The exam stress is beginning to takes its toll on me. I find myself less and less inclined to do work, even though I know I should be. I have been caught in a slump of sorts, and everything seems to be declining as a result...so I pray in time I find the necessary will to pull myself out of it.
In the meantime, I figured today we'd do a quote thats very simple: "There is no free lunch". I personally have NO idea who was the first person to quote it, and if you search wikipedia you will find aplethora of variations on the theme...but I figured I'd just take the simplest one and run with it.
SO, 'There is no free lunch'. If we look past what its saying literally (There is literally, no free lunch...unless you go eat in one of those soup kitchens for the homeless, but thats a different case) you will find it is merely saying 'You cannot get something for nothing".
Think about it: In real life, you cannot get anything without an equivalent trade. You cannot eat food, unless you lose money somehow. If you eat for free at charity, you have to expend energy in order to walk to the soup kitchen and whatnot. And if you eat by having the charity deliver food to your doorstep...then I really have no idea what to say about that. But I'm assuming most people understand what I'm getting at.
The point is, to acquire something of great worth, or of great value to ourselves we must expend an equivalent amount of something in order to get it. It is important to emphasise the word equivalent here. Too many people get hooked onto scams, get-rich-quick schemes with the belief that will really make them rich very easily. The truth is, if it is so hard to scrounge a living as it is, what are the chances that there really is a scheme to 'get-rich quick'?
This is a very simple quote...there isn't much to dive into today...and the work is starting to pile on so this blog will suffer. But ah well...when I do get free time, I will attempt to update this MORE often...for now though, everybody'll have to suffer through some very short articles...
Once again, anybody who reads this, your comments will be appreciated. And now I have to go back and read about Endodontics!
~
Thursday, October 7, 2010
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
"The real measure of your wealth is how much you'd be worth if you lost all your money"
So its 11.44pm now and I just came back from watching 'Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps' at Rialto in Dunedin...great place, big screen...however it was a little empty, I suppose mainly because its the month before exams and...well either everyone is studying, or nobody wants to watch a movie about the stock market.
But I like the stock market...though I haven't invested anything into any stocks, bonds, derivatives or anything just yet, though I intend to ONE day, when I have learned enough to not kill myself. But enough of that. For now, seeing as how I just came back from a movie about money, I figured it'd be best to do a quote about money.
SO, "The real measure of your wealth is how much you'd be worth if you lost all your money". This quote actually has no...source? Citation? But it is a good quote nonetheless. How true this quote is can be evaluated simply by asking yourself one question: "If I lost all my money today, how long would it take me to get it back?"
If the answer to the aforementioned question is..."Never"...then what you are essentially saying is you are worthless, because it means you are acknowledging that you do not have the skillset necessary to create the wealth you had. That is the main point of this quote: Real wealth lies not in the amount of money that you have, but the ability to create it.
How many times have you heard this one: "Millionaires are lucky. They got opportunities in life that no one else got, and because of that, they are where they are today". The truth is (for the majority anyway) that if they lost it all tomorrow, chances are they would be able to make it back in a few years anyway, because they have the necessary skills to do so.
What I believe this quote is telling us, is that the value that society places on us is not based on the amount of money that we HAVE, but the amount of money that we can MAKE. Who would you rank as the one better off; The multi-millionaire who inherited his wealth, or the millionaire who created it on his own? I would pick the latter, because he/she (referred as he) would have shown that he can create it on his own, and can most likely do it again if needed.
I'm not saying that everybody who has inherited their wealth is doomed, on the contrary some inheritors, upon inheriting their wealth gain the wisdom to start learning about how to conserve their money. But not all (e.g Andrew Luster). But I suppose the ultimate point is thus: The world will value you on not what you have, but on what you can do.
As always, anybody who reads this is welcomed to comment on what they think is a fair interpretation of the quote above. And as always, I shall catch you once again soon.
~
But I like the stock market...though I haven't invested anything into any stocks, bonds, derivatives or anything just yet, though I intend to ONE day, when I have learned enough to not kill myself. But enough of that. For now, seeing as how I just came back from a movie about money, I figured it'd be best to do a quote about money.
SO, "The real measure of your wealth is how much you'd be worth if you lost all your money". This quote actually has no...source? Citation? But it is a good quote nonetheless. How true this quote is can be evaluated simply by asking yourself one question: "If I lost all my money today, how long would it take me to get it back?"
If the answer to the aforementioned question is..."Never"...then what you are essentially saying is you are worthless, because it means you are acknowledging that you do not have the skillset necessary to create the wealth you had. That is the main point of this quote: Real wealth lies not in the amount of money that you have, but the ability to create it.
How many times have you heard this one: "Millionaires are lucky. They got opportunities in life that no one else got, and because of that, they are where they are today". The truth is (for the majority anyway) that if they lost it all tomorrow, chances are they would be able to make it back in a few years anyway, because they have the necessary skills to do so.
What I believe this quote is telling us, is that the value that society places on us is not based on the amount of money that we HAVE, but the amount of money that we can MAKE. Who would you rank as the one better off; The multi-millionaire who inherited his wealth, or the millionaire who created it on his own? I would pick the latter, because he/she (referred as he) would have shown that he can create it on his own, and can most likely do it again if needed.
