December 16

Choosing your thoughts

The rudder does not move the ship, yet it determines precisely which direction the ship will go. In the same way, your thoughts don’t make anything happen on their own, yet they absolutely determine what you cause to happen.

You’ll find it almost impossible to think one thing and do another. If your thoughts are in any way opposed to your actions, those actions will not be effective.

When you seek to be creative, productive, prosperous, successful, align your thoughts with what you seek. Fill your mind with thoughts of abundance, of possibilities, of achievement, and your actions will create that achievement.

Your thoughts set the course for your day, your year, your life. Your thoughts tell you what to do next, and what to do after that, and after that.

No, your thoughts cannot short-circuit the laws of physics to make a brand-new car appear in your driveway. However, your thoughts can most certainly keep you positively focused and directed enough to reach the goals you’re willing to work toward.

You are constantly choosing your thoughts, and those thoughts are always pointing the way forward. So think love, think fulfillment, think possibilities, think achievement, think positive and think yourself into the best world you can imagine.

-Ralph S. Marston

December 17

The benefit of your action

Escape the stale confinement of wishing, waiting, wondering. Refresh your day with action.

Shake off the excuses and rationalizations, the second guesses, regrets and indecisiveness. Energize your life with action.

Not every action will bring the results you desire. Yet the more you take action, the more effective you become at achieving what you choose.

Every time you act you create valuable experience. Besides producing results, that experience builds on itself, boosting your confidence and competence.

Is there something you wish you had done sooner? Or is there something you’ve been trying to decide how to start?

Give your attitude, your life, your world the benefit of your action. Do yourself a favor today, and get it done.

-Ralph S. Marston

December 18

Live the wonder

Live in awe of this day, of this existence, of this magical time and place you call now. Breathe in the ever fresh air of possibility and let it fill you with inspiration.

Delight in the biggest of wonders that exist within the smallest of details. Experience joy just because you choose to.

Look around, with eyes wide open, and see the magnificent realm in which you are immersed. Reflect, consider, dream, imagine, and feel the exhilarating spark of new possibilities as they fill your awareness.

Go forth in a state of awe and gratitude. Be inspired to the core by what is, and determined to make something good out of it today.

You are alive, aware, unique and capable. Remind yourself of the immense opportunity that exists right now and of your responsibility to do something beautiful and meaningful with it.

See the true wonder in all there is and in all you can do. Live the wonder, now and always.

Ralph S. Marston

December 19

Positive example

Don’t let someone else’s negativity become yours. These moments that are your life are too valuable to waste on that.

When another person is rude, thoughtless, disrespectful or worse, don’t react by sinking to that level yourself. Instead, let it motivate you to be even more understanding, thoughtful, and kind.

Reflecting negativity back at others does not teach them a lesson. A far more influential choice is to serve as a positive example.

Certainly you don’t want to allow others to take advantage of you. But neither do you want them to turn you against your highest, treasured values.

The best way to win is not by fighting. The best way to win is by being so strong, so positively purposeful that a fight never starts in the first place.

The petty negativity of others does not have to get to you. Because you can choose, in a loving, generous, amiable way, to live beyond it.

-Ralph S. Marston

December 20

Privilege

You have the privilege of living this day. You have the privilege of doing something good with it.

If there’s any task you consider a chore, a bother, a nuisance, step back and reconsider. What it is really, is a privilege.

When you fight against what you must do, all you do is make it harder on yourself. So do yourself a big favor, embrace the work, be thankful for it.

In fact, see if you can actually enjoy it. Chances are, you can.

There are those who would give anything to be able to do things you take for granted. Remind yourself how fortunate you are, and put that good fortune into action.

Honor the privilege with joy and gratitude. Take the actions, do the work, and feel life’s goodness as it flows through you.

-Ralph S. Marston

December 21

From here to there

Accept where you are, then decide where you wish to go. Know that there is a path from one to the other.

Take the first step on that path. The next step will then come into sharper focus, so go ahead and take that step too.

Wishing for conditions to be better will only make things worse. Put all your energy into actually making progress with your thoughts, your actions, your attitude.

You can get from here to there. You can carry yourself from the vision to the achievement.

It’s not a matter of wishing, begging, complaining. It’s a matter of accepting responsibility, and following through.

Today it is time for you to achieve, to make a difference, to do what you’ve always known you can do, what you’ve always desired. From right where you are, step forward and begin.

-Ralph S. Marston

December 22

Discomfort

Discomfort is by definition not pleasant. It is, however, powerful.

A person who never experiences discomfort will not know the full extent of life’s richness. That’s not an arbitrary judgment, but a fact proven over thousands of years.

Discomfort teaches what nothing else can. Discomfort pushes you to grow in a way that cannot be replicated.

Comfort is enjoyable and makes you soft, weak, puts you out of touch. Discomfort hardens, energizes, fills you with determination.

Muscles that have never experienced discomfort are feeble. Going through discomfort creates resilience, robustness, firmness, strength.

Go ahead, take on a challenge that makes you uncomfortable. You’ll get through it, and it will make you a whole lot better.

-Ralph S. Marston

December 23

Excessive information

Don’t let excessive information be the enemy of imagination. Dial back the data flowing in from outside, and strengthen your own inner vision.

Yes, it’s good to be informed, nice to be entertained. It’s also important to think for yourself.

