Wednesday Wisdom

Seed tomorrow with wise thinking today!

Working in Atlanta, Georgia this week and as I had a relaxing breakfast this morning I read an article written by Darren Hardy of Success Magazine. His title grabbed me first:
Did you know your brain is NOT designed to make you happy?

Reading on, I was reminded of the importance of a disciplined mind and intentional choices:

I know this might be alarming to you, but the brain has only one primary responsibility—to keep you alive. Thus your brain is constantly on the lookout for danger and attack warnings. Your brain is programmed specifically to seek out the negative.

Great – so, left unguided, our mind will simmer on the negative all day long. Couple that with the fact that energy flows where our attention goes. What we think about comes about. What if we want things beyond simple safety like love, prosperity and happiness? We obviously need to discipline our thinking and be clear about our choices.

Today, I’ll focus on what I’m grateful for and what my heart desires most.
How about you?

Life is calling . . .Today’s the day!

Visit http://www.The Success Studio.com . . . Learn Lavishly. Live Significantly. Leave a Legacy.
http://www.marilynnsemonick.com
To read archived Wednesday Wisdoms visit http://www.thesuccessstudio.wordpress.com
Marilynn Semonick, CEO (Chief Exploration Officer)
Educator, Consultant, Coach, Facilitator, Professional Speaker
Marilynn@marilynnsemonick.com

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Wednesday Wisdom

Seed tomorrow with wise discovery today!

After a few weeks in China, I leave with deep gratitude for the rich memories I take with me and with a reminder of the human need to experience, learn and stretch. In my morning reading today, I contemplated the words of Confucius:

By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest. Second, by imitation, which is the easiest.all. And third by experience, which is the bitterest.

And, it surfaced Mark Twain’s words to remind us of the exploration required to stretch:

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So, throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.

May I always be grateful for expanding experiences and may I always seek learning that causes me to become a better version of myself. Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate the day. Happy exploration, dreaming and discovery to all.

Life is calling . . .Today’s the day!

Visit http://www.The Success Studio.com . . . Learn Lavishly. Live Significantly. Leave a Legacy.
http://www.marilynnsemonick.com

To read archived Wednesday Wisdoms visit http://www.thesuccessstudio.wordpress.com

Marilynn Semonick, CEO (Chief Exploration Officer)
Educator, Consultant, Coach, Facilitator, Professional Speaker
Marilynn@marilynnsemonick.com

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Wednesday Wisdom

Seed tomorrow with wise experiences today!

I’m working in Shenzhen, China, which was a small fishing village in the 1970s. Since then, foreign nationals have invested more than $30 billion USD in building factories and forming joint ventures to create what is now reportedly one of the fastest growing cities in the world.

The area’s “economic liberalization” occurred under the policies of reformist leader Deng Xiaoping. In 1919, Deng, at 15 years old, traveled abroad to participate in a work study program. The night before his departure, his father asked him what he hoped to learn by traveling so far from home. He repeated the words he learned from his teachers:

To learn knowledge and truth from the West in order to save China.

Deng had been taught that China was weak and poor and the Chinese people needed a modern, Western education to save their country.

He took his studies seriously and also worked in an iron and steel plant, and then as a fitter in an automotive plant, as a fireman on a locomotive and as a kitchen hand, barely making enough to survive. When he returned to China he applied what he learned and eventually helped to lead one of the world’s most significant economic initiatives because of his expanded vision of possibilities.

So, I ask myself to be mindful of expanding my world view. How do I learn and experience in ways that challenge and stretch my thinking? Believing my ideas are the only correct ones can be stifling and often dangerous in an ever changing world. I’ll remember this lesson as I leave this land.

Life is calling . . .Today’s the day!

Visit http://www.The Success Studio.com . . .
Learn Lavishly. Live Significantly. Leave a Legacy.
http://www.marilynnsemonick.com

To read archived Wednesday Wisdoms visit http://www.thesuccessstudio.wordpress.com

Marilynn Semonick, CEO (Chief Exploration Officer)
Educator, Consultant, Coach, Facilitator, Professional Speaker
Marilynn@marilynnsemonick.com

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Wednesday Wisdom

Seed tomorrow with wise service today!

I’m writing from The Marriott City Wall Hotel in Beijing. The property is literally adjacent to a section of the incredible Great Wall. How blessed I am!

This civilization has an incredibly vast, deep and rich history. Ancient wisdom has survived over centuries and proven invaluable to hundreds of generations, within and beyond its borders. Here’s one of my favorite:

If you want happiness for an hour, take a nap.
If you want happiness for a day, go fishing.
If you want happiness for a month, get married. (I think this was added after the ancients)
If you want happiness for a year, inherit a fortune.
If you want happiness for a lifetime, help others.

Research is clear that pursuing happiness doesn’t produce it. Perhaps the best way to be happy is to give happy. So, who will you serve today to create a satisfying internal smile?

Life is calling . . .Today’s the day!

Visit http://www.The Success Studio.com . . . Learn Lavishly. Live Significantly. Leave a Legacy.
http://www.marilynnsemonick.com

To read archived Wednesday Wisdoms visit http://www.thesuccessstudio.wordpress.com

Marilynn Semonick, CEO (Chief Exploration Officer)
Educator, Consultant, Coach, Facilitator, Professional Speaker
Marilynn@marilynnsemonick.com

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Wednesday Wisdom

Seed tomorrow with wise learning today!

I’m preparing to work in China for the next few weeks and, as I pack, I find myself reflecting upon how glorious adventures can be on this little blue marble we call Earth. All around the world beauty, charm and grace abundantly welcome anyone who seeks with open arms. Intense aromas and tastes of foods with provocative variety tempt and satiate. Luscious landscapes intoxicate the senses. Warm and welcoming people bursting with wisdom make me giggle with anticipation of who I’ll meet and what I’ll learn.

So, I look forward to savoring the sites, experimenting with the foods and enjoying the people. Most of all, I look forward to what I’ll learn. For, as Leo Buscaglia wrote:

Change is the end result of all true learning.

As I anticipate my departure, I await experiences that cause the kinds of shifts that continue to define me. And, I remember that we don’t have to leave where we stand to learn. We simply need to reach in and stretch out wherever we are . . . how will you embrace learning today?

Life is calling . . .Today’s the day!

Visit http://www.The Success Studio.com . . . Learn Lavishly. Live Significantly. Leave a Legacy.
http://www.marilynnsemonick.com
To read archived Wednesday Wisdoms visit http://www.thesuccessstudio.wordpress.com
Marilynn Semonick, CEO (Chief Exploration Officer)
Educator, Consultant, Coach, Facilitator, Professional Speaker
Marilynn@marilynnsemonick.com

Read Full Post »