I'm not saying that everybody who has inherited their wealth is doomed, on the contrary some inheritors, upon inheriting their wealth gain the wisdom to start learning about how to conserve their money. But not all (e.g Andrew Luster). But I suppose the ultimate point is thus: The world will value you on not what you have, but on what you can do.
As always, anybody who reads this is welcomed to comment on what they think is a fair interpretation of the quote above. And as always, I shall catch you once again soon.
~
Sunday, October 3, 2010
One of those revelations...
I figured I might as well put this into writing (or typing perhaps?), cause I've read, and heard a lot of things which say that if you put what you're thinking into writing, you're giving your thought physical form, making it more meaningful, giving it more meaning to yourself. So I figured I'd put this down to remind myself of what crossed my mind an hour or so ago...
So it was just after writing my last blog post (an ounce of action, anyone?) and I was just pondering over one of my dreams from the previous night...or should I say, nightmare? It goes as follows...I dreamt that I saw the devil himself offering people who were about to die a choice: You can either choose to die completely, as in...total and utter nothingness, or you can choose to live forever - as a stone sculpture. In my dream one fellow picked the latter choice thinking it was the better choice...only once it had happened, he started screaming...
That nightmare was one of the few dreams/nightmares that have caused me to wake up, scared. And I was just thinking about it this afternoon, while washing some dishes when it actually hit me: One day I am actually going to die. Yes, it is something OBVIOUS, but when you really think about it...one day we will no longer be able to anything, experience anything...we will simply just be...dead. I felt a chill run down my spine as I thought about this, watching the water from the tap flow over my fingertips...
Afterwards, it had me thinking...every second that I spend not performing at what I know to be my best, is a second that can no longer be retracted. I am inevitably going to be dead one day. We all owe a death, that is one of life's certainties. And it really hit me there...why do I live life, not trying to be the best at what I can...?
This post doesn't really adequately explain what I was thinking back then....but I do hope that I can look back and read this, and the same feeling that I had when I was thinking why not live life trying to be as best I can be will come over me again, and I will feel glad.
~
So it was just after writing my last blog post (an ounce of action, anyone?) and I was just pondering over one of my dreams from the previous night...or should I say, nightmare? It goes as follows...I dreamt that I saw the devil himself offering people who were about to die a choice: You can either choose to die completely, as in...total and utter nothingness, or you can choose to live forever - as a stone sculpture. In my dream one fellow picked the latter choice thinking it was the better choice...only once it had happened, he started screaming...
That nightmare was one of the few dreams/nightmares that have caused me to wake up, scared. And I was just thinking about it this afternoon, while washing some dishes when it actually hit me: One day I am actually going to die. Yes, it is something OBVIOUS, but when you really think about it...one day we will no longer be able to anything, experience anything...we will simply just be...dead. I felt a chill run down my spine as I thought about this, watching the water from the tap flow over my fingertips...
Afterwards, it had me thinking...every second that I spend not performing at what I know to be my best, is a second that can no longer be retracted. I am inevitably going to be dead one day. We all owe a death, that is one of life's certainties. And it really hit me there...why do I live life, not trying to be the best at what I can...?
This post doesn't really adequately explain what I was thinking back then....but I do hope that I can look back and read this, and the same feeling that I had when I was thinking why not live life trying to be as best I can be will come over me again, and I will feel glad.
~
"An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory" ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
I'm feeling rather lazy at the moment...its 5.40pm, and I know I should be studying....but I just don't really feel like it. SO, instead of just sitting in front of my computer, visiting the same websites I visited 10 minutes ago and reading the same things I read...I figured this would be a good time if any to do today's quote! I decided to go back and quote Ralph Waldo Emerson again...solely because the underlying message of this quote 'action' is something I think I need right now...
SO, "An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory". This is a very, very good saying, solely because it is absolutely true. There isn't much to really dig into for this quote, but its meaning comes through everyday in anything we choose to do.
The quote refers to situations when, despite all the thinking of, planning of and discussing of doing something, it never materialises simply because we never take action on it. People tend to mistake thinking about something, or planning something for actually doing something; it actually isn't. The truth is, its only once we move past the planning stage and actually start do something that actually has an effect towards accomplishing our ultimate goal that we can be said to actually be 'taking action'. That sounds very obvious, but one would be suprised as to how often it happens.
The simple example could be a thin man who wants to go to the gym to gain some muscle. SO, he starts looking through his work schedule, looking for free time so he can go to the gym. He starts cruising through the mall and the net, looking for the best protein powders to buy so he can bulk up. He starts looking for gym memberships, for the best prices and the best rates. He starts looking up exercise guides so he can perform optimally in the gym...and so on and so forth. Now...here is the thing. He actually hasn't DONE anything. He has the illusion that he is taking action on his goal by going out, and looking and planning, and so on...but he has actually DONE nothing.
Now it could be argued that he's actually taking action by planning out how to best workout...but I'm not too sure about that. Because everything he has been doing up till that point hasn't actually done anything to his muscles. Its only when he has his hands wrapped around those iron bars and he's pumping them with all his strength can he be said to be taking action on his goal of gaining some muscle.
I'm actually finding this notion a little harder to explain than I anticipated. But I suppose my point is, we must all take action on our goals. Until we actually DO something that puts us on a firm path towards achieving our goals, something that beyond the point of return (for example say...paying a 2 year gym membership?) and cannot be retracted, because if not up till that point all we that we have been doing exists only in our minds.
