Proud to be a "Crazy One"

I never knew Steve Jobs and the company at Apple were so poetic.  Maybe I never paid much attention since I don't have a Mac.

Regardless, I absolutely love this!  The video is slightly different from the saying below it.  I think the word version was able to be a bit longer.

Either way, I absolutely LOVE both!

Here’s to the crazy ones.
 
The misfits. 
The rebels. 
The troublemakers. 
The round pegs in the square holes. 
The ones who see things differently.
 
They’re not fond of rules. And they have no respect for the status quo.

You can praise them, disagree with them, quote them, disbelieve them, glorify or vilify them. 

About the only thing you can’t do is ignore them. Because they change things.
 
They invent. 
They imagine. 
They heal. 
They explore.
They create. 
They inspire. 
They push the human race forward.

Maybe they have to be crazy.

How else can you stare at an empty canvas and see a work of art? Or sit in silence and hear a song that’s never been written? Or gaze at a red planet and see a laboratory on wheels?

While some see them as the crazy ones, we see genius. 

Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world, are the ones who do.

Truly Yours,
Apple

Farewell Steve Jobs

This is an absolutely beautiful and inspiring speech from Stanford University's 2005 Commencement by Steve Jobs.

 It speaks to me so loudly and truthfully.  I agree so whole heartedly with his message:

 

‎"Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure – these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.". - Steve Jobs

Beautiful.  Thank you Steve.  And Rest In Peace.  

Blind Inspiration

I saw a blind man walking down the street today. He was crossing a busy intersection with a walking stick and went into a gas station.

No dog. No friend to help "guide" him. Nope, he was all by himself.

I just watched, mesmerized! And humbled.

I've always feared becoming blind. It seems like one of the scariest things that could possibly ever happen to someone. I would be terrified if I couldn't "see" everything around me.

But this man was fearless.

He walked into the large intersection, unable to see ahead of him, using all of his other senses, and trusting himself to cross the street.

And you know what?

He made it to the other side of the street safely! And the only person that was shocked was me. He was totally sure of himself!

I think we can all learn something from this man.

In life, we are often headed in an unknown direction. We can't always "see" the outcome or what lays ahead. But if we believe in our own abilities, we may just surprise ourselves!

You may not always be able to see the path ahead of you, but trust in yourself will help you arrive at your destination safely!

So go ahead... start that business, go back to school, take that promotion, stand up to that person... do it with grace and belief in yourself, and it'll turn out just fine! Just trust yourself and what your "gut" is telling you.

My gut hasn't failed me yet! :)

Don't Stop, Don't Give Up!

Children are so much smarter than we give them credit for!

This is my new jam!

I Will Be

This is one of my favorite songs about making it thru the trials of life and following your dreams. It's not one of Christina's well known songs, but it is absolutely beautiful! This song makes me feel an even stronger will to push ahead and make my dreams happen no matter what some people may say! Thank you for the strength Christina! Hope you enjoy!

"I Will Be"
Sung by: Christina Aguilera

Mmm...

The world seems so cold
When I face so much all alone
A little scared to move on
And knowing how fast I have grown

And I wonder just where I fit in
Oh the vision of life in my head
Oh yes

I will be
Strong on my own
I will see through the rain
I will find my way
I will keep on
Traveling this road
Till I finally reach my dream
Till I'm living, and I'm breathing
My destiny, yeah yeah

I can't let go now
Even when darkness surrounds
But if I hold on, yeah
I will show the world
All the things that you never expected to see
From little old me, this Pittsburgh girl

And I wonder just where my place is
Close my eyes and I remind myself this
Oh yeah yeah

I will be
Strong on my own
I will see through the rain
I will find my way
I will keep on
Traveling this road
Till I finally reach my dream
Till I'm living, and I'm breathing
My destiny, ohh

It comforts me
Ooh it keeps me
Alive each day of my life
Always guiding me
Providing me
With the hope I desperately need

Well I gotta believe
There's something out there meant for me
Oh I get on my knees
Praying I will receive
The courage to grow and the faith to know

That I will be
Strong on my own
I will see through the rain
I will find my way
I will keep on
Traveling this road
Till I finally reach my dream
Till I'm living, and I'm breathing
My destiny

Back to School Time

This is a wonderful video a teacher friend of mine posted today for those of us going back to school this year!

