SPECIAL ARTICLES Mission Statement Nominations Links Contact Us Home Education Heroes 911-Remembered Donate/Sponsors    Heroes Inspirational/ Special Books     Special Articles page 2 Leadership : How to Become an Ideal Leader By: Sulamita Berrezi When you are at work, do you get frustrated because things don't seem to be happening the way they’re supposed to be? You see people milling around but nothing gets accomplished. And in the daily hustle and bustle, do you feel that your goals remain just that – goals. Then maybe its time for you to stand up and do something about it. Most people are content just to stand around listening for orders. And it isn't unusual to adopt a follow-the-leader mentality. But maybe, somewhere inside of you, you feel the desire to make things happen – to be the head, not the tail. Then maybe leadership just suits you fine. Some people believe that great leaders are made, not born. Yes, it may be true that some people are born with natural talents. However, without practice, without drive, without enthusiasm, and without experience, there can be no true development in leadership. You must also remember that good leaders are continually working and studying to improve their natural skills. This takes a commitment to constantly improve in whatever endeavor a person chooses. First of all, let's define leadership. To be a leader, one must be able to influence others to accomplish a goal, or an objective. He contributes to the organization and cohesion of a group. Contrary to what most people believe, leadership is not about power. It is not about harassing people or driving them using fear. It is about encouraging others towards the goal of the organization. It is putting everyone on the same page and helping them see the big picture of the organization. You must be a leader not a boss. First of all, you have to get people to follow you. How is this accomplished? People follow others when they see a clear sense of purpose. People will only follow you if they see that you know where you are going. Remember that bumper sticker? The one that says, don't follow me, I'm lost too? The same holds true for leadership. If you yourself do not know where you're headed to, chances are people will not follow you at all. You yourself must know the vision of the organization. Having a clear sense of hierarchy, knowing who the bosses are, who to talk to, the organization's goals and objectives, and how the organization works is the only way to show others you know what you are doing. Being a leader is not about what you make others do. It's about who you are, what you know, and what you do. You are a reflection of what you're subordinates must be. Studies have shown that one other bases of good leadership is the trust and confidence your subordinates have of you. If they trust you they will go through hell and high water for you and for the organization. Trust and confidence is built on good relationships, trustworthiness, and high ethics. The way you deal with your people, and the relationships you build will lay the foundation for the strength of your group. The stronger your relationship, the stronger their trust and confidence is in your capabilities. Once you have their trust and confidence, you may now proceed to communicate the goals and objectives you are to undertake. Communication is a very important key to good leadership. Without this you can not be a good leader. The knowledge and technical expertise you have must be clearly imparted to other people. Also, you can not be a good leader and unless you have good judgment. You must be able to assess situations, weigh the pros and cons of any decision, and actively seek out a solution. It is this judgment that your subordinates will come to rely upon. Therefore, good decision-making is vital to the success of your organization. Leaders are not do-it-all heroes. You should not claim to know everything, and you should not rely upon your skills alone. You should recognize and take advantage of the skills and talents your subordinates have. Only when you come to this realization will you be able to work as one cohesive unit. Remember being a leader takes a good deal of work and time. It is not learned overnight. Remember, also, that it is not about just you. It is about you and the people around you. So, do you have the drive and the desire to serve required of leaders? Do you have the desire to work cooperatively with other people? Then start now. Take your stand and be leader today. Article source: Articlecat.com Author: Sulamita work on le canzoni del festival di sanremo negli anni 80, and canzoni sanremo anni 80and festival canzone italiana anni 80   How to Turn Negative Self-Talk into Positive Self-Talk By: Tony Papajohn Do you have moments of negative self-talk? We all do, so why not make it a positive experience? Self-talk is how we process what happens around and within us. Although we may have an occasional moment when we light-heartedly question our sanity, self-talk is an integral part of our mental and emotional landscape. And how much time and mental energy do we waste in negative self-talk? Probably too much! And how many bright futures, sound ideas, and dynamic plans have we scuttled by wallowing in negative self-talk? Weve all done this more times than we care to remember! So here are the two simplest, quickest, and most effective ways to turn negative self-talk into positive talk. They are easy to do and generate wonderful results at lightening speed. The next time you catch yourself in the throes of negative self-talk, elevate your gaze and nod. Thats it! Pretty simple, isnt it? Its simple and highly effective. Heres why. Elevate your gaze and your