The summer I turned 13 was spent at the swimming pool. We swam at a huge olympic size pool with three diving boards at one end, two low dives and one high dive.

I had bragged to my friends that I could execute the perfect swan dive off the high board. Eventually, I was challenged to prove it. No problem. I believed that I could. In my imagination, I saw myself walking to the edge of the board and launching! I believed I could that is until I began to climb the ladder. At the top I realized I had gotten into more than I could just jump out of. It was a lot farther looking down than looking up. I started to back out, but the next kid in line was at the top of the ladder yelling, "It’s my turn!"

I heard the sound of other kids playing safely at ground level. I looked and saw the mocking smiles on the faces of my friends. I took a deep breath and dredged up my courage and jumped in head first.

For a moment, my dive was perfect. Then my feet flipped over my head and I landed with a terrific force in the most awful belly flop you could imagine. The wind was knocked out of me so badly I thought the lifeguard would have to fish me out.

I failed miserably, but I learned something. I learned to keep my big mouth shut. I also learned that sometimes the best way to reach your goals is to jump in head first. I have since learned that when you do accomplish your goals, your successes will affect many lives other than your own.

I read about a head firster recently. Anne and her brother Jim were a brother and sister with big problems. their mother died when they were young. Their alcoholic dad just disappeared. Anne legally blind, was only able to make out blurry shapes. Jim had a tubercular hip and walked with crutches. No one knew what to do with them so they were disposed of at the poorhouse in Tewksbury Massachusetts.

The Tewksbury poorhouse was a repository for human refuse. All the people that society did not have a place for ended up in places like this.

A living nightmare, Tewksbury housed children with the insane, the healthy with the contagious. The food was always bad, often rotten. At night, The rats were in charge.

Anne insisted that she and Jim be together. A wish that was honored until Jim died suddenly in the night. Anne was all alone now. Afraid but sure she could do better.

Her chance for escape came when an investigative committee came to tour the Tewksbury facility in response to rumors of ill treatment and misconduct.

This committee was led by Frank Sanborn. Anne knew that Sanborn could get her out of Tewksbury, if she could just get his attention.

Anne followed the investigators from room to room trying to discern which of them was Sanborn. When the committee ended their tour and was about to leave, Anne still had not identified Sanborn.

Anne literally jumped in head first. She dove into the midst of the entire committee. grabbing hold of skirt hems and pant legs, she pleaded - “I don’t belong here! I want to go to school!”.

Anne’s plea did get Sanborn’s attention. He helped her get out of Tewksbury and into school. 6 years later at the age of 20, Anne graduated from the Perkins School for the blind as the valedictorian of her class. She even received surgery to correct her eyesight.

This could be the end of a happy story, but Anne’s successes extend far beyond her own life. Anne’s habit of jumping in head first was about to help someone else.

Anne received a call requesting that she become the private teacher to a difficult student. She had become quite an innovative educational theorist. Now it was time to exercise her theory’s in real life.

When Anne arrived at the home of her new student, she saw that she did have an incredible challenge before her. As usual, Anne dove in. Working with her new student day and night she was able to pierce the darkness and break through the silence that had held her pupil captive.

The teacher, Annie Sullivan was able to finally reach through and communicate with her student, Helen Keller.

When it is time for you to reach for your dreams, close your eyes, take a deep breath… and jump in head first.

Steve Brummet is a communication expert, writer and speaker who works with all types of organizations to increase understanding of communication styles.

Better communication can help you and your organization reduce stress and increase productivity. For more information on one of our workshops, please feel free to call or write.

http://www.communicationspeaker.com steve@stevebrummet.com

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When Doris turned seventy-five, she was already widowed. The week she turned seventy-five, Doris threw two birthday parties for herself, one on a Wednesday night, and one on Saturday. Over thirty different people attended each party. I was the only person invited to both. In all, about seventy of Doris’ friends came that week to celebrate her birthday. On both nights many people stayed until past one in the morning.

As I looked around the room at both parties that week in amazement, I noticed that the people attending her birthday parties were of all ages. They included toddlers, teens, middle-aged people, and the elderly. Doris had never restricted herself to making friends only within her own age group. She had always made it a point to befriend people of all ages. Consequently, she did not suffer the same social fate so many elderly people face when their circle of same-age friends starts to dwindle from sickness and death. I hoped that when I was the same age as Doris that I would be able to have as many friends and acquaintances gathered to help celebrate my birthday.

I didn’t know any other people her age who could throw two birthday parties in one week, and have seventy people show up. I wondered how Doris had made so many friends. She had never been wealthy, but over the years Doris and her husband had made a practice of opening their hearts and their home to many people. They not only befriended a lot of people and maintained those friendships over the years, but they also befriended the children of their friends, and stayed friends with the younger generation.

I noticed that whenever I brought some of my own friends with me to visit Doris, she never treated my friends as expendable people that she would never see again. She was gracious and kind and interested in all of them. Her caring about each human being was always apparent. When we finished our visit, Doris would often extend an invitation to the friends I had brought to come and visit her again, and many of them did so.

