Self Improvement Information

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Who we are is formed by the beliefs that we have chosen to embrace, either consciously or unconsciously.  Would you say that is a fair statement?  Beliefs come from all directions as we are growing up.  We get some of them from our parents, our peers, the media, and many other places.  Some of what we choose to believe comes to us with very few filters.  Many cultural and religious beliefs are passed down from generation to generation.

Some people are more skeptical than others.  Skepticism is good.  For instance, we shouldn’t believe everything the media puts out, or everything we were taught in childhood.  A certain amount of skepticism is healthy.  It keeps us growing and learning.  Science was born from not excepting the norm, or what some would call  skepticism.

Does skepticism ever become too much?  Does the fervor for skepticism ever become similar to a religion? These are questions only you can answer for you.

I have a 13 minute thought provoking video from TED Talks from Michael Shermer who is the founder of Skeptic Magazine.  He has made skepticism his life work.  Your beliefs system will determine how much of this video you accept.  It might ruffle a few feathers, but, I promise you it will be thought provoking.  Feel free to pass it on!

Lately, I have been pondering this thought, why do some people live productive lives well into their senior years and some people just grow old watching the clock tick by?  What are the life lessons the more active seniors have learned that keep their minds focused on being productive individuals?  I am sure, these are the thoughts of someone who is marching closer to that age.  But, aren’t we all?

When I was younger, I unconsciously believed in some way I was immortal.  Old age and death are for other people, not me.  When I was in my 20s and 30s, I used to look at my parents and people of that generation as being so old!  Now, I have children who are that age, are they looking at me in that same way?

What keeps the young minded senior citizens productive well into their 80s and 90s?  Is it their ability to keep passion in their lives?  I do know that if we feel good at that age, we will be able to be more productive.  But, is that a chicken and the egg theory?  Are people in better health because of the way they think, or do they think better because they are in better health?

Two days ago, I was involved with a Christmas Candy Making Party.  We were a group of friends of all ages, (ages 3 through 80), men and women, who enjoy getting together, having some holiday fun and making Christmas goodies.  While we were making merry, a true legend was finding his way to his next adventure.  Jim Rohn passed way on December 5th.  He was 79 years old. For those of you that don’t know his work, you can click this link and read more about him.  I would like to take this moment to thank him for the legacy he has left for all of us.  I bid him a fond farewell and wish him well on the next leg of his journey.

As I was wool gathering about this subject, I stumbled upon a Zig Ziglar video called “Life Lessons”.  At the time this video was made, one year ago, Mr. Ziglar was 80 years old.  The young couple that were doing the interviewing asked him some very pointed questions about his long life.  He had some responses that we expect to hear from someone who has been blessed with longituity; exercise, sensible eating and no worrying.  But, what I found interesting was his feelings on what he expects for the remainder of his life.  He states, “The best years of my career are still ahead of me.” He talks about what still jazzes him up and gives him joy.

I’m not going to go into it any further than that.  This video is only 7 minutes long and has so many good things to say that I, personally, listened to it several times.  My question to you is, do you know what you are passionate about that keeps you excited about tomorrow?  If you don’t, shouldn’t you find out?

Feel free to pass his wisdom on to others.

There is a deep unrest in our world.  I am sure it has always been a part of our lives, but with 24 hour news coverage, we are subjected to non stop opinions disguised as news.  It is in our faces 24/7/365.  It seems that everyone has an opinion.  Many opinions are not accurate.  They are formed from, what Napoleon Hill calls, inductive reasoning.  In Napoleon Hill’s Success Principals #12, he talks with us about the importance of using accurate thinking on our road to our major purpose in life.

I have listened to many talks from Bob Proctor.  In one, he was talking about how his wife and he are from different areas of North America.  He is from Canada and she is from the southern part of the U.S.A.  He expressed to her, one day, that he would like to get a turnip to eat.  She was amazed by that.  In her part of the country, you don’t eat the turnip root.  That is throw away.  The only edible part of the turnip, in her regionally based viewpoint (opinion), was the green part.  That particular analogy really pointed out to me that we are a product of our upbringing and our culture.  When I contemplated that story, it became easy to see why there is so much unrest in our world.  If we vehemently and emotionally cling to our opinions as facts, anyone else’s opposing opinions can only be rejected.  The more emotionally attached we get to our opinion the harder it is to see  other points of view.  I can understand how someone would be willing to strap bombs to their chest and blow up innocent men, women and children.  Because others don’t embrace their view point, and in their eyes it is the only viewpoint of worth, they are willing to die to punish those that don’t agree.

How can we, as a species, overcome this kind of thinking and get along?  I believe the answer lies in this 9 minute video.  If we could practice the 7 steps in this video there would be more rational thinking.  For many, this would be a complete change in thought processes.  It is easy to form an opinion, using inductive reasoning, and then hold on to it because it is familiar.  If we do that, we don’t have to question that particular opinion again.  We, also, accept so many opinions, almost by osmosis, that are dictated to us by family, cultural, or religion.  No questions asked.

It like the well used story of the little girl who wanted to find out why her Momma cut the ends off of the Christmas ham.  Her mother didn’t know why.  She did it because her mother always did.  The little girl asked her grandmother and she didn’t know why.  She did it because her mother had always done it that way.  Finally, when she asked her great grandmother, her great grandmother said, “I did it because my pan was too short for the ham to fit.  I don’t know why your mother and grandmother still do it.”

As you listen to Napoleon Hill’s video, think of how your life might be different if you practiced what he said?  How would it change the world if we all used more deductive reasoning?  Let’s all set ourselves a goal to ask, more often, that powerful question, “how do you know?”  We could picture Joe Friday from Dragnet in our heads reminding us, “Just the facts, miss/sir, just the facts”.

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