self-talk quickly turns positive. When I say, Elevate your gaze, I mean raise your head slightly as if looking an imaginary point just above a distant horizon. This works because the mind associates an upturned gaze and a positive point of view. Fortunately, this prompts the mind to generate positive self-talk. And the mind does this by itself! Add a nod to your elevated gaze and you have a powerful combination. Nodding symbolizes agreement and endorsement. Its affirmative response reinforces the elevated gaze. In effect, the nod says a resounding Yes! to the uplifting effect of the elevated gaze. Taken together, these two simple steps automatically transform your inner dialogue from negative to positive. And the best part is this: You dont have to do anything else! Elevate your gaze, nod, and let your mind do the rest. So the next time your self-talk is down in the dumps and you are shaking your head, elevate your gaze and nod! Things will soon be looking up and you will be saying Yes! to a brighter day. Article source: Articlecat.com Author: Tony Papajohn coaches excellence and specializes in money. If you are a real estate investor, financial trader, entrepreneur, or want money to treat you like its new best friend, check out Tonys free e-courses at http://www.WelcomeMoreMoney.com .   Challenges And The Power Of Acceptance By: Wendy Betterini Inevitably in life we will have to face disappointment from time to time. Sometimes they may be little disappointments, and other times they may be great, big, heart wrenching disappointments. When this happens to us, we have a choice in how we react. Some of us may give up on our dreams, others may keep fighting stubbornly against the tide, and still others may choose another path to travel. One important aspect of dealing with disappointment is acceptance. When we keep fighting against our circumstances and disappointments, it can leave us feeling frustrated, bitter and exhausted. Especially during those times in life when everything seems to keep going wrong for us, we get more and more stressed as we try to resist the undesirable circumstances. Practicing acceptance can help ease that inner tension and allow us to see our situation more clearly. Accepting your circumstances does not mean giving up! It does not mean that you have to be 100% happy with your current situation. Acceptance means that you acknowledge and accept where you are in your life at this moment, even though it may not be ideal. Maybe you hate your job or your marriage is faltering. Maybe you are struggling to lose weight and can't seem to get anywhere with it. Whatever it is that is causing you stress, try accepting it instead of fighting against it. Repeat the following to yourself: "I may not be thrilled with the way things are in my life right now, but I accept it. I will do what I can and give the rest to God. I am thankful for the blessings I do have right now, and I know that more are on the way." It may take alot of practice at the beginning, but as you continue to do this, something amazing happens. The struggles suddenly don't seem so large anymore. They won't magically dissolve before your eyes, but the edges seem to soften a bit. Life doesn't seem quite so harsh anymore. Solutions to the problems may even begin to appear. If that doesn't happen right away, that's okay! Know that they will eventually. Just keep practicing acceptance and have faith that things will turn around. I believe that everything happens for a reason. We are where we are in our lives right now because we are meant to be here. Several factors may have contributed to our current circumstances, such as choices we made in the past, or outside influences we have no control over. The questions to ask yourself are: What is the lesson here? What do I need to learn about this situation? Though you may not be happy with your current situation, there IS a reason you are there right now. This is especially true if you continuously find yourself in similar situations! For example, if you keep choosing unhealthy relationships, you might want to take some time to discover why. If you are always struggling financially, there may be a message for you there. If you can't seem to figure it out on your own, you might consider seeking professional help. Sometimes an outside party can see things that we can't. No matter what difficulties you are struggling with right now, know that this too shall pass. Difficulties do not last forever. Sometimes struggles are opportunities in disguise . . . Article source: Articlecat.com Author: Wendy Betterini is a freelance writer who strives to motivate, uplift, and inspire you to make your dreams a reality. Visit her website, http://www.WingsForTheHeart.com for more positive thoughts to help you on your journey.   3 Steps to Daily Success: Using Motivational and Inspirational Quotes to Achieve Your Goals By: Ray Schiel Changing our day-to-day behaviors may be easier than previously imagined. By meditating on and repeating motivational and inspirational quotes, we are better prepared to change our thought patterns, behaviors and in turn, change our lives. Here's how it's done. If we believe something to be easy, we find little, if any, struggle in accomplishing it. However, if we imagine something to be difficult to accomplish, then our struggle becomes more apparent. In fact, if we imagine that it is difficult to change a specific behavior, then we will always find experiences that will justify that belief. Take this for example. We wake up one morning and decide that: "This is the day I start losing weight. When things get difficult, I will not reach for junk food, but instead I will focus on something else to keep my mind