Thursday, June 19, 2008

Quotable Quotes


1. Tears are the safety valve of the heart when too much pressure is laid on it.

-- Albert Richard Smith, author and entertainer (1816-1860)

2. Conscience is a mother-in-law whose visit never ends.

-- H. L. Mencken

3. People often find it easier to be a result of the past than a cause of the future.

-- Unknown

4. No one can guarantee the actions of another.

-- Spock, "Day of the Dove", stardate unknown

5. Man is the only animal that can remain on friendly terms with the victims he intends to eat until he eats them.

-- Samuel Butler (1835-1902)

6. The reasonable man adapts himself to the world;

the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself.

Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.

-- George Bernard Shaw, Nobel laureate(1856-1950)

7. Hating people is like burning down your own house to get rid of a rat.

-- Henry Emerson Fosdick

8. Conquest is easy. Control is not.

-- Kirk, "Mirror, Mirror", stardate unknown

9. They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.

-- Benjamin Franklin, 1759

10. It's not the size of the dog in the fight,

it's the size of the fight in the dog.

-- Mark Twain

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Got this in a forwarded mail ...

There's an English proverb that
goes: "One father is worth more than a hundred schoolmasters."


Fathers can teach their children many important lessons. Father's Day is Sunday, June 15, and it brings to mind
some of the valuable lessons I learned from my father, Jack Mackay. I've shared
many of them with you in my books and columns, but here they are, in one nice
package, for the 64.3 million fathers out there.


My dad headed the Associated Press in St. Paul, Minn., for many years. He lived by deadlines. When he told
his 10-year-old fishing partner, "Be at the dock at 7:30 a.m." and I arrived at
7:35, I would be holding my fishing pole in one hand and waving bon voyage with
the other. Time management 101.


When I began my career selling envelopes, I asked my father how I could make twice as much money as my fellow
sales reps.


He asked me how many sales calls my peers made every day. I told him that everyone made about five calls a day,
and I could match them call for call.


"No good," he said. "Do what they do and you'll make what they make. Figure out how you can get to 10 calls a
day and your income will double."


We worked out a game plan, which became a life plan. I learned when the buyers were in the office and worked
according to their schedules, which sometimes meant anytime from 6 a.m.-8 p.m.
and Saturday mornings. I quit making cold calls, was among the first to get a
cell phone and learned many other time management tips from my
father.


TRUST is the most important five-letter word in business and in life. When I was only eight years old, he
said: "Son, would you like to learn a lesson that might save your life some day?"


"Sure I would, Dad," I answered.


"Just slide down the banister and I'll catch you," he urged.


I slid ... and landed on the carpet. As I dusted myself off, he announced, "Never trust anyone completely.
Keep your eyes open and your wits about you."


Similarly, my father encouraged me at a young age to keep track of all the people I met on Rolodex cards, now on
my computer. He was a master networker. He knew where to get stories, much like
I learned where to get sales.


Maybe the most important lesson my father taught me was that your best network will develop from what you do
best. In my case that was golf. When I joined the sales game after college,
where I had been a varsity golfer at the University of Minnesota, my father
suggested I join Oak Ridge Country Club, which I couldn't afford. Because Oak
Ridge was historically at the bottom of the city golf league, I offered to play
for them and try to win them a championship. Six months and numerous meetings
later, I was admitted to the club where I gained access to many of the major
companies around town.


My father also taught me that the big name on the door doesn't mean diddly. You have to know who the decision makers are.


In addition, he warned me
against telling anyone how I vote. That's why it's a secret ballet. The Democrats think I'm a Republican, and the Republicans believe I'm a Democrat.


My father's greatest
professional attribute was his nose for a good story and his indefatigable zeal
in getting it. He taught me the same desire, determination and persistence for
sales.


After a skiing accident that
landed me in the hospital for 35 days in neck traction, he told me, "You can take any amount of pain as long as you know it's going to end."


My father taught me many more life lessons, among them:


  • They don't pay off on effort . . . they pay off on results.
  • No one ever choked to death swallowing his
    pride.

  • He who burns his bridges better be a damn good
    swimmer.

  • Education is like exercise. As soon as you quit
    you begin to lose the benefits.

  • It's hard to soar like an eagle when you're
    dressed like a turkey.

  • If you win say little. If you lose say
    less.

  • We are judged by what we finish, not by what we
    start.

Thursday, June 05, 2008

Got this as a forwarded mail. So true ....


London Times Obituary of the late Mr.
Common Sense - Sunday, 31st March 2008

Today we mourn the passing
of a beloved old friend, Common Sense, who has been with us for many years. No
one knows for sure how old he was, since his birth records were long ago lost in
bureaucratic red tape. He will be remembered as having cultivated such valuable
lessons as: Knowing when to come in out of the rain; why the early bird gets the
worm; Life isn't always fair; and maybe it was my fault.

Common Sense
lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you can earn)
and reliable strategies (adults, not children, are in charge).

His health
began to deteriorate rapidly when well-intentioned but overbearing regulations
were set in place. Reports of a 6-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment
for kissing a classmate; teens suspended from school for using mouthwash after
lunch; and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student, only worsened his
condition.

Common Sense lost ground when parents attacked teachers for
doing the job that they themselves had failed to do in disciplining their unruly
children.

It declined even further when schools were required to get
parental consent to administer sun lotion or an Bandaid to a student; but could
not inform parents when a student became pregnant and wanted to have an
abortion.

Common Sense lost the will to live as the Ten Commandments
became contraband; churches became businesses; and criminals received better
treatment than their victims. Common Sense took a beating when you couldn't
defend yourself from a burglar in your own home and the burglar could sue you
for assault.

Common Sense finally gave up the will to live, after a woman
failed to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot. She spilled a little in
her lap, and was promptly awarded a huge settlement.

Common Sense was
preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his
daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason.

He is survived by his 4
half brothers; I Know My Rights, I Want It Now, Someone Else Is To Blame, and
I'm A Victim.

Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he
was gone. If you still remember him, pass this on.