The imagination is probably the most powerful tool that we have at our disposal. Everything that man has created was born out of the imagination. The difference between the life of a pauper and the life of a king is mostly due to how well or how badly the imagination was used.

It is through the imagination that our Universe is defined and that our reality is created. It could be said that our imagination is the seat of our consciousness and the house of our awareness. Everything that we consciously perceive is colored by the flavor of our imagination.

Given all its power and importance, should the imagination be allowed to run free and unbridled? That would be like sending off a nuclear aircraft carrier without a Captain. A certain recipe for disaster.

The imagination is a faithful servant when it has a strong master but it will become a tyrant when allowed to run free and unchecked. The main reason for that is the fact that the imagination is easier stirred by tragedy and negativities than it will be by beauty and creativity.

More people will stop to see a gory accident than pause to reflect on a beautiful and inspiring sunset. A novel without some tragedy would not sell and “good news” newspapers never got off the ground. Bad news circle the Globe in a matter of minutes but a superb achievement will only stir modest attention.

The imagination will obey the will. It answers any question that we may ask. It will focus wherever it is directed. And most importantly, it will take whatever slant it is instructed to take on any subject under the sun. That is, the imagination can look at a situation with a bright and optimistic outlook as it can do it veiled with the shadows of gloom and doom.

That is where imagination control becomes all-important. Any situation, condition or prospect can be viewed in a way that will brighten the picture and highlight its positive aspects. We see beautiful examples of this many times when people face hardships and find ways of seeing the sun shine in a very cloudy sky.

On the other hand, we’ve also seen people who were sitting on what looked like the top of the world and only saw sadness and desolation in their lives. It’s not what happens to us that defines our reality; it’s how we use our imagination to view the outside circumstances that creates our internal affective world and defines what it means for us.

As toddlers, a cardboard box could become a beautiful house and we could see a precious gem in a colored rock. Unfortunately, much of that magic has been repressed as we grew up. We became more sophisticated and more discerning – thinking that it was the smart thing to do. Not really. All that we accomplished was to hide one of our most precious gifts – the capacity to define our own world.

Imagination is one of the greatest gift and most versatile tool that was given to man. Used judiciously, it can perform magic. Left to its own wile it can have devastating effects. It can be a dutiful servant or a demonic tyrant. We get to decide what we make of it.

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Life is about balance and equilibrium. One of the best ways to learn and grow is by emulating the Greats of this world. On the other hand, since each of us is basically different, we must at times be willing to leave the beaten path and forge ahead in uncharted lands. That’s when we need to start thinking outside the box.

Thinking outside the box is creativity at its finest. That’s how some of the greatest breakthroughs came about. While most people were thinking about reinventing the proverbial “better” mousetrap, someone said, “Hey, how could I make a million dollars using my computer?” The rest is history – hundreds of new billionaires.

While everyone was mailing resumes, someone said, “How could I create my own job?” Result, hundreds of new entrepreneurs making tons of money and having the time of the lives. Again, the magic of thinking outside of the box.

It is said that, “People do what people do because people do what people do.” What that saying does not say is that when people do what other people do, they also get what other people get. We don’t have to look around very long to find out that maybe we don’t want what others have. That’s not being cynical; it’s being factual.

Thinking outside the box is simply the pursuit of a seemingly outlandish or impossible dream. It is done by asking ourselves the simple question, “Why not?” It is done by exploring what may seem to be a fantasy at first sight, something that had never been done before. The simple fact that something has never been done before does not mean that it cannot be done or should not be done.

When we approach the autumn of our live, most of our regrets are not over things that we have done but about what we should have done and did not have the courage to do.

We don’t know what we are capable off until we try. We have personal resources that we don’t even suspect that we have. They just lay there waiting to be discovered and exploited. It is said that we only use a fraction of our god-given talents. A statement that has never been disputed.

