Monday, May 21, 2007

BOUNCING BACK


Kannan Viswagandhi, EzineArticles.com Basic Author



Last week, I saw the video of Warren McDonald(See his video without leaving this page,thanks to Google). It is an amazing story of will power,courage,Hope which moved me to write about bouncing back in life in this week.
In April 1997, when Climbing to the Islands tallest peak, he met with a terrible accident. He got trapped beneath a one-ton slab of stone in a rock fall. Two days later he was rescued, he got the amputation of both his legs at mid thigh.Just ten months later he displayed the courage, successfully summiting first Cradle Mountain then Federation Peak, Australia’s toughest mountain summit! In February 2003, he became the first double above-knee amputee to reach the summit of Africa’s tallest peak, Mt Kilimanjaro (19,222ft), and more recently, created history once again in an ascent of America's tallest cliff face, El Capitan.
Another Great man in the past history did a remarkable come back and reached the highest office in united states. He is none other than Abraham Lincoln. See the chronology of events in his life:

Failed in business at age 31
Was defeated in a legislative race at age 32
Failed again in business at age 34
Overcome death of sweetheart at age 35
Had a nervous breakdown at age 36
Lost an election at age 38
Lost a congressional race at age 43
Lost a congressional race at age 46
Lost a congressional race at age 48
Lost a Senatorial race at age 55
Failed to become Vice President at age 56
Lost a Senatorial race at age 58
Was elected President of the United States at age 60

Donald Trump, the billionaire real estate mogul went bankrupt in 1990,had debt of 900 millions us dollar.
He had hope, kept his cool, fought back within five years. He told in one of his interviews, Guinness considered his comeback as one of the greatest financial comebacks for an individual.
One of the greatest comebacks for a nation is Japan. Read below the effects of bombing in Japan:
A more accurate survey combining body counts, unresolved missing-person reports and interviews conducted by neighborhood associations during the years following the bombing suggests that as many as 130,000 people lost their lives as a direct result of the bomb up to the beginning of November 1945.A similar survey by the Nagasaki officials set the final death toll for that city at 60,000 to 70,000. By the time the bombing stopped and the smoke cleared, Japan’s total economic losses from World War II amounted to the equivalent of about one year’s national output.
Here is the proof for the remarkable story of Japan’s comeback:
The Japanese economy is the second largest market economy in the world. In 1998 it recorded a gross domestic product (GDP) of 481 trillion yen (US $3.67 trillion).Per capita national income in 1997 was US $28,361, ranking Japan fourth in the world.
My first hand experience:
I entered U.S in 2000 when the market was so dull, very few jobs. No one was ready to hire people as the uncertainty over the presidential election. I was in bench for three months. One fine morning, I was one of the candidates to go back to India. I told my employer to give me some more time, but in vain. I told all my family problems and why should stay in U.S for some more time. I got sponsorship from another employer in Chicago. I boarded greyhound bus to chocago,traveled for 23 hours without knowing what was in there for me in Chicago. I got training in a new data warehousing tool, I got the job within ten days of arrival in Chicago.Now,six years are over, I can clear a job interview at the first phone call if the job requirement matches my resume.
The moral of all these stories are, when you are in crisis, don’t ever lose your hope. Failure is just a stepping stone to success. Be patient, focus on your goal, take consistent action, you can pass the bad period and achieve a remarkable success as “THIS TOO SHALL PASS”.
All the Best
Bouncing Back Quotes:

“Our greatest glory lies in not never falling, but in rising every time we fall’

"If winter comes can spring be far behind?"


“Never,never,never,Quit” – Winston Churchill

Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.”-Dale Carnegie

The most trying fools are the bright ones.
Duc de La Rochefoucauld (1613 - 1680)

Don't be afraid to fail. Don't waste energy trying to over up failure, learn from your failures and go on to the next challenge. It's OK to fail. If you're not failing, you're not growing.
H. Stanley Judd

Our task is to become our best selves. One of God's greatest gifts to us is the joy of trying again, for no failure ever need be final.
Thomas S. Monson (1927 - )

The ultimate measure of man is not where he stands during the moments of comfort but where he stands at the times of challenge and controversy - Martin Luther King Jr

Our greatest glory is, not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall – Confucius

Without the strength to endure the crisis, one will not see the opportunity within. It is within the process of endurance that opportunity reveals itself.
Chin-Ning Chu

The Chinese use two brush strokes to write the word 'crisis'. One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity. In a crisis, be aware of the danger-but recognize the opportunity.
John F. Kennedy

In a time of crisis we all have the potential to morph up to a new level and do things we never thought possible.
Stuart Wilde

I started recommending the books which will help you in your journey of personal excellence. My recommendation this week: Made in Japan by Akio Marita.I started reading, completed three chapters. I will write about this later.

Sunday, May 13, 2007

AIM FOR THE STARS!

The important thing about goal setting is,you should have a goal.What do you want to do?-This is an important question.The answer to this question will give you direction to your destination.You should know where you are going,otherwise you will end up nowhere.Here is a classic conversation between the cat and Alice in "Alice in Wonderland":
Alice came to a fork in the road.
"Which road do I take?" she asked.
"Where do you want to go?" responded the Cheshire cat.
"I don’t know," Alice answered.
"Then,” said the cat, "it doesn’t matter."
- Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland

The first step in goal setting is having a goal.The next step is that you should write them down.The third step is to prioritise them.The fourth step is to visualiZe them as if you have already achieved your goals.The final and important step is to take consistant action towards the goal.

While writing you goals,follow the SMART method:
S- Specific
M- Measurable
A- Achievable
R- Realistic
T- Timely.
For example,i want to increse my monthly income to $10,000 from september of 2007.This fits the SMART method of goal setting.