We hear very often that people who 'get things done' are the ones who get hired, promoted and are generally successful in everything they do. And its absolutely true, simply because thats what they do - they take the necessary steps and actions in order to achieve something. This is in contrast to somebody who speaks about getting something done, but in the end does NOT do what is necessary to get them done. Such a person is all flash and no substance. And such a person, because his perceived actions actually achieve nothing except fruitless planning and talking, will never achieve what his goals are.
So, conclusion: If we want to get something done, we have to do something about it. Something concrete, something that is past the point of no return, something that forces our commitment. That is what action is.
As for me, I've got to take action and get off this computer chair, get my dinner ready and get that textbook in front of my eyes so I can study for my exams. As always, anybody who reads this is free to speak out about what you think is correct, wrong, and offer up your opinions on what said quote could mean. Until next time,
~
SO, "An ounce of action is worth a ton of theory". This is a very, very good saying, solely because it is absolutely true. There isn't much to really dig into for this quote, but its meaning comes through everyday in anything we choose to do.
The quote refers to situations when, despite all the thinking of, planning of and discussing of doing something, it never materialises simply because we never take action on it. People tend to mistake thinking about something, or planning something for actually doing something; it actually isn't. The truth is, its only once we move past the planning stage and actually start do something that actually has an effect towards accomplishing our ultimate goal that we can be said to actually be 'taking action'. That sounds very obvious, but one would be suprised as to how often it happens.
The simple example could be a thin man who wants to go to the gym to gain some muscle. SO, he starts looking through his work schedule, looking for free time so he can go to the gym. He starts cruising through the mall and the net, looking for the best protein powders to buy so he can bulk up. He starts looking for gym memberships, for the best prices and the best rates. He starts looking up exercise guides so he can perform optimally in the gym...and so on and so forth. Now...here is the thing. He actually hasn't DONE anything. He has the illusion that he is taking action on his goal by going out, and looking and planning, and so on...but he has actually DONE nothing.
Now it could be argued that he's actually taking action by planning out how to best workout...but I'm not too sure about that. Because everything he has been doing up till that point hasn't actually done anything to his muscles. Its only when he has his hands wrapped around those iron bars and he's pumping them with all his strength can he be said to be taking action on his goal of gaining some muscle.
I'm actually finding this notion a little harder to explain than I anticipated. But I suppose my point is, we must all take action on our goals. Until we actually DO something that puts us on a firm path towards achieving our goals, something that beyond the point of return (for example say...paying a 2 year gym membership?) and cannot be retracted, because if not up till that point all we that we have been doing exists only in our minds.
We hear very often that people who 'get things done' are the ones who get hired, promoted and are generally successful in everything they do. And its absolutely true, simply because thats what they do - they take the necessary steps and actions in order to achieve something. This is in contrast to somebody who speaks about getting something done, but in the end does NOT do what is necessary to get them done. Such a person is all flash and no substance. And such a person, because his perceived actions actually achieve nothing except fruitless planning and talking, will never achieve what his goals are.
So, conclusion: If we want to get something done, we have to do something about it. Something concrete, something that is past the point of no return, something that forces our commitment. That is what action is.
As for me, I've got to take action and get off this computer chair, get my dinner ready and get that textbook in front of my eyes so I can study for my exams. As always, anybody who reads this is free to speak out about what you think is correct, wrong, and offer up your opinions on what said quote could mean. Until next time,
~
Taking a breather
Fwoo, to anyone who reads this...do forgive me for the lack of updates lately. I have been itching to write a quote, but for the last...4/5 days basically I've been doing a PBL (Problem based learning) exercise, which has consumed my every waking moment up until 30 minutes ago. But now I'm just way too burned out to do anything aside from relax...so for now, we shall take an official 'one-day break' (instead of some mysterious absence) and I shall return tomorrow with a new quote, excerpt or statement for us to take in!
Until then, then
~
Until then, then
~
Friday, October 1, 2010
"Depth beats breadth any day of the week" ~ Sean 'Day9' Plott
Aha, I bet nobody saw this one coming! Yes, today I am actually quoting from Sean 'Day9' Plott, an (ex?) professional Starcraft: Brood War player and currently the host of the Day 9 Daily, an online show about Starcraft 2 and how to become a better gamer. I have to say I'm a very big fan of his dailies, because he's a damn funny guy and his shows are always full of good Starcraft 2 advice, even though I cannot watch them live and have to download them because my internet is so slow. Day9, if you happen to read this: You are awesome.
Anyway, 'Depth beats breadth any day of the week'. I can't remember the exact daily in which he said this, but I do recall that when he said it, something just clicked in my head. In his daily (if I recall correctly) he was talking about not being too spread out when trying strategies. Instead one should try to master a few core strategies before moving onto others. And that personally, is what I think is the core of this quote.
Through our lifetimes, we will all learn a number of skills, some very useful, others not so useful. But essentially, we should aim to master those few key skills that will make the biggest difference in our lives. There will most definitely be a conflict as to which skills to concentrate on. And of course, many will give up, or feel like they should try working on another skill. But this quote I feel is dealing with that: We should not try to spread ourselves too far too fast, we should not bite off more than we can chew. Because not only is it a waste of time, but we end up having no real skill developed to the point of mastery, or at least to an advanced level.