Napoleon Hill said, “What ever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” It takes courage and fortitude to believe and heed those words. They are powerful words and once integrated into a personal fundamental belief, they can unleash astonishing personal resources.

Thinking outside the box creates diversity. It opens new channels of expression and reveals new worlds. Often times it creates the channel to what was hitherto impossible, and in doing so, brings life to a new level. The story of man’s progress is the story of thinking outside the box.

Thinking outside the box is to think differently, unconventionally or from a new perspective. This is sometimes called a process of lateral thought. A technique that is especially useful when encountering a solid wall while pursuing an objective or developing a theory. When that happens, the only thing that can be done is lateral gravitating in search of the opening that will allow further progress.

Faith in the knowledge that, “where there’s a will, there’s a way” is the essential element to spur on and flame the process of thinking outside the box. A technique that could be called “life saving” for moribund concepts.

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The best way of climbing the ladder of success is by outgrowing the situation that we are presently holding. A person’s worth leaves clues and these clues don’t go unnoticed. Sooner or later, we gravitate to our level of competence.

Contrary to popular belief, it is not crowded at the top. There is plenty of room available just waiting for someone ready to fill the positions. The problem is not the lack of room; it’s the lack of people ready to fill the shoes that need to be filled.

Until we are ready to accept that belief, our chances of climbing the stairs of corporate or entrepreneurial success are considerably affected. No real progress is possible until a situation has been correctly assessed and established.

The problem is that we tend to follow the Pollyanna principle also called, “Positivity bias.” That principle says that, when doing a self-evaluation, we have a tendency to focus on our strong points instead of doing an inclusive survey of our real competences. In other words, we may not be as good as we think that we are.

In today’s fast paced world, being good at what we do is not good enough to rise in the corporate hierarchy. We are expected to be good; that’s what we get paid for. Being excellent will not do it either. Being excellent only means that we are filling our present place. It’s no reason to be promoted or to see an increase in our entrepreneurial revenues.

To be noticed, to be invited to fill a higher and more rewarding position, we must be outstanding. That is where the money is. That’s where the train that leads to the top starts. That’s where we get the wings that will allow us to soar above the crowd and reach the rarified air of the mountaintop of success.

Jim Rohn said it best, “Formal education will make you a living; self education will make you a fortune.” It is by working every day to improve ourselves that we can acquire the competence to become outstanding and in doing so, become a magnet for opportunities and advancement.

The self-education that Jim Rohn talks about is not restricted to our area of expertise. It also encompasses the entire gamut of the disciplines covered in the self-improvement world. It’s about life’s philosophy, character building, communication and relationships along with the multitude of subjects being covered in the self-help movement.

Self-education is about personal growth in all its facets. It’s about learning how to make finer distinctions and about taking wiser decisions. It’s about better self-control and about leadership abilities. In one word, it about becoming a better and more complete person. Smarter and wiser.

Greater success is the natural result of inner growth and self-actualization. Just as the tree depends on quality soil to reach maximal growth, success depends on the abundance of the intellect to bloom and flourish.

Make no mistake about it. There is plenty of room for advancement in the corporate world and plenty of room for growth in the entrepreneurial world. What is needed is not more room it is more qualified candidates.

There are plenty of opportunities out there just waiting for those who have the courage and wherewithal to spend some time every day on self-improvement. Victory belongs to those who have earned it – not to those waiting for some lucky star that won’t ever show up.

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When it is well understood and assimilated, this one sentence contains an entire philosophy. It can become a life’s purpose, a source of motivation and a guiding light to achievement and self-actualization.

The part that says, “Life is a gift.” is particularly telling. Once that the fact that life is a gift is accepted, everything changes. Instead of feeling that life owes us we are left with the feeling that it is we that owes to life.

This could be better explained by using an analogy. Let us say that someone gives you a nice car. Chance are very good that you would be grateful for the gift instead of complaining that the car has not your favorite color and that it is not brand new.