For All The Teachers Out There - You are amazing and wonderful! Remember this when you start to get worn down this school year! Good luck to you all and keep up the good work! You have the power to change a child's world for the better, and that is worth everything! :)

WHAT TEACHER'S MAKE:

This is YOUR Life!

I ♥ this and had to share!

What Does Success Mean to YOU?

I think a lot when I drive... I mean A LOT!

It doesn't matter how short of a drive I have, for instance, this whole idea of "success" popped into my head while on a 7 minute drive to Walmart (of all places)!

(Maybe that's actually saying something!)

I don't know where it came from, or why... but all of a sudden I was contemplating MY idea of success.

What does success mean to me?

NOT what does it mean to my parents, or my friends, or society ('Cause I definitely know my idea of success is vastly different from society's)... but what does it really mean to me!?

All of a sudden, it came to me. I quickly found a scrap piece of paper and pen to write down my new found idea, as I struggled to continue driving at a normal pace.

My scribbles revieled:

"Success is: Being at peace with myself enough to truly follow my heart and be fully accepting of others."

And now I ask YOU:

What does success mean to you!?

Please send me your ideas of success! What is your definition of success? Let the world know how you define success!

Just How Special Are You?

My sister posted this really inspiring article on Facebook today, and I just had to share.

It's not often that we sit down and truly think about how special we are, or how amazing it is that we are even here to begin with! So many things had to happen, and stars to align in the history of this world for YOU to be born!

Want proof? Read the article...

Pretty amazing!

What are the odds of being born? - A Motivational Article for you to do something

By JustinGuzman

You are indeed special.

I had an interesting thought the other day. Of all the options for mates and all the tragic events that were avoided in order for your parents to meet and give birth to you.

What can the odds be that you are standing here today?

Consider even further back, both your mother and father's parents had to meet somehow and birth them at a specific time. Your Grandmothers and Grandfathers parents had to also be born specifically so they could meet and start their posterity.

In fact it took two people to meet and have you. Four people to meet to have them, then 8 then 16 then 32 then 64, you get the idea. For me 7 generations ago would put my ancestors living around 1700 to 1800 A.D. 128 people in the seven generations past had to meet and give birth to my ancestors in a world of billions for me to be writing this today. What about the year 1400 A.D. or even B.C. It is really incredible to think that we are here breathing air.

So if the odds of being born are so incredibly large it is safe to say that you are a really special human being. You are truly a miracle born of this earth. What does that mean?

I believe you were born in this time against very unlikely odds to be able to do fantastic things.

Be creative with your life and your work.

Squeeze every ounce of joy you can out of every day.

Help another person with their struggles without worry of reciprocity.

Start viewing your life as it is, a miracle, and start to do work that matters. Don't spend your days wasting away completing the daily grinds or you evenings watching T.V. waiting for bedtime. Cut out all the non-essential items.

You have more important things to do.

Find out what they are

Find your specific talents and magnify them.

I wanted to write a short article encouraging people to break out of any "funk" that they may be in and start making something of their lives.

I see so many people wasting away always playing the victim role. It is time to regain control of your life and realize just how special you are.

So what are the odds of being born? for the sake of making sure the number crunchers out there are satisfied a quick search on google reveals that If you go back 10 generations (250 years) the chance of you being born at all is at most 1 divided by 6 x 10100 or

1 in 60000000000000000000000000000000000 00000000000000000000000000 000000000000000000000000000000000000.

In gambling, even a chance of 1 to 100 is not worth a gamble.

Are you ever lucky to be alive

CLICK HERE to view the article.

Take the Stairs!

My cousin Samantha posted this on my Facebook page and told me "This immediately made me think of you!"

And when I watched it, I absolutely knew why!

Well, for one... I squealed with glee when I realized what they were doing.

Two, it is totally something I would do if I had the time and resources.

And 3... it's just happy! I love it!

I love the creativity, the idea behind it, and I seriously want that set of stairs! Oh if all the stairs in the world could be like this!

A Reminder of the Important Things in Life

I saw this adorable video on a friend's Facebook page and HAD to share it!

It is done so simply, but it is simply beautiful. A real reminder of what is important!

ENJOY!