occupied. It'll be tough at first, but I'm going to give it a try." If you continue with this thought pattern and belief, don't be surprised to find yourself struggling more often than not. Why? If we look at this example closely we find a couple of thought patterns and beliefs already in place. We have determined to do something good for ourselves, but we do ourselves a disservice by choosing certain negative thought patterns, beliefs and words that go along with it. We have said, "When things get difficult." (This is already assuming that there will be difficult moments! Strike one!) "It'll be tough at first" (This is already assuming it will be difficult at first! Strike two!) "but I'm going to give it a try." (Remember the movie "The Karate Kid""There is no "try", there is only "do". Strike three!) Now there are hundreds of products out there that will assist people in losing weight. Some, if not all of them, may work for various people at various stages of their goal. But for many people who have convinced themselves that losing weight is difficult, some products may fall short when our thought patterns are stronger than our desire to change. Here is something that I've done to change a behavior I no longer desired. I recently lost 20lbs in about 12 weeks. I didn't like the way I looked, felt or even thought for that matter. I needed to change and take some action towards it. First, I realized that I had to change my way of thinking about losing weight. My old thought patterns were no longer working for me. My thoughts were like little tiny pictures that I projected in my mind of how heavy I was. I no longer wanted these pictures or thought patterns a part of my life. I had to choose a thought pattern and belief that would be easier to think about. I chose this thought, "Losing weight is easier than I thought." Perhaps not the most ideal for everyone but it worked for me. Secondly, I chose a word I wanted to focus on for that day, week or month to help me in accomplishing my goal (Start with just a day, or just an hour for that matter. Keep it simple.) The word I chose needed to be in relation to the change I want to make. For example, I chose the word "FOCUS", as I felt that that's what I needed to think about most of time; focusing more on losing weight than gaining it. Choose any word as long as it relates to your situation. Examples include Attitude, Energy, Action and Believe. Following that, I scoured the Internet for motivational and inspirational quotes that resonated within me that related to that specific word I chose. Quotes that I could remember, especially ones that really spoke to what I wanted to accomplish. But here's the most important part. I needed quotes that were powerful enough to change my thought patterns the moment I read them. Quotes that REALLY spoke to me when I my eyes fell upon them. Quotes that forced me to pause and think for a moment. Quotes that had that extra "edge" where my mind said, "Yes. This is one." These are all signs of a quote that held power for me. I "focused" in on the following quotes. "All that we are is the result of what we have thought." Buddha "The only way to discover the limits of the possible, is to go beyond them into them impossible." Arthur C. Clarke "It's not what you achieve in the end that matters, it's who you become in the process." Author Unknown In fact, I found dozens of quotes that I resorted to from time to time, but these three I always came back to. They spoke of who I was, what I wanted to accomplish and who I wanted to become as I worked towards my goal. I wrote them down. I carried these quotes with me constantly. I read them and meditated on them whenever I had the opportunity to. At work, home or at the gym (yup, I finally got myself to exercise, primarily by focusing on Arthur C. Clarke's quote!), I focused on these three powerful quotes to help me FOCUS on what I wanted. Because I changed my thought patterns, over time, I can honestly say I am 20 lbs lighter and a whole lot happier. Yes, I'll be the first to admit that accomplishing the goal involved more than just thinking but it all began with my thoughts. The thoughts then permeated into my actions. (Now I need to FOCUS on maintaining that weight, so for me a whole new thought pattern begins.) Here are the three steps again: 1. Decided to change your way of thinking about a behavior, making it easier for you to think about it. Phrase it in a simple way. 2. Choose a word to focus on to change that behavior for a period of time. 3. Find a minimum of three motivational or inspirational quotes related to that specific word that are powerful enough to change your current thought patterns the moment you read them. Meditate on them and repeat them, silently or out loud, every chance you get. Be patient. Stick with it. Give it some time. Why do you think companies offer a 30-day money back guarantee? They know that if you do something for 30 days it becomes a habit and you no longer need to return it! (Learned something, huh?) Give it time. The first step to what you want to accomplish is changing your mind and the thought patterns and beliefs associated with your behavior. Thoughts are the precursor to action, meaning that thoughts occur before any action takes place. That's what needs to be changed first. Your thoughts. It worked for me and I hope this inspires and motivates you to achieve your goal. Think positive. Article source: Articlecat.com Author: Ray Schiel is a Motivational Sales Trainer and manages Positive Thinkin"!; a website offering various motivational and inspirational gifts for the home, gym and office. Positive Thinkin'! Motivational Gifts for the Home, Gym and Office   It's What You