So we should instead just concentrate on the development of a few things, rather than trying out many things in the hope that our diversification will cover our lack of mastery. Now, this is different from being competent at a number of skills. There is the saying 'Jack of all trades, master of none, though ofttimes better than master of one' And that is a good saying, basically saying that someone who can do a variety of things well is far better than someone who can only do one thing perfectly.
But that is different from today's quote. Today's quote is on development, stressing that instead of attempting to develop a hundred different skills, or do a multitude of different activities trying to get better in all of them, the concentration of our efforts on a few key skills/activities will yield far better results than spreading out our efforts.
I don't feel like I've done today's quote justice, or interpreted it very well. But considering I'm not a self-help expert, or a motivational guru, I think its okay. Once again, for anyone who does read this your comments would be appreciated. And I do hope that some people are reading...the stats page on my blog dashboard says some people from the US and Denmark have viewed this blog, though I wonder if they were drawn here by accident (maybe they were searching for information on Abraham Lincoln or Bruce Lee?) or if they thought this would be about Dentistry (the URL is so deceiving).
Nonetheless, if anyone DOES really read the posts, and isn't here by accident or for dentistry, it would be nice to hear from you, and to know what you think.
~
Anyway, 'Depth beats breadth any day of the week'. I can't remember the exact daily in which he said this, but I do recall that when he said it, something just clicked in my head. In his daily (if I recall correctly) he was talking about not being too spread out when trying strategies. Instead one should try to master a few core strategies before moving onto others. And that personally, is what I think is the core of this quote.
Through our lifetimes, we will all learn a number of skills, some very useful, others not so useful. But essentially, we should aim to master those few key skills that will make the biggest difference in our lives. There will most definitely be a conflict as to which skills to concentrate on. And of course, many will give up, or feel like they should try working on another skill. But this quote I feel is dealing with that: We should not try to spread ourselves too far too fast, we should not bite off more than we can chew. Because not only is it a waste of time, but we end up having no real skill developed to the point of mastery, or at least to an advanced level.
So we should instead just concentrate on the development of a few things, rather than trying out many things in the hope that our diversification will cover our lack of mastery. Now, this is different from being competent at a number of skills. There is the saying 'Jack of all trades, master of none, though ofttimes better than master of one' And that is a good saying, basically saying that someone who can do a variety of things well is far better than someone who can only do one thing perfectly.
But that is different from today's quote. Today's quote is on development, stressing that instead of attempting to develop a hundred different skills, or do a multitude of different activities trying to get better in all of them, the concentration of our efforts on a few key skills/activities will yield far better results than spreading out our efforts.
I don't feel like I've done today's quote justice, or interpreted it very well. But considering I'm not a self-help expert, or a motivational guru, I think its okay. Once again, for anyone who does read this your comments would be appreciated. And I do hope that some people are reading...the stats page on my blog dashboard says some people from the US and Denmark have viewed this blog, though I wonder if they were drawn here by accident (maybe they were searching for information on Abraham Lincoln or Bruce Lee?) or if they thought this would be about Dentistry (the URL is so deceiving).
Nonetheless, if anyone DOES really read the posts, and isn't here by accident or for dentistry, it would be nice to hear from you, and to know what you think.
~
"The best way to predict your future is to create it" ~ Abraham Lincoln
Its 7.50am in the morning on Saturday and I woke up feeling in a moderately good mood. A lot of things to do today, mainly searching up articles and sources for my PBL...but that aside, its time for another new quote! Today the quote I'll be using to start my morning is by Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States of America. I studied a small bit of American history, mainly in the Prohibition Era, Great Depression and the Second World War, but I do know that Abraham Lincoln was the man who led half of the country during the American Civil War, and was the President who essentially ended Slavery. Thats a really BIG deal, considering the time period.
Anyway, "The best way to predict your future is to create it". There is no true-er quote than this, I believe. I'd just like everyone to take a step back and think: Do you believe in fate? The notion that what will become of you is predestined?
Some people believe quite strongly in fate, feeling that they're fated for failure all the time. Some people like me, do not believe in fate, and believe that what awaits us in the future depends on what we do now. There is a small difference in mindset between the former and the latter. The former leans somewhat towards what we could call an External Locus of control, while the latter leans towards an Internal Locus of Control. I'm not a psychologist, and according to wikipedia there is a boatload of measurements, indexes and tests that must be done.
But I do know that if you believe in fate, you believe that some external powerful force controls and dictates the events of our lives, and that whatever you do does not change the final outcome. If I'll be permitted to say, this is not a good attitude to have. For one, this mindset basically predisposes us to accept whatever comes our way, and to not try to fix anything or work to improve because we feel that we cannot affect the outcome.
But if you believe that what you do, and how you react to what life throws at you determines the events and path of your life, then everything changes. Suddenly every time something happens that is good, we can look into and see what we did right so that you can do it again if it ever happens. If we encounter failure or something bad, we can look into it and see what we did wrong, so that we won't ever do it again. When life throws a serious punch to the face, we have the mindset that there is something we can do to help ourselves.
