The world can change in an instant. So can the way you choose to see it. Why not choose to see the good in yourself and others
Bob Perks

InspirEmail

InspirEmail No 214 - August 22nd, 2011 - Making bricks or building cathedrals
'Inspirational messages to refresh the spirit and boost the emotional bank account'

Making bricks or building cathedrals

According to an old parable, three men were working hard cutting stone from large blocks of granite.

When asked what they were doing, the first fellow said, 'I'm making bricks.'

The second said, 'I'm creating a foundation for a large building.'

The third person answered, 'I'm building a cathedral.'

They are doing the exact same job, and all three responses were accurate, but they reveal the huge difference attitude makes. It's the difference between tolerating or enjoying one's life, between thinking small or large.

Mindset matters!

Just like the stone cutters, most of us have a habitual or characteristic mental attitude that determines how we experience and interpret situations. It's pretty clear that the fellow who saw himself playing an important role in building a grand cathedral is much more likely to feel good about his work and his life than the guy who defines his job as making bricks.

A bookkeeper for a school may think of herself as someone who just works with numbers or as part of an enterprise that educates children.

A math teacher can characterize himself as someone who teaches long division, someone who seeks to make all math interesting and understandable, someone who teaches students how to learn difficult concepts, or, larger yet, someone who helps young people develop attitudes and skills that will help them lead worthy and successful lives.

What do you do?

Don't minimize yourself by just describing the tasks you perform; think big.

There is no job that can't be meaningful and gratifying, if not because of how it fits into a larger picture of producing human happiness, then at least in terms of the gratification you can feel simply from a job well done.

Written by Michael Josephson
To learn more about the work of Michael Josephson, please visit . . . Character Counts >>>

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Changing your thinking

If your thoughts could cause things to instantly happen, what kind of thoughts would you think?

If your values and priorities were to be continually manifested in the world around you, what values and priorities would you choose?

The fact is your thoughts, your values and your priorities most certainly have a major influence on the quality of your world and your life. Though you cannot instantly make something appear just by thinking about it, the things that do end up appearing in your life often do so as a result of your thoughts.

Your thoughts directly control your actions, and your actions have a major impact on the reality of your life. When you feed your moments with positive, loving, thankful thoughts, your life and your world cannot help but benefit.

The quickest way to improve your situation is to improve the way you think about it. Though your thoughts will not immediately change anything outside of you, they can immediately change your outlook.

And by adopting an affirmative, creative, grateful outlook on life, you receive a double benefit. Your actions become more focused on creating value and at the same time, they become more effective.

Changing your thinking can indeed change your world. So choose the best thoughts that you can possibly imagine.

By changing your thinking; you change your beliefs.

When you change your beliefs, you change your expectations.
When you change your expectations, you change your attitude.
When you change your attitude, you change your behaviour.
When you change your behaviour, you change your performance.
When you change your performance, you change your life!

With thanks to JKannan Kannan for sharing this story