate. Even the young, who seem to be masters of the technology, are voting with their lives. Suicide is on the rise in the developed world. Complexity is quite literally killing us.




We are lost in the complexity of daily living when the task is simple – connect with other human beings. This connection is not a means to an end. The connection is an end in itself. Forget about the medium, forget about the media – simplify life – simplify your life. Connect with another human being – directly – in a place, in a moment. Your life will instantly become more balanced, more full and more fulfilling.




Don’t allow the barrage of consumer messages, the pan handlers of material prosperity, to divert you from your course. You need this, society needs this, the world needs this. Simplify your life – spend quality time connecting with other people. Through your connections, through the bridges you build and the understanding you foster, you will change the world. And all of us, and the world, will be better for it. To succeed – simplify.




Copyright (c) 2010 Scott F Paradis




About The Author




Scott F. Paradis, author of “Promise and Potential: A Life of Wisdom, Courage, Strength and Will” http://ift.tt/OcASVo publishes “Insights” and a free weekly ezine, “Money , Power and the True Path to Prosperity”. Subscribe now at http://ift.tt/OcASVr
















Sunday, 7 December 2014

Simplify to Succeed

To Succeed – Simplify

by: Scott F Paradis


Remember back to high school algebra, how we wondered what use the formulas and all that work would be in real life. Those quadratic equations were, in a word, intimidating. We challenged ourselves, maneuvered and manipulated, stewed and considered, reduced and pureed, until finally we could determine “x” or at least leave the equation of unknown variables in its simplest form. Have you used the equations much since then?


Well, the incite, the answer, the solution to all that time and struggle is not found in coefficients or factors. The life lesson of advanced math is in a concept – simplify. Math is a means for reducing complexity, in abstracts as in life. We succeed when we deal with life in manageable chunks and reduce multifaceted circumstances to their easiest form. To succeed – simplify.


Look at what is happening around us: the political turmoil, the financial madness, the burgeoning technology, the quiet and not so quiet pleas of desperation. Life seems to be accelerating, sweeping more and more people into its tumult. The population is growing rapidly. We are polluting the environment at an unprecedented pace. The people controlling the resources are fighting handily to ensure the apple cart is not upset and they seize ever more of the pie. We continue to shuffle the deck chairs as the ship sinks or strum the fiddle as the great city burns. While the financial titans, captains of industry and the pawns they control continue to belch out the smoke and readjust the mirrors the masses are left wondering: Who do we believe? Which way do we go?


The question has been asked, “Where have all the leaders gone?” To secure their fortunes and ensure their legacies, of course. This daunting task is not for “them”. The task before us is ours to address – ours to solve. We are wasting our time, energy, talent, and ultimately our lives, fighting over the spilled milk when we must devote our assets: intellectual, financial and physical; to the substantial challenges that confront us. The issues, on scale, are all complex. Like quadratic equations they appear intimidating. However, we all lose when we allow complexity to overwhelm us. To succeed, we must simplify. And the simple answer, in the final analysis, comes down to relationship.


The biggest challenge of an individual life, reflected in the health of society at large, is to connect with other journeying souls. Unfortunately, for all the technology of modern life, from high definition television, to high tech automobiles and other forms of advanced transportation, to smart phones, and sophisticated computers, we keep making life more complex. Technology is being employed not as a means to a better life, but as a distraction – to entertain and manipulate. Even the young, who seem to be masters of the technology, are voting with their lives. Suicide is on the rise in the developed world. Complexity is quite literally killing us.


We are lost in the complexity of daily living when the task is simple – connect with other human beings. This connection is not a means to an end. The connection is an end in itself. Forget about the medium, forget about the media – simplify life – simplify your life. Connect with another human being – directly – in a place, in a moment. Your life will instantly become more balanced, more full and more fulfilling.


Don’t allow the barrage of consumer messages, the pan handlers of material prosperity, to divert you from your course. You need this, society needs this, the world needs this. Simplify your life – spend quality time connecting with other people. Through your connections, through the bridges you build and the understanding you foster, you will change the world. And all of us, and the world, will be better for it. To succeed – simplify.


Copyright (c) 2010 Scott F Paradis


About The Author


Scott F. Paradis, author of “Promise and Potential: A Life of Wisdom, Courage, Strength and Will” http://ift.tt/OcASVo publishes “Insights” and a free weekly ezine, “Money , Power and the True Path to Prosperity”. Subscribe now at http://ift.tt/OcASVr






Wednesday, 17 September 2014

To Forgive

by: Scott F Paradis


Are you troubled and weary? Is something you are clinging to bringing you pain? Don’t succumb to the temptation to place blame. For the pain you feel is not from out there. The pain you feel inside, deep within your being – a sense of betrayal, loss, or bitter despair – is a feeling you manufacture, you nurture, you hold onto. This is not to say the circumstances you have endured are not deserving of an emotional release – just don’t allow that experience more than it is due. The tighter you cling to the pain (and the circumstances that triggered those feelings) the more power you give away. To be free to grow, to live and to love – you must move on, you must forgive.


Wherever ego looks, it sees conflict and division, pain and oppression. Ego’s tools are blame and fear. To move from the tempest to the calm, from trial to peace, from guilt to innocence, invest the talent and energy at your disposal to recognize the world for what it is — illusion. To embrace the true, enduring reality forgive those you perceive as trespassing against you and forgive the circumstances, the events, and the people you believe have conspired against you. By letting go of conflict you ultimately forgive yourself.


Remember these words: “I am responsible.” And “Forgiveness comes from forgiving.”


Life is to be lived. Whether you tend to believe you are journeying through the valley of death, or you are on a voyage of discovery, the truth is your final destination is the safety of a warm embrace and a loving home. To get to that destination do not squander your life, nor spend it frivolously wallowing in pain or self pity. Invest your treasure, your life and your love, freely in the lives of others. To do this you must be unencumbered by guilt and for peace to reign, you must forgive — all and always.


Today is not life in the fast lane; it is life in the oncoming lane. Ego puts you in the oncoming lane and accelerates life so that you find it difficult to hear the still small voice calling out to guide the way, the voice calling you home. Undo ego‘s obstacles to recognize the truth. The biggest obstacles to truth are the perceptions in your mind you have been wronged or you are unworthy of going home. Both these misperceptions (blame and fear) require true forgiveness.


Your ultimate task in life is to unleash yourself from the bondage of this world. The journey from sleep to wakefulness is made in small steps. You forgive by not judging, by accepting responsibility for all you experience, and by letting go of perceived hurts and injustices. You see, if this life is an illusion, then so are your perceptions of injustice. There is no one to blame and nothing to fear.


Forgiving is giving peace, allowing a smile, inviting laughter despite the circumstances. You are not separate from your creator. You are not alone. You are one — whole, complete, powerful, and loving. You are forgiven in the same measure as you forgive others. See your face in the face of your brother and your sister and know that you are one. This is your life – take responsibility for it and forgive all else.


Copyright (c) 2011 Scott F Paradis


About The Author


Scott F. Paradis, author of “Promise and Potential: A Life of Wisdom, Courage, Strength and Will” http://ift.tt/OcASVo






The post To Forgive appeared first on Robert JR Graham.