And that is pretty much the core of this quote. The belief that in order to help ourselves, we have to believe that we can control our own lives. By not believing that we aren't in control of our own lives, we are ceding control to whatever happens to happen to us. By saying that we are responsible for all the actions and events of our lives, we gain the power to shape our own future. But by saying that we are not responsible for the actions and events of our lives, that some outside force is in control, we are made powerless.
It is a simple concept, one oft repeated in many quotes and self-help books. Suffice to say, this will not be the last time we touch on this subject. It has many faces, and permeates our lives subtly in whatever we do. But I hope that it helps to be aware of it now. And once again, for anyone who happens to read this, your opinions and comments would be much appreciated.
~Arthur
Thursday, September 30, 2010
"Don't say you don't have enough time. You have exactly the same number of hours per day that were given to Helen Keller, Pasteur, Michaelangelo, Mother Theresa, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson and Albert Einstein" ~ H Jackson Brown Jr, from Life's Little Instruction Book
So I'm sitting here thinking what to put for this morning/afternoon...its been a rather empty day so far, I hadn't done very much aside from go to lecture, watch some videos and cook some instant mee, which I'm eating right now. I had been thinking, that there really was nothing to do except work, and I definitely didn't feel like working. Then it struck me to perhaps do a quote about Time.
Because this is such an immensely long excerpt from a book, I figure I won't retype it out, but instead will just jump straight to the 'interpreting'. Speaking for myself, I say I definitely pay attention to this quote mainly because it talks about something which I find myself thinking more and more about - the fact I feel that I have no time.
"-you have exactly the same number of hours-" This particular sentence struck me. My first reaction to this sentence was 'Yes, but times were different back then. I'm studying for one, and society as a whole has mostly changed to one where the average workday is considered 9 to 5, something that wasn't really there for most of the illustrious people mentioned in the excerpt. Also Mother Theresa (or is it Teresa?) more or less dedicated her life towards a single purpose, something that I'm not exactly doing."
But after a few moments of deep thought, I realised that all these were merely excuses of sorts. I realised I DO spend a lot of time doing things that are unecessary, and do not really serve to further my self-development or academics...or anything for that matter. And while I did think earlier that there was nothing to do except work, it was in perfect contrast to my feeling that I had no time. In truth, I have a lot of time. In fact, this semester is considered by far to be the easiest semester ever.
This excerpt is indirectly saying to us that we have an abundance of time which we do not really see. I'd wager there are plenty of people in the world thinking the same thing as me, that we have no time when in truth there is a lot of time that we just simply aren't using well. When we think there's nothing to do, there's actually plenty that can be done...we just have to put some effort into finding out what to do. The times have changed, but this quote isn't just telling us off because we're complaining, its telling us to get off our behinds, and go do something instead of complaining.
So after this meal, I might just do a bit more studying again. Or maybe I'll sort out my bed, or clean my room, anything that'll benefit me in the long run. Entertainment does have its place, but too much of it sucks up too much time that could otherwise be used for something productive.
On a side note, I figured maybe today was a good time to post one of my favourite uplifting tunes. So here is the Youtube link to "Its Your Day' by Yiruma! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2JRlr2BNh4A) It isn't a vocal song, its just piano, and Yiruma is a very good South Korean pianist. So do have a listen, and once again, for anybody who does read this in the future, it'd be good to hear what YOU think about anything on this blog.
~
Note: The Song is actually only 3 minutes, 30 seconds long or so, but the youtube link is 9 minutes long. So when it ends, you can close it, the remaning 5 minutes and 30 seconds is just pure silence.
Note: The Song is actually only 3 minutes, 30 seconds long or so, but the youtube link is 9 minutes long. So when it ends, you can close it, the remaning 5 minutes and 30 seconds is just pure silence.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
"Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall" ~ Confucius
I think I just failed a test today. A pretty important one too, worth about 10% of the final grade of one of my subjects. Just spent the last hour or so detoxing on Starcraft 2 with a friend, trying to get myself out that deep hole of depression...and so here I am, with this here quote, which I feel is quite fitting considering my circumstances today. Also, I figured maybe I'll try a different font today (Trebuchet), just to see how it turns out.
To anyone who doesn't know who Confucius is, he was quite the big name in Chinese Philosophy who lived some thousand plus years or so ago and founding a system of philosophy known as Confucianism, which essentially stresses self-improvement. Of course, the real depth of Confucianism is not known to me, cause I'm not a Confucianist, so if anyone happens to be a Confucianist (I hope its the correct way to refer to one) do enlighten us at any point.
"Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall". This saying is also, one of my favourites. In fact, almost all of the quotes I probably put here are my favourites. But I digress. What does this quote mean?
To me, this quote is quite straightforward. Mainly, Confucius here touches on the subject of persistance. Its easy to see, that by 'falling' he means 'failure', and that by 'rising' he means not giving into failure. But this is something, I feel, which eludes the majority of us nowadays. How many times have we started something, only to not continue it because we felt it was not worth any more time spent on it?
This quote ties into the second ever quote I did, ""If you love life, don't waste time, for time is what life is made up of'" Mainly, 'Don't waste time'. Too many of us today start something, perhaps an exercise programme, perhaps learning how to speak another language, or perhaps learning how to invest in the stock market, anything, only to stop because we run into a failure. And too many of us, when we run into failure decide 'This isn't worth it anymore, I don't want to do it'. And at that point, all our effort and time go down the drain.