The most info I could find about this video is that apparently it is called "Be happy" and was posted by rupertrupert on YouTube. And the material is from "A Little Book to Help You Live a Happy Life." by Monica Sheehan.

Success

Success comes in many forms and means many things to different people. To me, success is finding a way to do what you love while making a decent living and keeping the people close to you who are a positive light in your life no matter how far away they live. (That may be a run on, shhhh)

What is your definition of success? Here are some of my favorite quotes about success:

"I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody." - Bill Cosby

"I honestly think it is better to be a failure at something you love than to be a success at something you hate." - George Burns

"A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him." -David Brinkley

"Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success." - Dale Carnegie

"Don't aim for success if you want it; just do what you love and believe in, and it will come naturally." - David Frost

"Don't confuse fame with success. Madonna is one; Helen Keller is the other." - Erma Bombeck

"Failure is success if we learn from it." - Malcolm Forbes

"Flaming enthusiasm, backed up by horse sense and persistence, is the quality that most frequently makes for success." - Dale Carnegie

"Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune." - Jim Rohn

"In order to succeed you must fail, so that you know what not to do the next time." - Anthony J. D'Angelo

"I've failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed." - Michael Jordan

"Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm." - Winston Churchill

"Success has a simple formula: do your best, and people may like it." - Sam Ewing

"Success is blocked by concentrating on it and planning for it... Success is shy - it won't come out while you're watching." - Tennessee Williams

"Success is falling nine times and getting up ten." - Jon Bon Jovi

"Success is getting what you want. Happiness is wanting what you get." - Dale Carnegie

"Success is how high you bounce when you hit bottom." - George S. Patton

"Success is often the result of taking a misstep in the right direction." - Al Bernstein

"Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome." - Booker T. Washington

"Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go." - William Feather

"The man who has done his level best... is a success, even though the world may write him down a failure." - B. C. Forbes

10 Ways to Keep a Positive Outlook!

Here is an article from Glo that will help you keep that positive outlook this New Year:

Pep Talk

By Alison Singh Gee

Need a few tricks to help you swap last year’s negativity for a brighter outlook? Gretchen Rubin, author of New York Times bestseller The Happiness Project — an account of the year she spent test-driving theories about how to be happier — shares her quick fixes for how to make over your mood … instantly.

1. Go Outside - Research suggests that sunlight stimulates brain chemicals that improve mood. For an extra boost, get your sunlight first thing in the morning. And while you’re outside...

2. Walk It Out - Even a ten-minute brisk walk can give you a surge of energy and decrease your tension.

3. Act the Part - We think we act because of the way we feel, but often we feel because of the way we act. Trick yourself into feeling happier by smiling, singing and putting more energy into your voice.

4. Get Jammin' - Listening to your favorite song or hearing stimulating music gives you an instant lift.

5. Talk to an Energetic Pal - Not only do we gain energy from interacting with other people, we also — in what’s called “emotional contagion” — “catch” their emotions. Instead of infecting others with your draggy mood, catch the energy of a boisterous friend.

6. Tackle Your To-Dos - Just take one item — maybe you need to run a boring errand or make an unpleasant phone call — and you'll get a big rush once you cross it off your list.

7. Clean Up - For most people, outer order contributes to inner calm. If you feel overwhelmed and listless, try tidying up.

8. Jump! - Yes, jump up and down a few times. It's amazing how energizing it is. You do feel a little goofy, but that's part of what makes it fun.

9. Do Something Nice for Someone Else - Do good, feel good. It's the right way to behave, and it will really make you feel happier.

10. Look for Reasons to Be Grateful - People who feel grateful tend to be happier. Also, gratitude crowds out unpleasant feelings like anger and resentment.

Check out the full article HERE

Purpose

We all want to know our purpose in this life... and I think some of us know it from a very young age. Unfortunately, sometimes it feels like this life tells you it's not possible, but these quotes will remind you otherwise.

"Not all those who wander are lost." - J.R.R. Tolkien

"A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write if he is to be ultimately at peace with himself. What one can be, one MUST be."- Abraham Moslow

"To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
- From "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost

"The more intensely we feel about an idea or a goal, the more assuredly the idea, buried deep in our subconscious, will direct us along the path to its fulfillment." - Earl Nightingale