The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Much of the good work you do will be remembered for a short time. The most important thing to remember is who you are and how you live.
Take the time to smile at the lady in the check stand, open the door for the person behind you at the bank, be the first person to start cleaning up after a meeting. More than likely no one will notice but you will be making some ones life happier in small ways.
I think CanadianChristine’s post God and the Chocolate ice cream is a good supplement to the Paradoxical Commandment #4. So many of us are looking for meaning and one way to obtain personal meaning is to do good anyway. Therefore this little video is quite inspiring. We all need to pay attention to our spiritual well being.
Write it down,
Carma
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Lesson Learned. Communication is King!
Oops! This is what I said when I opened my email from my new (and only paying) client. I didn’t even realize the magazine was my client until three weeks ago when I was asked for my social.
Last month, my client (a local magazine publisher) found my business card in my non-paying client’s office and was excited to find someone local who can write. I was also elated, since I have begun my writing business this year I have not received any compensation, unless you count free lunches as being compensated.
I was approached by a coach for a local swimming team which has produced an Olympic trial qualifier. The coach wanted to have a story published that would boost the benefits of organized youth sports namely the swim team. Also he wanted me to contact the newspaper to pitch the article. I told him my rate. No problem.
I was given phone numbers of several different coaches and after numerous attempts to contact someone, no one was calling me back. In the meantime, my new client called to ask me if I had been contacted by this coach and I told her my experience. She had also received several emails asking her magazine to do an article.
Last month, my client (a local magazine publisher) found my business card in my non-paying client’s office and was excited to find someone local who can write. I was also elated, since I have begun my writing business this year I have not received any compensation, unless you count free lunches as being compensated.
I was approached by a coach for a local swimming team which has produced an Olympic trial qualifier. The coach wanted to have a story published that would boost the benefits of organized youth sports namely the swim team. Also he wanted me to contact the newspaper to pitch the article. I told him my rate. No problem.
I was given phone numbers of several different coaches and after numerous attempts to contact someone, no one was calling me back. In the meantime, my new client called to ask me if I had been contacted by this coach and I told her my experience. She had also received several emails asking her magazine to do an article.
I asked her, “Are you going to do the article?” She laughed and said “That’s what I’m asking you to do?” Great.
Three weeks have passed without any communication between me, the swim team or my client until today. I received two separate emails . One asked me to send the swim team article to them by Friday, July 13 and the second one was asking for the CEO article (which I ghostwrite) by Friday as well. Feast or famine. I am new to all this but I find it quite exciting. Also, I feel I am being taken seriously as a writer by someone other than my family.
Three weeks have passed without any communication between me, the swim team or my client until today. I received two separate emails . One asked me to send the swim team article to them by Friday, July 13 and the second one was asking for the CEO article (which I ghostwrite) by Friday as well. Feast or famine. I am new to all this but I find it quite exciting. Also, I feel I am being taken seriously as a writer by someone other than my family.
Nevertheless, communication skills are king and I have learned an important lesson. Do not assume any thing and it is a good idea to become an astute listener.
Write it down,
Carma
Paradoxical Commandment #3
If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies. Succeed anyway.
This commandment alludes to positional success. For instance if you become a department head or an elected official, you will meet two kinds of friends: personal and positional and true enemies. Positional friends are good for business. This type of friend is loyal to the cause, ideology, issue, etc. and who ever fills the position will gain their support. In other words, they are on the payroll. A personal friend does not need an explanation. For the most part, true enemies will attack anyone who fills your position. In many cases it is not always personal.
A successful person is also vulnerable to public criticism because somebody else wants your success. They don’t want it so that they can be in your shoes, rather they are resentful of anyone who succeeds. You become the target because the attack on you is not about you it is about them. However, other people attack because they are upset you do not agree with them. Does this sound familiar?
I was the target of unkind personal attacks not too long ago. However, I hung in there and completed my term of office anyway. Therefore, I know the difficulty in practicing this Paradoxical Commandment. Succeed Anyway. In the end you are better for it.
Write it down,
Carma
This commandment alludes to positional success. For instance if you become a department head or an elected official, you will meet two kinds of friends: personal and positional and true enemies. Positional friends are good for business. This type of friend is loyal to the cause, ideology, issue, etc. and who ever fills the position will gain their support. In other words, they are on the payroll. A personal friend does not need an explanation. For the most part, true enemies will attack anyone who fills your position. In many cases it is not always personal.
A successful person is also vulnerable to public criticism because somebody else wants your success. They don’t want it so that they can be in your shoes, rather they are resentful of anyone who succeeds. You become the target because the attack on you is not about you it is about them. However, other people attack because they are upset you do not agree with them. Does this sound familiar?