Do yourself a favor and see how long you can resist the urge to check your news feed again. Discover the joy of allowing unique, compelling stories to arise in your imagination.

The latest buzz is not any different than the previous buzz, and is mostly meaningless noise. Let it go, and let yourself enjoy the deep pleasure of quiet contemplation or extended conversation.

What good is having the latest update if all you do is replace it with the next update? Make real, meaningful use of information instead of making it into an addiction.

Don’t let your mind go flabby by consuming more information than you can digest. Take the time, make the effort to process information into wisdom, richness and fulfillment.

-Ralph S. Marston,

December 24

Allow peace to be

Let go of the troubles and let peace into this moment. Allow peace to be, and let your life give new life to it.

Breathe in the fresh air of possibility. Feel the energy of love deep within you.

See that most of the things that seem so urgent are not really that important. Choose right now to focus your life, your awareness, on what truly matters.

In this moment, there is no stress, no conflict, nothing you need. For you are here, aware, experiencing the beauty, wonder, goodness of existence.

Stay for a little while and feel the part of you that is always you. Feel how your essence transcends time and circumstance.

Sink deeper into the peaceful presence and absorb its positive power. Then, step forward and share that peace with all of life.

-Ralph S. Marston

December 25

Joy of giving

To live at your highest level is to give of yourself. To live fully is to make a difference in the lives of others.

Look away from your problems, complaints, and dissatisfactions. Look toward ways you can be of service.

Life at its richest is life at its most helpful. There is always much you can do.

Seek only to take, and you will have nothing of value. Seek to give of yourself, and you can have everything that matters.

The joy of Christmas is the joy of a gift given in grace and pure love. Such joy has no logical reason, yet it fills countless lives.

Let your life be enriched by the joy of giving, today and every day. Give, and discover, in giving of yourself, all that you do best.

Ralph S. Marston

December 26

Everything is an opportunity

Whatever happens, you can make the best of it. Whether others might judge it to be good, or bad, inspiring, or debilitating, you can move positively ahead because of it.

Events and circumstances matter, but not nearly as much as what you do with them. When you so choose, everything is an opportunity.

You don’t have to wait for life to deliver inspiration. You can be the inspiration, right now, right here, any time, any place.

Instead of responding to a disagreement as a conflict, you can respond to it as an opportunity for understanding. Instead of responding to a setback as a tragedy, you can respond to it as an opportunity for massive progress.

Yes, you can, because you are able to focus your attention in whatever direction you choose. You’ve done it all your life.

Your attention is your choice and ultimately, your attention is what matters. Choose wisely, deliberately, and choose a great, fulfilling life.

-Ralph S. Marston

December 27

Push worry aside

To stop worrying, start focusing. To stop being distracted, get yourself fully immersed and fascinated in meaningful work.

Like everyone else, you have concerns regarding issues you cannot do anything about. If you let them, these concerns can overwhelm and disable you with negativity.

But you don’t have to let that happen. Because you can push those concerns completely out of your awareness.

To do that, focus fully on what you can control. Focus fully on the good, useful, meaningful goals you can accomplish.

An idle mind can quickly be filled with despair. By contrast, a focused, determined, purposeful mind puts you on course to achieve great things.

Worry is a waste, and you can literally put it out of your mind. Concentrate on doing the good you can do, and keep your mind happily occupied.

-Ralph S. Marston

December 28

Make it mean something

You have one chance to live this day. Make it mean something.

You have one chance to transform the fleeting moments of this day into lasting value. Make those moments count, in a way you’ll always be thankful for.

Today, you can enjoy adding meaning, substance, value to the world. Today, you can experience the deep satisfaction of knowing you’re making a difference.

It’s a grand opportunity, upon you right now. Seize it, go for it, jump with enthusiasm into it.

Even if you’re not quite sure where to start, go ahead, start. With a firm commitment to get good, meaningful work done, and with rock-solid persistence, you’ll find a way.

Life is your playing field today, and upon that field your efforts will change the world. Make those changes wonderful, and make this day one you’ll be happy to have lived.

-Ralph S. Marston

December 29

Choose the best consequences

Each thing you do has a consequence. Much of your life is the result of choices you have made, actions you have taken.

The things you do either erode the quality of your life or they enrich your life. Your actions either make your world a better place or they litter your world with despair, regret, and fear.

You can choose your consequences by choosing your actions. Even the small actions can have great consequence, because they are so often repeated.

This moment, this day affords you great power. For you can decide on the consequences that will be visited upon you tomorrow.

Are you about to do something that will cause regret and frustration later? Now is your chance to make a more positive choice, something for which you can always be thankful.

This moment is a choice, and you can be sure it will have consequences. Make the choice that will make life richer and more fulfilling for all.

-Ralph S. Marston

December 30

Keep at it

If you haven’t achieved the results you seek, you haven’t kept at it long enough. Keep at it, longer, smarter, more focused, more purposeful.

With each attempt you learn, you improve, you get closer. You’re making progress, so keep at it.

If you feel like quitting, remind yourself you’re closer than ever before. Remind yourself, and keep at it.

Apply what you’ve learned, adjust based on the experience you’ve earned. And keep at it.

Keep at it, and take another step in the direction of achievement. Keep at it, and create new value with each action.

Your dreams, your goals, your life all deserve your persistence. Keep at it, and bring your own unique goodness to the world.

-Ralph S. Marston