Same thing with the gift of life. When accepted as a gift, we don’t go around complaining that all is not perfect. We accept the gift gratefully and do our utmost to enjoy it as much as possible.

Accepting life as a gift rather than as an ordained right is a slight but a very meaningful distinction. We are more prone to value and enjoy the gift and every day that is given us becomes an added bonus instead of a source of recrimination for whatever is not perfect in our eyes.

Serenity is not a matter of outside circumstances; it’s a way of interpreting our reality. It’s a matter of accepting what is, changing what can be changed and coping gratefully with what is given us. Life may not unfold exactly as we would like but it’s always better than non-existence or the great void.

The quote also says, life offers us the privilege, opportunity, and responsibility to give something back by becoming more. There is a world of wisdom in these words. It’s about the duality of the Universe. It’s about the Ying and Yang that rules everything.

For every force there has to be a counteracting force. There are two sides to everything. Polarity is essential to existence. Without the negative, the positive cannot exist. Life is about symbiosis and contribution. In order to get, we must give.

The more we give and contribute, the more we get back. This fundamental truth is of special importance for anyone who happens to be on survival mode and struggling just to stay afloat. What can you give if you barely have enough for yourself?

Giving can take the form of support, advice, encouragement and above all human warmth. There is always someone who could use some moral support or a good word. It does not cost anything and it can make a world of difference to someone in need.

It is by sowing that we reap. It is by giving that we receive and no one is so poor that he does not have something to give. Contribution is more a question of attitude than a matter of material possessions.

Basically, what this quote says is that life is a gift and with that gift came some talents. Now, if we choose to appreciate that gift, cultivate those talents and share their fruits, the end results will be the life of our dream. One short quote that says it all.

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The outer layer of the brain, called the cerebral cortex or grey matter, has grooves known as, “sulci.” That is where the seeds of success lay dormant, just waiting to be discovered and nurtured so that they can metamorphose into beautiful and shining accomplishments.

Each of those seeds contains all the genes and other elements required to fulfill one of our dream or aspiration. They lay there, awaiting the heat that only a strong desire can provide, to break out of their shell and start growing like the mighty oak tree.

We don’t have to look in far-off or exotic places to find those seeds of success. They are right there, in our brain, just waiting to be set free so that they can grow and turn the invisible into the visible and the dream into reality.

Just as is the case of a stable chemical solution that needs a catalyst to start the desired reaction, our seeds of success need an outside stimulus to start the chain reactions that will propel them to actualization. That outside stimulus can only be provided by the heat generated by an intense desire.

Desire is the incubator that will break the shell of the dormant seed and give it life. Now, different seeds have different shells. The seed of bigger dreams have thicker shells, and the thicker the shell is; the greater the desire has to be if it wants to generate enough heat to break it open.

Desire is the genitor of accomplishments. Without a strong enough desire, nothing will happen. With a strong enough desire even the seeds that contain our wildest dreams can be awaken and set on their way to making the dream come true. The big dreams need the kind of desire that is flamed by passion and commitment.

Just as the Universe is controlled by specific forces and nature unfolds through very specific laws, dreams are turned into accomplishment by following a very specific pattern. When fully understood, we see that nothing in life happens by accident. Everything follows the law of cause and effect.

Great achievements start with a dream. As the dream takes shape, the desire to see it turn into reality also grows. When under the influence strong emotions, the desire has reached the critical point of intensity, life is infused into the seed of that dream and a new reality is created.

From that moment on, the life of the holder of that dream is changed forever. It is now growing time for the project and the creator of that project. That’s another law of the Universe. No major project or achievement is possible without some personal growth and transformation. Personal growth and achievement go hand in hand. We cannot have one without the other.

Once a project is completed, the person who started it is no longer the same person. Experience has been acquired, unsuspected personal resources have been found and a new level of self-respect has been established. That, in itself, might be even more important than the objective that was accomplished.