I was the target of unkind personal attacks not too long ago. However, I hung in there and completed my term of office anyway. Therefore, I know the difficulty in practicing this Paradoxical Commandment. Succeed Anyway. In the end you are better for it.
Write it down,
Carma
Tuesday, July 10, 2007
How Good is Good?
The Bible teaches that we should “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”. Otherwise known as “The Golden Rule”. What goes around comes around…. Eventually…. Always. However, it may not be on your time line.
Paradoxical Commandment #2: If You do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives. Do good anyway.
Time and time again I have witnessed people trying to get what they can for themselves. Haven’t you noticed that people who act on their own ulterior motives are the same people who accuse others of doing the same thing?
Remember that the best reward for doing good things for other people is the satisfaction and personal meaning you will derive from it. If you simply “pretend” to be doing good things for people under false pretenses you may reap monetary values but your integrity will suffer.
You know the term “You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours”. When we say this, we are saying “I will only help you if I get what I want”.
Therefore, it will not be easy to take up the “Do Good Anyway” mantra, because bad habits and cynicism are embedded deep down in our psyche. Further, what ever we do often, we are inclined to do more and what ever we stop doing, as time passes, we will have less inclination for.
Doing Good appears to be contrary to the way the world operates. Trust has gone out the window. Common sense is non-existent. A baby cries and some one yells shut up!... I don’t think you will find this attitude from people in the blogosphere where I hang out.
The blogosphere is full of people Doing Good Anyway. Every page I turn shows a page full of giving. Liz Strauss at Successful Bloggers comes to my mind and in her “12 Detailed Checklists to Spit Shine and Promote your Blog” post, she demonstrates a perfect example of the “Do Good Anyway” mantra. Not only does she tell us Vovo at Business Traffic Ideas gave her the idea for the post, she tells us Patrick Schaber at The Lonely Marketer spotted the idea originated by Matt McGee over at Small Business SEM.
There are so many more. Check them out and you will find how giving they are.
Design Your Writing Life
The Golden Pencil
Make It Great with Phil Gerbyshak
Sylvia's Insight
Thoughts and Philosphies
Dwaud Miracle
The Lieurance Group
Roberta Ferguson
Just to name a few.
I know I will be immersed in the check list for a while. What a wealth of information for new bloggers or anyone who wants to spiff up their blog.
Write it down,
Carma
Paradoxical Commandment #2: If You do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives. Do good anyway.
Time and time again I have witnessed people trying to get what they can for themselves. Haven’t you noticed that people who act on their own ulterior motives are the same people who accuse others of doing the same thing?
Remember that the best reward for doing good things for other people is the satisfaction and personal meaning you will derive from it. If you simply “pretend” to be doing good things for people under false pretenses you may reap monetary values but your integrity will suffer.
You know the term “You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours”. When we say this, we are saying “I will only help you if I get what I want”.
Therefore, it will not be easy to take up the “Do Good Anyway” mantra, because bad habits and cynicism are embedded deep down in our psyche. Further, what ever we do often, we are inclined to do more and what ever we stop doing, as time passes, we will have less inclination for.
Doing Good appears to be contrary to the way the world operates. Trust has gone out the window. Common sense is non-existent. A baby cries and some one yells shut up!... I don’t think you will find this attitude from people in the blogosphere where I hang out.
The blogosphere is full of people Doing Good Anyway. Every page I turn shows a page full of giving. Liz Strauss at Successful Bloggers comes to my mind and in her “12 Detailed Checklists to Spit Shine and Promote your Blog” post, she demonstrates a perfect example of the “Do Good Anyway” mantra. Not only does she tell us Vovo at Business Traffic Ideas gave her the idea for the post, she tells us Patrick Schaber at The Lonely Marketer spotted the idea originated by Matt McGee over at Small Business SEM.
There are so many more. Check them out and you will find how giving they are.
Design Your Writing Life
The Golden Pencil
Make It Great with Phil Gerbyshak
Sylvia's Insight
Thoughts and Philosphies
Dwaud Miracle
The Lieurance Group
Roberta Ferguson
Just to name a few.
I know I will be immersed in the check list for a while. What a wealth of information for new bloggers or anyone who wants to spiff up their blog.
Write it down,
Carma
Monday, July 9, 2007
Anyway
Sylvia at Sylvia’s Insight asked the question “What kind of friend do you want to be?”
We cannot be personal friends to every person we meet and it takes courage to be a friend in this crazy world when nothing seems to make sense. However, YOU can make sense in this crazy world by finding personal meaning.
Today I picked up a little book titled Anyway: The Paradoxical Commandments: Finding Personal meaning in a crazy world by Kent M. Keith.
Paradoxical Commandment #1 People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered – Love them anyway
The uniqueness of this book is that it doesn’t focus on wealth, success or fame. Instead it focuses on the personal meaning we get when we perform good acts because it is the "right thing to do."
