THERE'S NO DISPUTING THIS

"He is no lawyer who cannot take two sides."

Charles Lamb (1775-1834) English essayist.

Lawyers are subjected to much criticism, this quote alluding to one reason why; their ability to take either side of a dispute.

What's wrong with that?

Management would do well to develop this skill.

Before attempting to manage anything, first learn to understand the likely consequences of each side of every decision you make. 

DO YOU KNOW WHO'S WHO?

"Man is the only animal which esteems itself rich in proportion to the number and veracity of its parasites."

George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950) Irish writer.

You know; all those people you think love and respect you.

Some do but many others only look at you as a means to their end.

By definition your true friends are a much smaller group.

Social media all you want but don't use it to measure who'll be there for you when you most need them.

SURE, THERE'S STILL TIME, BUT HOW MUCH?

"Remember, today is the tomorrow you worried about yesterday."

Dale Carnegie (1888-1955) American writer.

The day you look back on what you should have done yesterday.

Nothing will get done yesterday.

YOU'RE SORRY, GOOD, NOW WHAT?

"Repentance is another name for aspiration."

Henry Ward Beecher (1813-1887) American politician.

Our request for forgiveness includes the suggestion, if not the specifics, of what we intend to become.

What will that be for you?

THIS TOO SHALL PASS

"Pain and pleasure, like light and darkness, succeed each other."

Laurence Sterne (1713-1768) British writer.

Like all things good, things bad also pass.

And the more you look for solutions, the quicker.

RESPECT YOURSELF

"Respect starts with yourself."

Proverb

The Staple Singers got it right.

If you want respect you must first respect yourself.

The good news is, we all have attributes worthy of our respect and that of others.  

ALL of us.

MAKING THE PROCRASTINATION PLAN

"The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing."

Walt Disney, American entertainment innovator

When you know what you want to do and have a plan to do it, absolutely.

I'm sure Mr. Disney would agree with that qualification.

And if you take too long deciding what you want to do, making a plan to do it, you're doing nothing regardless.

YOU'LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU?

"There is no person so severely punished as those who subject themselves to the whip of their own remorse."

Seneca (4 BC-65) Roman philosopher/playwright.

Remorse, in moderation, is a good thing.

It directs us to what and who we should be away from what we shouldn't.

Acknowledge and learn from your failings and then move on. There's no value in continual self-condemnation.

THE LAND OF DONE

"I dwell in Possibility."

Emily Dickinson (1830-1886) American poet.

Possibility is where the road to Accomplishment begins. 

Start there, don't end there.

DO YOU KNOW THIS?

"Ask the young. They know everything."

Joseph Joubert (1754-1824) French moralist.

Worse than knowing this is believing it to be true, no matter your age.

We all have much more to learn than we have to teach.

WE ARE ALL SALESPEOPLE

"You can close more business in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years trying to get people interested in you."

Dale Carnegie (1888-1955) American writer.

This isn't just good advice for those selling goods and services.

It's for us all.

Regardless of what we do we all must sell. 

Our ideas, suggestions, thinking, in other words, us.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE BORN WITH IT

"There are more men ennobled by study than by nature."

Marcus Tulius Cicero (106-43 BC) Writer/politician/roman orator.

Your greatness will likely come from what you learn rather than how or who you were born.

Learn all you can and nothing more than you need to learn all you can.

YOU HAVE A CHOICE, THIS IS IT

"To be happy, we must be true to nature, and carry our age along with us."

William Hazlitt (1778-1830) British essayist.

You can fight aging (ageing if you prefer), many do, all unsuccessfully.

Or you can embrace the process taking advantage of the good that comes each year you live.

What'll it be for you?

YOU'LL GET OUT MORE THAN YOU PUT IN

"Plough deep while sluggards sleep."

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) American statesman/scientist/philosopher.

Not one of Mr. Franklin's more erudite quotes but the point's still valid, if not always taken.

Those less inclined to work hard than those who do will also be less likely to succeed.

A REVOLUTIONARY THOUGHT

"Every revolution was first a thought in one man’s mind."

Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) U.S. poet/essayist/lecturer.

Not all revolutions succeed but none of those only thought, never began, ever will.

What is your revolution?

IF IT AIN'T BROKE . . .

"Striving to better, oft we mar what's well."

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) British poet/playwright.

Change what isn't "well" leaving "what's well" alone.

The difficult part is deciding which is which.

Do so carefully.

MUCH MORE THAN THE NAME

"There is a scarcity of friendship, but not of friends."

Thomas Fuller (1608-1661) British clergyman and author.

How appropriate in this day of Facebook "friends".

Don't be fooled; many, maybe most of yours, are not to you nor you to them.

Strive for friendship not friends.

PROBLEMS OF THE NIGHT

"The longest day soon comes to an end."

Proverb

We shouldn't but do carry our problems into the night.

The older I get the more capable I am of putting aside my concerns, at least for awhile.

The younger you learn to do that the sooner you will find solutions.

WHAT YOU WILL DO MORE THAN WHAT YOU DID DO

"Good character will be recognized as a result of many acts, and sometimes lost, the result of just one."

Unknown

There isn't one among or gone before us who hasn't done and/or said things that reflect poorly on their character.

You, me, all humans.

But more important than what we did wrong is what we do after to make the wrong right.

YOU'VE GOT A LOT TO LEARN

"Only the educated are free."

Epictetus (50-120) Greek philosopher.

Free to be and do what they want to be and do.

And only the educated know the more they are is never as much as they can be.

YOUR CHOICE

"To reach a port we must sail, sometimes with the wind, sometimes against it. But we must not drift or lie at anchor."

Oliver Wendell Holmes (1809-1894) American author/poet.

You have the power to determine your future, the excuses you make for failing to act notwithstanding.

If where you are isn't where you want to be, chances improve greatly you will succeed if you create and execute a plan to get there.