29Jan 2014 by CJ

Don’t allow insecurities to make you AGREE with everything a person says

Life & Living
Our 36th President of the United Sates, Lyndon B. Johnson, once remarked, “If two men agree on everything, you may be sure that one of them is doing the thinking.” I have no doubt that all of us have encountered people in our lives whose insecurities and need for continually acceptance causes them to AGREE with everything a person says. They have no opinion of their own (at least nothing ever expressed verbally). The rarely contribute anything constructive to a conversation for fear of being judged. They lack the courage and personal confidence a person needs to be proud of who they are and the many skills and abilities they possess. In short, their fear of failure or being criticized cripples them in every facet of their lives. How do…
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27Jan 2014 by CJ

Failure is not a sign of weakness – it’s a sign of courage

Life & Living, Youth
When you’re faced with a life-changing decision and you’re standing at the crossroads, do you find yourself asking… What if I make the wrong choice? What if I ultimately wind up failing? These questions are not unique however. They’re a shared human behavior that causes us all to want to succeed and be accepted favorably in everything we set out to do. I confess that in my own life my successes seem to equal my failures. But I don’t walk away from either without learning something – extracting a better understanding of myself, my desires and the environments I need in order to thrive both personally and professionally. Author Sarah Dessen writes in her book “Along for the Ride”, “Life is full of screw-ups. You're supposed to fail sometimes. It's…
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26Jan 2014 by CJ

Sometimes we need to prolong the excitement to just be

Life & Living
Today was one of those lazy Sundays – admittedly it was a fairly lazy weekend. While I accomplished a few tasks around the house, finished a book I was reading and visited with family, I found myself spending more time sitting on the couch gazing at the snowflakes falling outside my window then doing anything truly constructive with my time. We spend so much of our work-week overwhelmed with 9-5 activities and chores at home, that when the weekend does finally arrive all we can do is lay comatose in an effort to recuperate. Whenever that happens I get so angry with myself – disappointed that I didn’t use what little time I have away from work more wisely. But then I sit back and remember something my favorite neighbor…
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20Jan 2014 by CJ

Our jobs should be filled with the joy of achievement

Life & Living
The American worker. We all fall into this category when the realities of life require a steady income to pay for the necessities and luxuries our existence demands. My grandfather was a skilled machinist – highly regarded at his place of employment for his personal character, his unending abilities and unwavering commitment. He found true fulfillment in his occupation, which is what kept him with the same company for almost four decades – an unfathomable duration for many of us to comprehend today. I remember asking him once how he could work at the same place for so long. His answer was simple: “When it doesn’t feel like you’re going to work it’s easy. When people respect you and treat you fairly that makes all the difference.” My grandfather, and…
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19Jan 2014 by CJ

As long as people still think of you, you’re not lonely

Love & Relationships
I admit that I’m a bit of a homebody. My home, and the person I share it with, provide me with a warm, supportive and comforting place to return to at the end of a busy day – so much so that I enjoy just spending time there whatever the circumstance might be. I’m not a hermit however – I do enjoying going out from time to time to see family and friends in social situations. Still it always nice to know I have such a memorable place to return home to. But some weeks seem busier than others and often leave me with a feeling of anxiety. When my day starts at seven in the morning and I don’t return home until well after seven at night, that’s a…
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