Perhaps you think 'Well, I persisted, but it was just hopeless. I was getting nowhere'. And that I feel, is truly what this quote is referring to. That when we run into that wall of failure, when every action we take is just wrong, and when everything we do just doesn't seem to work out, it is so easy to give up and take the pain. But the truth is, there is nothing good that comes out of giving up. But when we accomplish something, so much good comes out of it, even if it was a little thing. And when we consider that we mostly give up when we're so close to our goals, its such a shame that we gave up all that incoming goodness just so that we didn't have to deal with the failure anymore.
A lot of people think that in order to be 'good' at something, you have to be flawless. And so a tiny failure becomes a monument to their inadequacy, showing how worthless they are. But thats not how to become good. The greatest successes encountered failure many times, but instead of seeing them as failures, they are seen as lessons. Lessons in what not to do, lessons in how to improve. They embrace failure, seeing it as a way to improve. And they don't give up. That is persistance personified. And that is their 'greatest glory'.
I realise I'm not really interpreting these quotes. I'm instead, sharing my views on them...not actively decoding them. But hey, anything helps I suppose. And to anyone who reads this in the future...it'd be nice to hear about your views, and what you think about these quotes.
~
Font Testing
This is just me testing different fonts.
This is just me testing different fonts
This is just me testing different fonts
This is just me testing different fonts
This is just me testing different fonts
This is just me testing different fonts
This is just me testing different fonts
This is just me testing different fonts
This is just me testing different fonts
This is just me testing different fonts
This is just me testing different fonts
This is just me testing different fonts
This is just me testing different fonts
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
"Your worth consists in what you are, and not in what you have" ~ Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison, most famously (I think) known as the inventor of the lightbulb, amongst his other inventions. It reportedly took him roughly 10,000 failed attempts, to which when asked about said 'I haven't failed. I've found 10,000 ways that don't work'. Now that is a positive attitude. I originally found this quote of his from the Personal Excellence Blog. In fact, almost all of my quotes come from that one document Celestine Chua has compiled, I strongly recommend everyone to go and download it as soon as possible.
So, 'Your worth consists in what you are, and not in what you have'. This quote was originally placed under a Quotes on Personal Power. To some extent, I suppose that is true. To me though, this quote touches more on the notion of integrity rather than personal power, though what exactly Personal Power is defined as by Celestine I do not know.
"Your worth consists in what you are". These days, the word integrity is used a lot. It is mentioned in almost every self-help book out there, speaking about the utmost importance of integrity. Integrity, or the 'Adherence to moral and ethical principles' is one of the most sought after traits in people. This is true in both business and life. Employers would most likely rather employ someone who can show that their integrity is solid, that they are not unscrupulous or untrustworthy. People like people who mean what they say, who do what they say they will do and do not misplace or betray that trust.
There are several self-help notions out there, one of them being 'Do whatever it takes to to accomplish the goal'. A lot however fail to add 'Within ethical and legal boundaries' to that statement. Yes, to truly do what one dreams to do, sometimes we have to go all in. However, if we crosss that line when it is morally wrong to do something, we will have lost our integrity. And once that reputation for having no integrity, having no honour becomes cemented in society, it is very hard to get back.
I once knew someone, who upon hearing about a deal that was very dirty and not ethical at all (I will not go into specifics), stated 'Excellent. That is the right way to do business' while I looked at him, horrified. We even had a miniature argument, me arguing about how immoral said deal was and the importance of integrity and veracity, while he argued back about how my opinion was fundamentally flawed, that in the business world, dirty is the only way to go, that you had to do 'whatever it takes'. He did later recant that opinion, but it came a bit too late, by that time the image I had of him was irreversibly tainted. But the truly scary thing is, that many people think this way. That in order to be successful, you have to 'Do whatever it takes', no matter how immortal, dirty or just fundamentally wrong it is.
"- not in what you have". Here this quote, I think, stresses the lack of importance of material wealth when it comes to integrity. These days, a lot of emphasis is placed upon wealth, on being rich, on having a lot of money. But the point here is, no matter how much money you have, it does not change who you are as a person. I once read a book, I think "Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires" by Adam Khoo. In it, a very, very powerful concept came across to me, which was first, money is not the root of all evil. The lack money of is. But more importantly, money is only a personality magnifier. If you were a good person before you had money, then when you have an abundance of wealth that will not change. If you were a bad person before you became wealthy, then having a lot of money will not change that either.
Which goes back to the overall quote. Many people want to be rich, I know I certainly do. But many also believe that by becoming rich, the money buys respect, integrity and honour. It does not. Character/Integrity is what earns respect, not material wealth. And that, I think is what this quote means.
Once again, anybody who reads this either now, or in the future, feel free to say anything about what you think.
~
"Your worth consists in what you are". These days, the word integrity is used a lot. It is mentioned in almost every self-help book out there, speaking about the utmost importance of integrity. Integrity, or the 'Adherence to moral and ethical principles' is one of the most sought after traits in people. This is true in both business and life. Employers would most likely rather employ someone who can show that their integrity is solid, that they are not unscrupulous or untrustworthy. People like people who mean what they say, who do what they say they will do and do not misplace or betray that trust.