Firsthand example of goal setting:
short term(< 1 year): I want to complete the construction of my house and have housewarming by the end of Aug'07.
Mid Term(> 1 year and < 5 years): I want to pay the full mortgage for my house by the end of 2009.I want to reduce my weight to 170lbs by the end of 2010.
Long Term(> 5 years): I want to retire by the end of 2012.I want to start my own business by that time.
Master Goal(It alignes with my life's purpose which is to help others): To start a Educational Trust in my grandpa's name and help the poor kids to get a good quality education.

If your goal is too big to handle, if you think,break it down to smaller chunks.Per example,to get rid of 36 lbs in 3 yrs is a big task for myself.but if i break down,it will be 12 lbs per yr,1 lb per month,.25 lbs per week which is very easy to achieve,right.
Be flexible in your path towards goal,relax a bit in between,treat yourself if you achieve a big chunk of it on the way.Goal setting and achieving it gives you immense satisfaction and increase your selfconfidence and self esteem.

GOAL SETTING QUOTES:

1. Arise, Awake and stop not till your goal is reached.-swami Vivekananda.
2. “
A goal properly set is halfway reached.”- Zig Zagler
3. “
Set your goals high, and don't stop till you get there.”-Bo Jackson
4. “
You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.”- C.S.Lewis
5. “
Without goals, and plans to reach them, you are like a ship that has set sail with no destination.”-Fitzhugh Dodson
6. “
The most important thing you can do to achieve your goals is to make sure that as soon as you set them, you immediately begin to create momentum. The most important rules that I ever adopted to help me in achieving my goals were those I learned from a very successful man who taught me to first write down the goal, and then to never leave the site of setting a goal without firs taking some form of positive action toward its attainment.”-Anthony Robbins
7. “
Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible.”-Anthony Robbins
8. “You don’t have to be fantastic hero to do certain things – to compete. you can be just an ordinary chap, sufficiently motivated to reach challenging goals.-Edmund Hillary
9. “Our goals can only be reached through a vehicle of a plan, in which we must fervently believe, and upon which we must vigorously act. There is no other route to success”.-Stephan Brennen
10. “I feel that the most important step in any major accomplishment is setting a specific goal. This enables you to keep your mind focused on your goal and off the many obstacles that will arise when you're striving to do your best”.-Kurt Thomas
11. In life, as in football, you won't go far unless you know where the goalposts are.-Arnold Glasgow
12. “You must have long term goals to keep you from being frustrated by short term failures”.-Charles c.Noble
13. “Any definite chief aim that is deliberately fixed in the mind and held there, with the determination to realize it, finally saturates the entire subconscious mind until it automatically influences the physical action of the body toward the attainment of that purpose”.-Napoleon Hill

14.Failure is not reaching your goal,but in having no goal to reach-Benjamin Mays

15.This one step,choosing a goal and sticking to it,changes everything.-Scott Reed

16.The indispensable first step to getting the things you want out of life is this:
decide what what you want-Ben Stein

17.Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take
eyes off your goal-Henry Ford.

ALL THE BEST!

Sunday, May 6, 2007

Power of Perseverance

Perseverance = Firmness,Resolve,Determination
I think,Perseverance is one of the most important traits for one's success.I know,after you have done your job,everyone would be very eager to see the result immediately.But the Larva can't become a Butterfly in a day,it takes its own time.It has to go undergone the metamorphosis to become a butterfly.This is natural process.I know it is painful to wait,but this is the process.Take action,do your job,follow through,wait patiently,you will get what you want.You can't build a palace within minutes,only aladin's genie can do this.From the blue print to brick,it needs a lot of hard work and patient waiting.
Real Life example of my friend:
My friend is working as a software engineer in usa.He got married three years ago.After marriage,he thought he can set up an apartment in usa,then call his wife.He sent all the relevant docs for dependant visa.But everytime,she went,she got query after query.His employer did some mistake in the documentation process.He was not paid while he was on bench before marriage which relected in the documentation.They tried year after year.Meanwhile he used to go to india and spend months together with his family.His family,friends,relatives,everyone was critical of this guy.His elder brother's manager started saying like my son got the visa within 15 days,your brother didn't know what he is doing and his elder conveyed his manager's view to his family.Even his mother went ahead and asked why in the first place he got married.As his native place is a small village,all the people started asking why she is not going to usa after years.She was living in a small room in the remote village.she has to walk for 2kms to go bus stop.They used to talk over phone for hours together.None of his close friends even called her and asked her how she was doing and gave her hope.There were lot of family problems between both the families.
They prayed almost all the Gods in the southern india.But they never gave up,they tried year after year.In Feb this year,they got the depemdant visa,they are going to unite in usa in september.This is one of the classic example of Perseverance in real life.

Perseverance Quotes:
1. The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”-Nelson Mandela
2. “Many of the great achievements of the world were accomplished by tired and discouraged men who kept on working.
3. “Age wrinkles the body. Quitting wrinkles the soul.
4. “Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan "press on" has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race”-Calvin Coolidge
5. “Edison failed 10, 000 times before he made the electric light. Do not be discouraged if you fail a few times.”Napoleonn Hill
6. “Perseverance is not a long race; it is many short races one after the other”-Walter Elliot
7. “Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did.”-Newt Gingrich
8. “Victory belongs to the most persevering.”-Napoleon Bonaparte
9. “Perseverance is failing 19 times and succeeding the 20th.”-July Andrews
10. “I do not think there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as the quality of perseverance. It overcomes almost everything, even nature.”-Rockefeller
11. “If we are facing in the right direction, all we have to do is keep on walking.”-Buddhist Proverb
All the best!

Thoughts for today!

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