Originally uploaded by Rodrigo De Anda

Go ahead…

1. Smile.
2. Ask them how things are going, then listen.
3. Offer to help.
4. Write them a note.
5. Tell them you love them.
6. Tell a joke (preferably funny).
7. Call them randomly for a brief chat.
8. Provide them an opportunity.
9. Share.
10. Give them a card.
11. Show your appreciation.
12. Take them to breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Just one of them. All three would probably be overkill.
13. Observe their needs and then fill them.
14. Compliment them, but mean it. Nothing is worse, or more see through, than a hollow compliment.
15. Give them a gift for no other reason than you wanted to.
16. Encourage them.
17. If you are proud of them, tell them.
18. Hug.
19. Help them get ahead and out of a rut.
20. Do some of their work for them.
21. If appropriate, cook for them.
22. Just be friendly and kind.

Of course, most of these work best when you set out to make someone’s day without concern for payback. When you start keeping score or thinking you wasted your time helping this person or that person because they didn’t give you something in return, you’ve missed the point. Give, share, and be kind without concern for anything in return. You’ll be happy you did.

Red Heart
Originally uploaded by Katarina 2353

Of all the holidays in all the world, Thanksgiving is by far my favorite. It is simple. It has very few frills. There are no gifts. There is very little commercial fanfare. It involves family and includes thankfulness. The food and football are really just a side attraction.

I just want to say thank you to all of you who take the time to read what I have to say here. Your presence and participation is always a source of great encouragement. I look forward to the next year and what it has to bring.

Now, go eat some food!

Tianna
Originally uploaded by kevin russ

This month: On Being Thankful.

At this time of economic uncertainty, there is no better time than now to examine your life and discover what is truly important. What is really important in your life? What are you thankful for? Most importantly, who are you thankful for? Have your shared with them your feelings of gratitude?

“I would rather be able to appreciate things I can not have than to have things I am not able to appreciate.” ~ Elbert Hubbard

“Be thankful we’re not getting all the government we’re paying for.” ~ Will Rogers

“Let us be thankful for the fools. But for them the rest of us could not succeed.” ~ Mark Twain

“A proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he never thinks he gets as much as he deserves.” ~ Henry Ward Beecher

“Remember that not to be happy is not to be grateful.” ~ Elizabeth Carter

“Reflect upon your present blessings, of which every man has plenty; not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some.” ~ Charles Dickens

8500 : 8400
Originally uploaded by iammikeb

I’m terrible at sending cards. Birthday, sympathy, even thank you cards (to my detriment). If it has to go snail mail I move at a snail’s pace at getting it sent. Sometimes it never gets sent, despite the best of intentions. I convince myself the verbal “thank you”, “happy birthday”, or “I’m so sorry to hear about your loss” is enough. It isn’t. I realize this and have decided I need to do something about it. The first step in any recovery is admission, right?

A verbal “thank you” is nice, but there’s something special about receiving a hand written note in the mail. I understand this. So I’m resolving to do something about it today. I already have a short list of people I have been needing to send notes and cards to. In fact, I’ve decided you can help too!

HOW YOU CAN HELP: In order to help me get into the habit of sending notes and cards again, I have decided to ask you to be a willing participant. I want to send you a card. Over the years I have collected various cards that I have never sent (I told you I’ve had good intentions). I am going to put them to good use once and for all. If you would like a little note or card in your mail, I’ll take the time to send you something. I can promise you these will not be ordinary cards or notes. I’m not into the ordinary Hallmark cards.

No charge. No gimmicks. No tricks. Just a hand written note or card that may just come in the mail at the right moment. At the very least, I bet it will be nice to receive something other than junk mail or bills in your mailbox. Everyone wins!

Instructions:

• Decide today that you would like some snail mail you can enjoy! Bills = ordinary. Cards = enjoyable.
• Please don’t leave your address on this site. E-mail it to me, along with your name. Send your address to: andrew.p.weaver@gmail.com
• I will not use your address for anything else. Ever.
• I realize some of you who read my blog are not in the United States. It’s okay! I would love to send you (Scotland maybe? Hint, hint) some mail too.
• I will mail them out as I receive each address.
• Wait for your postman to arrive with your mail!

This is my challenge to myself. Let’s get this thing started!

Originally uploaded by kevin russ

“In delay there lies no plenty.” ~ William Shakespeare

Do you have something you’ve been putting off until tomorrow or even later? Have you been waiting for a better opportunity? Me too.

Let’s resolve to finish it today.

“Procrastination is the art of keeping up with yesterday.” ~ Don Marquis

london cycling
Originally uploaded by lomokev

Until you are ready to think in terms that are not normal (usual, common, average, standard, and so on), you are not going to accomplish much more than normal things. Thinking in abnormal terms means you will have to leave your comfort zone. Normal is comfortable. Abnormal is uncomfortable – at first.

The trick is turning the abnormal into the normal. It requires some trial and error. It requires commitment. It requires thinking outside the box. It requires the willingness to imagine something most cannot. It requires forward thinking. It requires belief in more than what is normal. Most people who have changed life as we know it (see a few of my examples in my previous post) have done so by taking something most people believed to be impossible or foolish and turned it into the norm.

Blue Bean
Originally uploaded by Fixed Image

Wikipedia says, “normal refers to a lack of significant deviation from the average.” Very few want to be seen as abnormal. To be normal is, well, the norm.

Most of us strive to be normal. We want to lead a normal life. We want a normal job. We want normal food. We want normal relationships. We want normal this and normal that. Then when things are abnormal we feel uncomfortable. We don’t like abnormal.

There’s nothing wrong with normal. It’s just that it is rare we excel in life (any aspect) when we focus all of our energy on being normal. We lack any significant deviation from the average.

• In 1903 it was normal to travel long distances by train, ship, or that new invention the automobile. It was abnormal for the Wright Brothers to think human flight was possible. They chose to deviate from the average.
• On December 1, 1955 it was normal for a black passenger on a bus in Alabama to give up their seat to a white passenger when ordered. It was abnormal when Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat when the bus driver ordered her to. She chose to deviate from the average.
• In 1789 it was normal for nations to be ruled by a king who would pass on the throne to their relatives. It was abnormal for the Founding Fathers of the United States to believe they could be successful without a monarchy leading the way. They chose to deviate from the average.

So why do we focus so hard on being normal? Why do we fear the abnormal? It’s clear to me that we should be deviating from the average a little more often in our lives.