There are several self-help notions out there, one of them being 'Do whatever it takes to to accomplish the goal'. A lot however fail to add 'Within ethical and legal boundaries' to that statement. Yes, to truly do what one dreams to do, sometimes we have to go all in. However, if we crosss that line when it is morally wrong to do something, we will have lost our integrity. And once that reputation for having no integrity, having no honour becomes cemented in society, it is very hard to get back.
I once knew someone, who upon hearing about a deal that was very dirty and not ethical at all (I will not go into specifics), stated 'Excellent. That is the right way to do business' while I looked at him, horrified. We even had a miniature argument, me arguing about how immoral said deal was and the importance of integrity and veracity, while he argued back about how my opinion was fundamentally flawed, that in the business world, dirty is the only way to go, that you had to do 'whatever it takes'. He did later recant that opinion, but it came a bit too late, by that time the image I had of him was irreversibly tainted. But the truly scary thing is, that many people think this way. That in order to be successful, you have to 'Do whatever it takes', no matter how immortal, dirty or just fundamentally wrong it is.
"- not in what you have". Here this quote, I think, stresses the lack of importance of material wealth when it comes to integrity. These days, a lot of emphasis is placed upon wealth, on being rich, on having a lot of money. But the point here is, no matter how much money you have, it does not change who you are as a person. I once read a book, I think "Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires" by Adam Khoo. In it, a very, very powerful concept came across to me, which was first, money is not the root of all evil. The lack money of is. But more importantly, money is only a personality magnifier. If you were a good person before you had money, then when you have an abundance of wealth that will not change. If you were a bad person before you became wealthy, then having a lot of money will not change that either.
Which goes back to the overall quote. Many people want to be rich, I know I certainly do. But many also believe that by becoming rich, the money buys respect, integrity and honour. It does not. Character/Integrity is what earns respect, not material wealth. And that, I think is what this quote means.
Once again, anybody who reads this either now, or in the future, feel free to say anything about what you think.
~
"If you love life, don't waste time, for time is what life is made up of" ~ Bruce Lee
I had never actually known that Bruce Lee, aside from being the most famous martial artist man has ever known, was actually a philosopher. Tragically, this quote of his has its importance personified in his premature death at the young age of 32 years old.
So "If you love life, don't waste time, for time is what life is made up of'" What could this mean? I'm sure some people would say 'No, life is made up of the people you live it with' or 'Life is not just made out of time, it is made out of the experiences we live through' and so on. All of these are true. But we must remember that these quotes and sayings are not locked in stone. They are not facts. They are opinions. And through these opinions, we learn to see the world through the speakers eyes, and perceive the truths that they believe in. And these opinions are true, to whoever believes in them.
The quote tells us to not waste time, as 'Time is what life is made up of'' Taken literally, it is absolutely true. We humans live only for a finite lifespan, there is no immortal man (at least, not yet). So, Bruce Lee is telling us not to squander the time we have. Many of us, in fact all of us at some point waste time by procrastinating, not doing the things we know will be good for us, but putting it off because we don't feel like doing it. Staring mindlessly at a wall also wastes time but somehow I don't think Bruce Lee was referring to something like that.
But more importantly, the quote carries a deeper meaning of discipline, dreams and courage. 'Don't waste time'. How many people in the world never accomplish what they've always wanted to do, solely because they never started. How many people have said they would like to do things, like go to the gym, learn how to cook or some other goal that they don't ever accomplish? That would be wasting time...lingering on thoughts, dreaming and fantasizing instead of going through the process of doing whatever is necessary to accomplish one's goals. Several articles here and there saying that the reason most people never start doing something, is because they are afraid of doing it. Afraid that their efforts will be in vain, afraid that they will fail, afraid that it was pointless to do so. If we examine the quote...and try to extrapolate a bit...
Don't Waste time = Don't be Afraid
Whatever we choose to do is pointless, only if it loses what it is worth to ourselves. Going to the gym is pointless, if afterwards we decide the pain of working out isn't worth the better health we gain (the muscles help too). Learning to cook is pointless, if we decide that we can get our wives, girlfriends, boyfriends, husbands, or anybody else to cook for us. If however, we take the view that whatever we want to accomplish, is worthwhile something that we must accomplish...then why let fear hold us back from doing it?
This post is getting quite long, and I suppose I should be going. There is so much more I feel like saying, so much more I think that I need to explain, to clarify. But I suppose I'll leave that for another post, and I'll let whoever reads this decide the meaning of this quote to themselves. I know what it means to me, to whoever reads this - let us know what it means to you by commenting. No matter how late.
So "If you love life, don't waste time, for time is what life is made up of'" What could this mean? I'm sure some people would say 'No, life is made up of the people you live it with' or 'Life is not just made out of time, it is made out of the experiences we live through' and so on. All of these are true. But we must remember that these quotes and sayings are not locked in stone. They are not facts. They are opinions. And through these opinions, we learn to see the world through the speakers eyes, and perceive the truths that they believe in. And these opinions are true, to whoever believes in them.
The quote tells us to not waste time, as 'Time is what life is made up of'' Taken literally, it is absolutely true. We humans live only for a finite lifespan, there is no immortal man (at least, not yet). So, Bruce Lee is telling us not to squander the time we have. Many of us, in fact all of us at some point waste time by procrastinating, not doing the things we know will be good for us, but putting it off because we don't feel like doing it. Staring mindlessly at a wall also wastes time but somehow I don't think Bruce Lee was referring to something like that.