When she issued invitations Doris never seemed as if she were inviting people because she was lonely or desperate for company. Her invitations were always genuinely joyful. She loved meeting people and wanted to see them again.

As Doris neared the end of her life, she became very ill. Yet, she never lacked for love and support from the many friends she had kept making throughout her whole life.

I learned something important that week at Doris’ two birthday parties. I realized that we make a big mistake if we tell young and middle-aged people to invest their money for their old age, but neglect to tell them that it is at least as important to invest in relationships with other people.

We make a mistake if we don’t tell people that it is just as important to invest kindness in the people we meet, and invest our interest in them. There are other kinds of investment accounts besides those that are held by banks. A big bank account won’t make up for loneliness in your old age.

I decided that if I wanted to have as many friends as Doris did, I would have to keep making friends and keep maintaining friendships my whole life. I would have to make friends with people of all ages, including those much younger and much older than me.

Older people confront unique challenges in trying to maintain a satisfying social life. Many people find it difficult to make new friends as they get older.

As people age they often face social, health and monetary challenges. Older people may become less physically mobile. They often have less money to spend on recreation and entertainment. Older people are also more likely to suffer from depression. They may be physically frail and afraid to go out at night. Even if they remain healthy themselves, aging people experience the deaths of long time friends and spouses, resulting in a shrinking circle of social and emotional support.

In the modern western world, older people are often treated as if their usefulness is finished, and as if what they have to say is not really relevant to the young. A lot of older people are shocked to discover when they retire at the age of sixty or sixty-five, that the friendships they thought had developed at work do not survive the retirement party.

In many modern societies, older people are socially marginalized, and left to socialize solely with each other. People in North America are much more segregated along age lines than people in some other parts of the world. In North America, teenagers tend to socialize with other teenagers, and older people are expected to make friends with other older people.

No matter where you live, or what your age, you do not need to follow your local society’s dictates about what age your friends should be. You do not need to restrict yourself to making friends only with your own age group.

If you are concerned that you may be lonely in your later years, the time to start doing something about it is now, no matter what your current age might be. As you grow older, make sure you stay living in the present, not in the past. In your conversations with others, don’t be fixated on who you used to be, or on your current ailments. Be willing to make many social approaches to others, no matter what the outcome. Stay interested in the current world, stay optimistic, and keep a youthful, open mind.

Royane Real is the author of several self help books available at her website. This article is taken from her new downloadable book titled “Your Guide to Finding Friends, Making Friends, and Keeping Friends”. Check it out at http://www.royanereal.com

Attitudes, for the most part, dictate the nature and result of our relationships with ourselves, other persons, places, things, concepts and ideas, the world at large, and in the final assessment, the very nature and result of the lives we lead.

It has been said that humans do not have attitudes; their attitudes have them. Our attitudes grow, develop, and often change over a lifetime, based exclusively on what we have learned to believe about the world around us, and all its components.

We make judgements and coping decisions based on what we believe to be true about a given situation or person, seldom considering that our beliefs and attitudes may be unrealistically rigid, or even at fault.

Attitudes - A System of Believing

Think on this. All humans come into this world like a blank sheet of paper, with no knowledge and no beliefs about the people and situations we will encounter. As individuals, everything we believe today to be correct and true, our worldview if you will, is a result of situations we have experienced thus far, and the lessons we have learned from those encounters.

From that lifetime bank of gathered information we develop systems of believing, or patterns of beliefs, that are as unique to each human as is a fingerprint. And needless to say, some people hold their particular belief system to be the only one that is correct and worthwhile.

As a direct outgrowth from our belief system comes our personal attitudes. Whether it be cooperative, neutral, defensive, or aggressive, an attitude is simply an individual’s patterned method of understanding and coping with the world, its inhabitants, and all related situations and circumstances.

Killer Attitudes

Hatred and intolerance are attitudes that have spawned warfare and death since a time before history was first written. Yet in a smaller and more personal, yet perhaps more relevant perspective, those attitudes can also condemn an individual to an ongoing inner warfare, a lack of peace within.

Rigid and inflexible beliefs and attitudes often produce a lock-step approach to living, keeping one in a state of constant contention with himself and the world about him. Quashed potential, perpetual discontent, damaged relationships, and personal failure on at least some level, are frequently the sad result.

On the other hand, attitudes of tolerance, acceptance, patience, and cooperation toward self and others can create a satisfying life, great achievement, healthy relationships, and numerous and varied definitions of the word success on all levels of business and personal endeavor.

A life built around flexible and positive attitudes will invariably foster harmony, contentment, productivity, and peace of mind for an individual and all who surround her.

Attitude - Asset or Liability?

It’s commonly known that major corporations expend untold billions of dollars annually on public relations advertising, specifically to overcome a common perception that labels them as greedy and heartless.