In his introduction, Author Kent M. Keith says, “The Paradoxical Commandments are not morbid or pessimistic. If you do what is right and good and true, you will often be appreciated for your contributions. But if you can find personal meaning without the world’s applause, you are free. You are free to do what makes sense to you, whether or not others appreciate it. You are free to be who you really are. You are free to be who you were meant to be.”
We all know people who are unreasonable, selfish and demanding and just plain hard to love. Does this mean they are not worthy of love? What if we loved them anyway?
Love comes in many forms; affection, friendship, fondness and passion to name a few. Also when experiencing extreme difficulty with other people who are unreasonable, illogical and self-centered, remember this simple saying, “There are three answers to every question: Yours, mine, and the right one.”
“Anyway” teaches a great lesson. The good that you do in life will become a source of personal meaning for YOU even when others forget. This does not mean that you look at life through “rose colored glasses” it just means that you can make the world a better place with out depending on applause.
Join the Anyway challenge, click here to download "The Anyway Challenge" Certificate.
Tomorrow I will post Paradoxical Commandment #2.
Write it down,
Carma
We cannot be personal friends to every person we meet and it takes courage to be a friend in this crazy world when nothing seems to make sense. However, YOU can make sense in this crazy world by finding personal meaning.
Today I picked up a little book titled Anyway: The Paradoxical Commandments: Finding Personal meaning in a crazy world by Kent M. Keith.
Paradoxical Commandment #1 People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered – Love them anyway
The uniqueness of this book is that it doesn’t focus on wealth, success or fame. Instead it focuses on the personal meaning we get when we perform good acts because it is the "right thing to do."
In his introduction, Author Kent M. Keith says, “The Paradoxical Commandments are not morbid or pessimistic. If you do what is right and good and true, you will often be appreciated for your contributions. But if you can find personal meaning without the world’s applause, you are free. You are free to do what makes sense to you, whether or not others appreciate it. You are free to be who you really are. You are free to be who you were meant to be.”
We all know people who are unreasonable, selfish and demanding and just plain hard to love. Does this mean they are not worthy of love? What if we loved them anyway?
Love comes in many forms; affection, friendship, fondness and passion to name a few. Also when experiencing extreme difficulty with other people who are unreasonable, illogical and self-centered, remember this simple saying, “There are three answers to every question: Yours, mine, and the right one.”
“Anyway” teaches a great lesson. The good that you do in life will become a source of personal meaning for YOU even when others forget. This does not mean that you look at life through “rose colored glasses” it just means that you can make the world a better place with out depending on applause.
Join the Anyway challenge, click here to download "The Anyway Challenge" Certificate.
Tomorrow I will post Paradoxical Commandment #2.
Write it down,
Carma
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Free Blog Tipping!
Thank You Dwaud
Since my subscription to Dwaud Miracle, I have enjoyed and benefited from his expertise. His post on July 7, 2007 is no exception. When you go over to Dwaud's Blog you will see how to get your Blog Tipped!
Get your Blogging Tips from Douglas Karr at The Marketing Technology Blog
Write it down,
Carma
Since my subscription to Dwaud Miracle, I have enjoyed and benefited from his expertise. His post on July 7, 2007 is no exception. When you go over to Dwaud's Blog you will see how to get your Blog Tipped!
Get your Blogging Tips from Douglas Karr at The Marketing Technology Blog
Write it down,
Carma
How Much Are You Worth?
Last week I participated in two quizzes from Mingle2.
I am 77% addicted to blogging and only 18% Geek.
Does that mean I am 82% Normal? Now, according to the Cadaver Calculator my dead body is worth $4,665.00. How much are you worth....DEAD?
$4665.00The Cadaver Calculator - Find out how much your body is worth.
The weekend is doing what it is supposed to do...End. I hope everyone had a wonderful one and come Monday morning we all will be working with sharper pencils. I plan to sharpen mine by reading and savoring the 164 Essential Tools for Online Success from Char of Essential Key Strokes. Thanks Char for re-posting these valuable Tools for Online Success.
Write it down,
Carma
I am 77% addicted to blogging and only 18% Geek.
Does that mean I am 82% Normal? Now, according to the Cadaver Calculator my dead body is worth $4,665.00. How much are you worth....DEAD?
$4665.00The Cadaver Calculator - Find out how much your body is worth.
The weekend is doing what it is supposed to do...End. I hope everyone had a wonderful one and come Monday morning we all will be working with sharper pencils. I plan to sharpen mine by reading and savoring the 164 Essential Tools for Online Success from Char of Essential Key Strokes. Thanks Char for re-posting these valuable Tools for Online Success.
Write it down,
Carma
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