i was watching this runner's race the other day , it was sunny at first then it started raining
the athletes didn't stop though .. after the race a news reporter came in to ask the winners
The guy who took fourth place said :<< I came fourth place you know because the weather was bad today
My feet got cold and it was raining hard .>> This is what reactive people do
They always focus on the things that they cannot control . On the other hand
The guy who took the golden medal wasn't complaining at all he said that Bad weather
didn't affect his performance , he wasn't focusing on why did mother nature
chose to go against him at this very important day .. because he knows that the only
thing he's in control of is his emotions and thoughts and if any negative thought
comes in the radar he's going to Reframe it quickly , so HABIT NUMBER ONE : BE PROACTIVE
you're not responsible for what's being thrown at you
but you're responsible for your reaction over that event .
Now I want you to imagine that you have the disease an incurable disease , you have very little time
left for you on this planet .. at that moment one of the most powerful questions you
can ask yourself is
What did I do with my life ? well to be honest you already have a disease that is going
to kill you ..you're going to die .
death is an inherent disease .. I'm not saying this like : Oh ! guys we're all going
To die let's cry and feel victims about it No , i'm saying choose what to leave out Wisely
Do you want to be remembered as someone who was a great role model , an inspiration
like someone who wrote a book that influenced Others to come up with
valuable ideas , products . Or Do you want to be remembered as the guy who spent 30 Years
of his life trolling people on the internet and making them feel horrible about
themselves . So HABIT NUMBER TWO : BEGIN WITH THE END IN MIND , value your time ..
because once it's all spent , there is no coming back ..
Now i want you to consider this scenario :
You're having coffee with some friends and then you apologize because
you need to get back home work on your Project , but honestly here's what working
On your project really means : you're going to go home and open up Facebook , spend two hours in
and then you're going to go watch some self development video on how can you manage
your time better .. and finally one hour before going to bed you'll start working on that Project
this is what most people do
So HABIT NUMBER THREE : PUT FIRST THINGS FIRST Stop focusing on meaningless activities and
do the most important things first that will bring great success upon your life
i remember the time when I was six years old , I was walking down with a friend in
this place called souk where you could buy toys and clothes for very cheap prices
i remember back then we were standing at this toy stand and my friend said
:<>
So i look under the stand and there was a camera .. it could have fallen from the other toys
we lived in a very poor neighborhood back then where nobody could actually
afford these types of luxuries . my friend said :<<you know what ! wait for the owner to
look around and take it !!>> i said :<< well isn't that considered steeling we should
give it to the owner right ? >> he said :<< nah , don't worry about it , you have a plastic bag right ?
i don't , just put it in there and let's go .>> so i took the camera and our way home my
friend stopped and said :<<hey let me see the camera .. it looks really cool but i think
it's broken .. yuy .. you know what ? my neighbor is a camera-man I think he can
fix that .. you leave this to me okay ? >> so i said :<<okey , but .. it's "OUR" camera right ? i mean
you go fix it .. and keep it for like a week or so and I'll use it for a week
and give it back .>> he said :<< of course we're like brothers .>> So we both gone our separate
ways .. I was waiting for a call from him
But unfortunately I've never seen my friend since that day (laughs) so
HABIT NUMBER FOUR : THINK WIN-WIN
never sell friend for a stolen camera ..
Now imagine that you have a kid named Robert . You guys work on a farm and
live in the countryside robert wants totravel he wants to start working on his
comfort zone but there are very few people around living in small farms
robert came up to you one day apologizing that's has to go find a purpose and work
on his social skills in the big city. of course most people's response will be
like no . you can't do that . you need to stay here and work on the farm like your
grandfathers and your grand grandfathers did before you. Now here's what you want
You Robert to transform into a box . so you can move him around anywhere you want.
And when you come back from somewhere you want that box to say where you've left it.
it's easier to judge , impose your opinion or wait for your turn to talk back
Rather than listen , diagnose sympathetically and ask yourself maybe
that person is trying to pursue other values in his path that I cannot see
maybe he sees reality differently. how can i come up with a solution that's win-win
Satisfying both of us . if you respond without even trying to understand from
where the other person is coming from. You're simply treating that person as a box
HABIT number five: seek first to understand then to be understood.
i want you to imagine two people. they're trying to take a sword out of rock.
they keep keep for hours and hours.
but what they haven't thought of this is to try and take the sword out by combining their efforts.
this is called synergy. the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
Like combined mental and physical abilities, focus. So you should always be looking for these
synergistical opportunities with others. making the task easier for everyone.
habit number six: Synergize.
Now let's say we are both avid readers. both very passionate about self development books.
And one day, i offer you a book to read. titled "the art of breathing"
now what do most people respond to this kind of recommendation ?
(laughs) the art of what ? dude are you kidding ? am trying to read "Eckhart tolle" here.
don't joke around with that. this is what it means to judge a book by it's cover.
when i look at a book. I don't see it as a book anymore. I say: here are some of the most
biggest ideas this individual has struggled throughout his entire life to come up with.
Wrote it down in this $8 book like with editors and stuff, for You to read it.
i'm not saying you should read every book. But be willing to seek out new role models, new big ideas
Because no matter how much you think you know, there will always be that something that you don't know.
habit number seven is about accepting
the journey of endless learning:
Sharpen the saw.