However large or small, most business concerns will, over time, develop a character or a persona that directly reflects the attitudes of those who have the most influence. Any contrived image that might be overtly displayed is typically of little significance.

The underlying attitude, the real attitude, will be felt and identified by customers and clients. And based upon those feelings and definitions, their own attitudes in fact, they will make their next buying decision.

Attitudes - the Deciding Factor

The final result of any business or personal endeavor will unfold in a direct relation to the beliefs and attitudes injected by individuals. This principle holds true without fail, in corporate board rooms, at front service desks, and at kitchen tables as well.

Fortunately, the power to choose in this aspect has been freely granted to all of humankind. What one believes will ultimately decide her or his own reality. Their attitudes will make it so.

Widely regarded as one of the founders of modern psychology, William James said, “The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes of mind.”

Dan B. Cauthron has been involved in direct marketing more than 30 years. He offers FREE No Nonsense Internet Marketing Advice and Tested Tools and Resources at: http://DanBCauthron.com

The moon had risen higher and the sky was darkening. The darker it became the more detail I was able to see.

There I was, a Saturday night, standing in my kitchen enjoying one of my home brewed beers and occasionally taking a peak through the eyepiece of my telescope. I had calibrated the telescope, and after a few simple selections on the hand-held control unit the scope swung around on it’s motorized mount and aligned on the moon, then continued to track our celestial neighbor. All I had to do was enjoy the view.

I decided to take some digital photos of the moon by simply holding the camera up to the eyepiece and carefully aiming before pressing the shutter release. Some of the pictures turned out pretty nice. It’s great to be able to enjoy the result so quickly, that’s the magic of digital photography. It’s convenient too, because if I took one I didn’t like I could just delete it.

I’m glad I picked up the camera, because during one look through the telescope I spotted a jet plane zipping across the bright face of the moon, in perfect silouhette. I brought the camera up to the eyepiece to capture the scene but unfortunately I missed the plane, though the contrail remained as evidence of what I had witnessed.

As I continued to monitor the moon I was hoping another plane would pass by, but none ever showed. I did see a formation of geese fly across the silvery orb, but I didn’t get my camera to the eyepiece in time.

It’s amazing what we can see if we stick around long enough and have a little patience. We can apply that to life too. If we careen blindly through life like an asteroid we often miss the neat stuff. The things that make us wonder in awe.

Stand on top of a mountain and see how big the world is. Peer through a telescope and see the craters on the moon. I imagine an asteroid has a pretty great view from out there, if indeed it could see.

Life’s a journey, so enjoy it. Look out any window. I love windows.

Drew Vics, an artist, writer & musician from New Jersey, writes for http://www.Myeyez.net, and for other websites online.

How do we rise above what we are? Can we elevate ourselves and look back down on our lives to see what needs more attention, or less? What’s important, what’s a waste of time?

I’ve managed to step onto my own shoulders for a better look, through my music. As a songwriter I frequently, and most certainly unintentionally, write about feelings and experiences from my own life. Sometimes I don’t recognize a connection until I’m performing the song or listening to it later on.

Where all these ideas comes from I can’t be sure. I always thought that I had to go through many long years of suffering before I could be worth anything as writer, but I found that my song lyrics, and my other scribblings, affect people.

Real writers, those with a genuine knack, are born to be what they are. Maybe sometimes people get more than their fair share of talents. A cruel joke by God? Maybe a test. Which talent will be used the most to affect the rest of the world?

I didn’t wake up one day and say I want to write songs, or even these observations. If I did I would likely be a lousy songwriter, or writer in general. Instead I have found that, when inspired, I have a knack for this writing thing. People who have heard my music believe it’s among the best they’ve heard, and they always comment on the poignancy of my lyrics. One fellow who bought my CD remarked, “…lyrically, it’s a killer!”

I appreciate these remarks. They make me examine myself more closely, to evaluate my work more carefully, because if people are this taken with my lyrics I must be extra careful what I write the next time around. My words can have great influence, so I want to make sure it’s a positive one.

As I look back on my accomplishments, which I still don’t think are much (call me humble), I start seeing myself in a different light. Not the kid who was made fun of in school, or the punk who couldn’t get his head out of you-know-where quick enough to save himself some real heartache. But I see myself as a growing, learning, human stumbling through a mistake-ridden life that’s finally smoothing out in the long run, and there’s plenty more to run, so just imagine how much smoother it can get!

Looking down, even in at yourself, however you manage to do it, can help you elevate your position within your own mind. Since we are the masters of our own destiny, isn’t that the right place to start? See yourself as the person you want to be.

By examining ourselves we can also learn how much heart we put into living our lives. The more heart that goes in, the less mundane your life will be. But you can’t keep your heart to yourself. No light shines in a room without windows, no voice can travel beyond the walls. Affect the world around you and see how the light shines in.

How do we rise above what we are? We rise to what we want to be.

Drew Vics, an artist, writer & musician from New Jersey, writes for