You are an Occasion. Rise to it.
–from “Mr. Magorium’s Magic Emporium”

If everyone is thinking alike, then someone isn’t thinking. (attributed to Gen. George Patton)

“This life is yours. Take the power to choose what you want to do and do it well. Take the power to love what you want in life and love it honestly. Take the power to walk in the forest and be part of nature. Take the power to control your own life. No one else can do it for you. Take the power to make your life happy.” -Sudan Polis Schutz

“What a pity for winged creatures to die on the ground.” Sally Cheek

Jack Goldenberg
America’s Best UnderEmployed Creative Director

“Do or do not. There is no try.” – Yoda

Peter – good quote. Here’s one that inspires me when I’m a bit intimidated:
“Do what you’re afraid to do. When you run away because you’re afraid to do something big, you pass opportunity by.” W. Clement Stone.

Real generosity towards the future lies in giving all to the present. Albert Camus

“The world is a book and those who do not travel read only a page.” – -St. Augustine

Everything is either an opportunity to grow, or an obstacle to keep you from growing. You get to choose. Dr. Wayne Dyer

“And the time came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom.”
- Anais Nin

yes, in deedie do. Good one. You got to go in to get out.

Nike has had a few gems in their arsenal Peter! Here’s another-

Monuments are a hoax.
A conspiracy designed by bureaucrats and construction companies to draw you away from the important places.
The ones found off the roads, atop the mountains, amidst the rivers, and mostly by chance.
Marked not by placards and statues, but by epiphanous moments that give you the sense that no one, including yourself, may ever find this place again.
These are the places worth seeking out.
So as you pass the landmark-makers putting up their guardrails and snack shops, give a friendly wave.
And walk on to the place they’ve never been.

But Teddy Roosevelt spoke the greatest words ever-

Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorius triumphs, even though checkered by failure… than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much, nor suffer much, because they live in the gray twilight that knows not victory, nor defeat.

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.” — Martin Luther King, Jr.

My fave quote…and the one that convinced me to jump ship on the corp. gig & start something of my own! “The man who goes the farthest is generally the one who is willing to do & dare. The sure thing boat never gets far from shore.”
- Don’t know who said it first

Inspirational! Thx for sharing. One quote I like lately: “History Shapes, Choice Defines.” (Of all things… from a video game. But true just the same.)

Peter – I love the quote and very deep and meaningful. Here is a quote that I truly believe in, especially when it comes to building confidence within the workplace: “There is nothing else that kills the ambitions of a person as criticisms from superiors. I never criticize anyone. I believe in giving a person incentive to work. So I am anxious to praise but loath to find fault. If I like anything, I am hearty in my approbation and lavish in my praise.” Charles Schwab

“Fear nothing, think on things you want to become and you shall become them, never doubt, you are your thoughts so make them count!

change is inevitable

Chance favors the prepared mind.

Louis Pasteur.

Life gives to all the choice. You can satisfy yourself with mediocrity if you wish. You can be common, ordinary, dull, colorless, or you can channel your life so that it will be clean, vibrant, useful, progressive, colorful, and rich.”
— Spencer W. Kimball
http://jorgstyle.blogspot.com/2009/11/choice.html

Louis L’Amour: “There will come a time when you believe everything is finished. That will be the beginning.”

“There are two ways to live your life – one is as though nothing is a miracle, the other is as though everything is a miracle.” ~ Albert Einstein

I’ll add to Mark’s (another Teddy Roosevelt quote) “It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes short again and again because there is no effort without error and shortcomings, who knows the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at his best knows in the end the high achievement of triumph and who at worst, if he fails while daring greatly, knows his place shall never be with those timid and cold souls who know neither vicotry nor defeat.” And, from Philippians, 2:3-5, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to th einterests of others. Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus”

Thank you Peter for the great quote!

For all that has been, thanks; to all that will be, yes!
- Dag Hammarskjold

Awake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of living.
- Kahil Gibran, paraphrased

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

@ Lori — thanks for leaving the Anais Nin quote. It is my new favorite!

Leave people in a better place than you found them. ~John Morgan

Never miss an opportunity to be FABULOUS. ~Tina Seelig

Karen,

The quote about: The sure thing boat” is from Dale Carnegie.

By the way, your blog is excellent, but i tried to contact you through it and I couldn’t find your name anywhere. I might have missed it or you maybe you did not want to post it. I just think you should because your name is your personal brand. That’s true in any field, but even more so when expert advice is involved. Just a suggestion.

Jack Goldenberg

Opportunity is missed by most because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work. ~ Thomas Alva Edison

I probably take this advice too literally, but I love it: “When in doubt, make a fool of yourself. There is a microscopically thin line between being brilliantly creative and acting like the most gigantic idiot on earth. So what the hell, leap.” – Cynthia Heimel

wow, that’s a pretty good one!
What about Wayne Gretsky: You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.

or my Bubby: “You make plans and God laughs.”

Or this one I got from some email chain:
Whatever you give a woman, she will make greater. If you give her sperm, she’ll give you a baby. If you give her a house, she’ll give you a home. If you give her groceries, she’ll give you a meal. If you give her a smile, she’ll give you her heart. She multiplies and enlarges what is given to her.
So, if you give her any crap, be ready to receive a ton of shit!

Wow, what a collection of uplifting words – thank you to all! I don’t know if Peter had any idea of what he’d started here, but if he did, he’s a genius. This has truly made my day. Hell, my month!

“Only learn to seize good fortune, for good fortune’s always there.” — Goethe

“People will forget what said or what you did, but they will remember how you made them feel.”
-Maya Angelou

Oh this quote has me caught, and I love it from every angle:

Oh no, I lost the quote. It’s a journey – no, not to find the book but the book is entitled The Journey Ahead and everyone, I mean EVERYONE must have one! Now for the quote, I will keep you posted, sorry – no not a post but I will find it and promise to come back and write down the quote. You can quote me on that. I promise.

This is one of the most inspirational quotes I have ever read.

I have come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element. It is my personal approach that creates the climate. It is my daily mood that makes the weather.

I possess tremendous power to make a life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture, or an instrument of inspiration.

I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal.

In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de –escalated, and a person humanized or dehumanized.

If we treat people as they are, we make them worse. If we treat people as they ought to be, we help them become what they are capable of becoming.

- Goethe

Very good one…but so sad!