We have, in the folds of the grey matter of the brain, success seeds that are just waiting to be released through the influence of a strong desire. We have the seeds, all that we need to do is to supply the desire and then watch our dreams turn into reality and see ourselves expand into the person that we were meant to be.

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Strange as it may seem, in some cases, ignorance can be a blessing. Most of the world’s greatest achievements came to be because someone simply did not know that it could not be done. That’s when it would be appropriate to invoke the proverb that says, “Ignorance is bliss.”

The extent of what we can accomplish is only limited by the scope of our determination. Most of our limits are self-imposed. For thousands of years, people held the belief that it was impossible for a human being to run the mile in less than four minutes. But in 1954 Roger Bannister broke this imposing belief barrier.

In the whole history of the human race, no one had ever been able to break the four-minute mile, yet within one year of Bannister’s breaking the barrier, 37 other runners also broke it. And the year after that, 300 other runners did the same thing! Today, high school kids run the four minutes mile. All that because Roger did not know that it could not be done.

Most of man’s greatest achievements were thought to be impossible at one point. Someone did not know that it was impossible, went ahead and did it. Now it is seen as self-evident.

If we ever hope to do anything worthwhile with our life, the Art of Selective Ignorance has to be learned and mastered. That is, we have to learn to ignore all the reasons why it’s impossible to do something that has never been done before. We need to learn to ignore limitations, lacks and shortages.

One of the most important words in the vocabulary of great achievers is the adverb: how. They want to know “how” something can be done and they choose to ignore the reasons why it cannot be done. That is the Art of Selective Ignorance at its finest.

Dr. Martin Seligman of the University of Pennsylvania has introduced us to the world of “learned helplessness.” He has demonstrated how one single failed attempt at something that we tried to accomplish can create the belief that it meant that we could never accomplish that objective.

He also showed that this “one attempt” could create the belief that since we’ve failed in this particular project it also meant that we would fail in something that is totally unrelated. And, as if that was not enough, this one failure can also be seen as a personal flaw or personal ineptitude.

In 1895, Albert Einstein sat the entrance examinations to get into the prestigious Federal Polytechnic School (or Academy) in Zurich, Switzerland and failed. What a great mind the world would have lost if Einstein had taken that failure as a sign that he was not intelligent enough to pursue a life of research.

We can always learn from our failures. However, we must be selective on what we choose to learn. Instead of learning that failures are signs of personal ineptitude, we should learn from what went wrong and how it can be changed in future attempts.

The brain is a wonderful tool but it does need someone at the helm to direct it. Allowed to run free, it can create havoc; well guided it can produce wonders. That is why we should learn to master the Art of Selective Ignorance.

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It’s never their fault. The world is dedicated to ruining their life. Not only are they negative, they are also contagious. Misery loves company so they are constantly recruiting. Nothing would please them more than to have us join their army; the United Victims of the World.

Just as we would approach a contagious patient with precautions and care, we need to treat these people with due circumspection. At best, they will rain on our parade and in the worst scenario; they’ll win us over to their side.

The human mind is like the hard disk of a computer. It will register whatever we allow to filter in. No one in his right mind would visit Internet sites known to be contaminated. The same precaution and care should be used for our mind.

It has been estimated that it takes at least seventeen positive messages to counteract the effect of a single negative one. That is something that should be considered seriously. No one is immune from negative and demoralizing influences.

To perform at the highest level, we must be in the greatest possible state of mind. Something that cannot co-exists with a mind laden with negative and gloom and doom influences. To be all that we can be, mental hygiene has to be kept at the highest possible level.

Some years ago, an experiment was conducted in the Bronx, New York. Some good and honest police officers were placed in a precinct contaminated with bad cops. In less than six months, all those stellar police officers were just as corrupt as the group that they were placed with.

We are much more susceptible to be influenced negatively then we would like to believe. That is because it is done at the level of the unconscious. The cancerous negative metastases are implanted in our brain without our being aware of it. That is why they are so insidious and so damaging.