But more importantly, the quote carries a deeper meaning of discipline, dreams and courage. 'Don't waste time'. How many people in the world never accomplish what they've always wanted to do, solely because they never started. How many people have said they would like to do things, like go to the gym, learn how to cook or some other goal that they don't ever accomplish? That would be wasting time...lingering on thoughts, dreaming and fantasizing instead of going through the process of doing whatever is necessary to accomplish one's goals. Several articles here and there saying that the reason most people never start doing something, is because they are afraid of doing it. Afraid that their efforts will be in vain, afraid that they will fail, afraid that it was pointless to do so. If we examine the quote...and try to extrapolate a bit...
Don't Waste time = Don't be Afraid
Whatever we choose to do is pointless, only if it loses what it is worth to ourselves. Going to the gym is pointless, if afterwards we decide the pain of working out isn't worth the better health we gain (the muscles help too). Learning to cook is pointless, if we decide that we can get our wives, girlfriends, boyfriends, husbands, or anybody else to cook for us. If however, we take the view that whatever we want to accomplish, is worthwhile something that we must accomplish...then why let fear hold us back from doing it?
This post is getting quite long, and I suppose I should be going. There is so much more I feel like saying, so much more I think that I need to explain, to clarify. But I suppose I'll leave that for another post, and I'll let whoever reads this decide the meaning of this quote to themselves. I know what it means to me, to whoever reads this - let us know what it means to you by commenting. No matter how late.
"The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn" ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
I originally found this quote in an article from the Dumb Little Man website, an excellent self-help website (http://www.dumblittleman.com), regarding some motivational quotes from Ralph Waldo Emerson. How fitting that my first ever real, serious post be about starting small.
So "The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn". What does this mean? There is first, the obvious...anything awe-inspiring, majestic, great...any amazing achievement, any amazing person...starts off from somewhere, and starts off small. Granted eveything starts from somewhere, but that is beside the point. The point is, that anything that is great...usually had a humble beginning.
Beyond that, there is also the underlying motivational message which is: If ever you want to achieve something, you first have to start somewhere, do something. This ties into another one of my favourite quotes, from another blog - 'The Personal Excellent Blog' (www.celestinechua.com) which is 'If you try, you may get exactly what you want. If you don't, you don't.' ~ Unknown. This quote naturally hasn't been interpreted, because its as blunt as it gets.
Finally, there is the indirect message of...even the smallest things can grow to be great. Some business I'm sure, start off small as one man operations...then two...then maybe a few more...and slowly grow, or die. Some splurge everything, and start off with a bang. They also either grow, or die. But they all start off small, relative to what they can become. And some truly become great.
That is pretty much all I can think of for now...perhaps, when people start viewing this blog...and looking through the archives they'll see this post and comment. But for now...I suppose I will talk to anyone who listens...if there is anything else, any perspective I may have missed, any nuance or interpretation I may not have perceived...do comment, and share. No matter how late.
~
So "The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn". What does this mean? There is first, the obvious...anything awe-inspiring, majestic, great...any amazing achievement, any amazing person...starts off from somewhere, and starts off small. Granted eveything starts from somewhere, but that is beside the point. The point is, that anything that is great...usually had a humble beginning.
Beyond that, there is also the underlying motivational message which is: If ever you want to achieve something, you first have to start somewhere, do something. This ties into another one of my favourite quotes, from another blog - 'The Personal Excellent Blog' (www.celestinechua.com) which is 'If you try, you may get exactly what you want. If you don't, you don't.' ~ Unknown. This quote naturally hasn't been interpreted, because its as blunt as it gets.
Finally, there is the indirect message of...even the smallest things can grow to be great. Some business I'm sure, start off small as one man operations...then two...then maybe a few more...and slowly grow, or die. Some splurge everything, and start off with a bang. They also either grow, or die. But they all start off small, relative to what they can become. And some truly become great.
That is pretty much all I can think of for now...perhaps, when people start viewing this blog...and looking through the archives they'll see this post and comment. But for now...I suppose I will talk to anyone who listens...if there is anything else, any perspective I may have missed, any nuance or interpretation I may not have perceived...do comment, and share. No matter how late.
~
A Change in Direction?
I suppose I should have seen this coming. This blog...was originally started not because I felt like really explaining and documenting my journey, but because I thought it was a good idea to do so. Now I know the folly...but recent experiences have brought me back, this time for a better reason, one which I feel will benefit both myself, and anybody who reads it.
Hence, the change in name...from the dental journey blog, to the Interpretation blog. This blog, will share my views and how I interpret various inspirational, motivational and otherwise good and helpful quotes, of which everybody knows there are plenty. And through typing it out and writing it...I pray that I will be able to probe the deeper recesses of my mind, achieve some kind of...fleeting wisdom...and hopefully help me for the better. And anybody else who reads it.
So good luck to myself!
Hence, the change in name...from the dental journey blog, to the Interpretation blog. This blog, will share my views and how I interpret various inspirational, motivational and otherwise good and helpful quotes, of which everybody knows there are plenty. And through typing it out and writing it...I pray that I will be able to probe the deeper recesses of my mind, achieve some kind of...fleeting wisdom...and hopefully help me for the better. And anybody else who reads it.
So good luck to myself!
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