It is a fundamental axiom that we become like those that we associate with. No friend is better than bad friends, and unless we are stuck in a jail somewhere, it’s always possible to find worthwhile people to associate with. An excellent way of doing this is by volunteering for community services. That is usually where the best of the best can be found.

Mental Spammers and drama queens are everywhere. We cannot escape them totally so, good mental hygiene is absolutely necessary. As much time should be spent every day reading or viewing uplifting material as we do on body hygiene. That is where the famous Latin quotation, “Mens sana in corpore sano.” (A healthy mind in a healthy body) gets all its significance.

High performance requires high-level maintenance. Just as no one would travel a bumpy gravel road with a high performance Ferrari, no one serious about personal achievement should take the chance of being negatively influenced by the wrong crowd.

To perform optimally we need to be in the best possible frame of mind. That can only be done by associating with people who deserve our admiration and respect. A small price to pay to be all that we can be.

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In most cases, the self-image was pretty well defined by the time that we were three years old. The society in which we live, parents, friends and teachers had already, at that tender age, influenced us in accepting their views as to who and what we are. Most people go through life holding unto someone else’s opinion of their self-image. What a shame, what a waste.

The self-image is like a mask that could be worn in a play to define a character. And just as is the case in a play, the actor will remain faithful to that character. Yet, for all its importance, that mask is only the product of suggestions from others and from personal observations. The mask is the synthesis of randomly accepted suggestions and not much else.

Those suggestions created a fundamental belief that defined for us what we believe our nature to be. A belief is nothing but notions that are supported by evidences. Whether those evidences are factual or not does not matter. All that matters is the conclusions that they bring and those conclusions become our reality.

If the mask (self-image) that we are wearing does not serve us well, it can be changed. Remember finding a friend that you had not seen for a long time and be amazed at the transformation that had taken place since you had last seen that person. That transformation was caused by a change of the self-image.

The change could have been done either voluntary or unconsciously. The effect is the same either way. If we so choose, it is possible to change that image. That is done by consciously changing the tone of the chatter that constantly goes on in our mind.

We are constantly evaluating our performances and ourselves. Can you recall ever telling yourself, “I can’t do anything right. I’m stupid. No one likes Me.” Those are all comments that will reinforce a negative self-image. By consciously changing those comments to, “I’m a pretty sharp guy. I’m OK. People seem to like me.” the self-image will gradually change from negative to positive.

Dr. Maxwell Maltz, a plastic surgeon, was amazed at finding out that, even after intensive changes following cosmetic surgery, his patients still held on the belief that nothing had changed, that they were still disfigured. He came to the correct conclusion that the self-image will not conform to the reality but will hang on to previously held beliefs.

Dr. Maltz worked with these patients to change the self-image through autosuggestion and positive affirmations. In about thirty days, the change was complete. These people finally accepted new beliefs about themselves; their self-image changed and they were finally brought into a new reality.

We behave as we perceive ourselves to be. The self-image determines how we behave, how we see the world and how we think about ourselves. And, again, for all its importance that self-image probably has never been explored or questioned. If it serves us well, there is no need to change it. However, if it can be improved, it is always possible to do it. All that is needed is to change the self-talk. Try it and see miracles happen.

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We see it all the time and we may be guilty of it ourselves. People who ignore their own needs, only think about others expecting to be repaid with gratitude and find themselves taken for granted and denied recognition for what they have done.

After awhile, these people are left feeling used and abused. They never realized that what they were doing was actually a form of manipulation. They were attempting to exchange service rendered for love and recognition. It simply does not work.

Love and kindness has to be a win/win situation or it will fail. If the satisfaction can be found in the giving, that is fine. But any attempt at bartering, conscious or otherwise, will fail. Love and gratitude are spontaneous responses. They cannot be coerced or forced. Either they are freely given or they will not come forth.

Actually it all boils down to true respect. Before we can truly respect others, we have to be able to respect ourselves. Again, we cannot give what we don’t have. Self-denial is not a virtue. It’s a lack of self-respect. It’s not a form of humility; it’s a form of servility.

The best possible way to be truly generous, loving and giving is by following the theory of Egoistic Altruism. Basically that theory says that you start by working in your own best interest first and then you extend your efforts toward others. That may sound selfish; it’s not. It’s common sense. Egoism is used to foster altruism; it’s not an end unto itself. It’s an effort to contribute more by becoming more.

The Egoistic Altruism theory is the antithesis of the victim mentality. It implies that the person will take responsibility for his happiness and welfare. It’s a way of teaching and inspiring through example. In one word, it means being part of the solution and not part of the problem.

We admire and respect those who have true respect for themselves. These people are seen as charismatic. We sense that if they can respect themselves, they will also respect others.

Our behavior is an extension of our feelings. When we are contented and happy, we spread joy and we’re generous. On the other hand, when we’re sad and feel deprived, it also affects our behavior. That’s the reason why it is important to look to our own best interest before extending our generosity to others.

Philosophers who support egoism have argued that altruism is demeaning to the individual and that no moral obligation to help others actually exists, and that all of our actions are based upon self-interest.

They are partially right. There is no moral obligation to help others and most of our actions are based on self-interest – but that’s as far as it goes. Contribution may not be an obligation but it is an essential requirement to self-fulfillment. Most of our actions are motivated by self-interest but if they do not, at one point, extend to the betterment of others, there is a character flaw.

Complete maturity implies the need for interdependence. That is, the need to share and contribute. That is where we see the nobility of man; that is where we become all that we can be.

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We live in a fast paced world. What was true yesterday should be questioned today. Either we develop the ability to change and adapt or we fall by the wayside. The age of dogmas is now passé. Everything is open to question and fluidity is the order of the day.

Time was when we could find security in familiar surroundings. That époque is now over. We must learn to surf with the tide of current events and situations. With the explosion of technology, we no longer live in a community but in a global village.

How then can we set our compass straight and keep our bearings in the midst of that turmoil? For that we need to turn to our basic values. Those can be seen as the North Star of the modern day sailors. Just as the North Star guided sea Captains for centuries, our basic values will guide us in the tumultuous and ever changing sea of life.

Our basic values are the fundamental beliefs that create the core of our character. Most of the decisions that we make are directed by those values. These values are incrusted in our self-image and perceived identity. They define who we believe ourselves to be.

Yet, given all their importance, most people have never taken the time to examine those values. No one would set out to sea with a faulty or unchecked GPS (Global Positioning System.) The same attention should be accorded to our values because they are the only one who can truly assist us in charting our way through an ever-changing world.

The first thing that needs to be done is to makeup a list of at least ten of our most important values. That list should be sorted out by order of importance and then evaluated one by one to make sure that those values are empowering and not conflicting with each other.

Your values could look something like this: 1. Health, 2. Personal Growth, 3. Family life, 4. Financial Security, 5. Relationships, 6. Adventure, 7. Contribution, 8. Spirituality, 9. Recognition, 10. Legacy.

Once the values have been sorted out by order of importance, they should be checked to ascertain that they are compatible and not conflicting. Someone who would have “adventure” and “security” as personal values is on a conflicting path. Adventure and security will not make compatible bedfellows. One of the two will have to be changed.

Our personal values are simply beliefs that we have acquired along the way. Our parents, our peers and the society in which we live have passed on most of them to us. Those beliefs are not cast in stone and they are not dogmas. They can be changed and they should be changed if they do not serve us the way that they should.

With our value clearly established, decision-making is no longer an issue. We know exactly where we intend to go; we know what’s important for us and what should be avoided at all cost. Our compass is set and even in turbulent times it’s easy to keep the cap in the intended direction.

We are the Captains of our ship and so long as we are guided by our fundamental values, the ship will stay safely on course. That is, so long as those values are dictated with quality and integrity in mind.

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