CAN Control That Matters By: Anna Johnson Have you seen the movie "28 Days" starring Sandra Bullock and Viggo Mortenson? It's no masterpiece, and probably wouldn't crack my top 100 films of all time But it does, in an entertaining way, offer some valuable lessons on life: how to overcome personal challenges (Sandra Bullock plays an alcoholic who's sentenced to 28 days in a rehab center after driving into someone's house!), the meaning of friendship, and how to achieve goals, to name a few. One of these lessons is demonstrated when Viggo Mortenson, who plays a baseballer, is pitching baseballs onto a mattress several feet away. When Sandra's character has a shot she misses completely. Viggo's character asks, "What were you thinking when you threw the ball?" Sandra answers that she was thinking about trying to hit the mattress. This is, after all, the outcome she wants. Viggo shakes his head and tells her that she's focusing on the wrong thing. Instead of thinking about what she can't control -- the outcome -- she should be focusing on what she CAN control: her stance, how she grips the ball, how she swings her arm, etc. Hmmm is there something in that for you, too? You see, in many cases, whatever goal you're trying to pursue, you can't control the outcome. There are just too many variables that you have no influence over. But you CAN control every single thing you do in order to achieve that outcome. And you can perfect those things, just as a pro baseball player works to perfect his stance, grip, swing, etc. But haven't you been told to visualize or imagine achieving your goal? Well, I'm NOT saying that you shouldn't visualize or imagine. These are, in fact, two activities that may help you get what you want. In fact, in many -- if not most cases -- they are part of the processes involved in achieving your goal. But a much more important activity is ACTIVITY! Or ACTION! I mean, sure, top athletes do "mental training" but they sure as heck don't rely on this alone -- the bulk of their training is PHYSICAL, right? Same for you and I. We can daydream all we want, but it won't get us anywhere unless we TAKE ACTION towards achieving our goal. Now, it has to be the right action. Continuing the example of athletes -- they must learn and perfect the right diet, training, mental conditioning, skills, and so on, in order to reach the top of their sport. So too, you must make an effort to discover the most effective way of achieving your goal. This will inevitably involve learning and applying specific strategies, tactics and daily tasks that are proven to work. And, at the end of the day, if you focus on what you can control -- those strategies, tactics and daily tasks -- rather than worrying or dreaming about your desired outcome, you're much more likely to get that outcome. Article source: Articlecat.com Author: Anna Johnson is the creator of the inspiring 1 minute movie, A Bit Of Inspiration. Enjoy the movie and get inspired! Then claim your free A Bit Of Inspiration screensaver - your daily reminder of the power you have within.   Life Provides Lessons for Home Schoolers By Codie Brenner As home school moms it is important to look for ways to incorporate learning into activities we already have planned. Infusing everyday life with lessons is not difficult. God has created the world to speak of Him, even the rocks and plants would cry out about Him if we did not. Since our heavenly designer created all things, there are discoveries to be found and knowledge to gain built into life itself and the way we live it. Let me give an example of what I mean. My daughter loves horses and takes riding lessons each week. Her journey is an opportunity to learn not only about how to ride horses and care for them, a unit study on its own, but also one in character development, service, and responsibility. Everything associated with her venture is educational so why not make it a part of her education. I suggest beginning with a mind map or brainstorm of the activities and interests already on your child's agenda. Follow these steps: 1. Write "activities and interests" at the center of a clean piece of paper (horizontal). Draw a circle around it. 2. Begin to draw legs out from the center circle listing off your interests and extracurricular activities. This can include lessons, sports, arts & crafts, church, play dates, class days, ISP meetings, etc. Include anything you do. 3. It would be helpful for both the parent and the child to complete their own brainstorm. 4. Compare mind maps when finished. 5. Take out a piece of lined paper, or if you like using the computer, open up your favorite word processor. Create a list using the information from the mind maps. (Keep in mind that not all the information on the mind map will be useful. Mind maps help sort through information to help you find the most important items associated with the topic.) Once you have completed the brainstorm and list, you can begin to develop lessons. We have been able to use our daughter's horseback riding for lessons in creative writing, character development - responsibility, technology - blogging, physical education, and reading. Use the brainstorm exercise and get started capturing lessons from your life today. For more information on homeschooling or to read additional articles by Codie Brenner, go to http://www.ispmom.com Codie Brenner has a bachelor's degree in Journalism with a minor in Creative Writing from Pepperdine University. She is a freelance writer, Christian school Librarian, and soon-to-be homeschool mom. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Codie_Brenner http://EzineArticles.com/?Life-Provides-Lessons-for-Home-Schoolers&id=1018396 Mission Statement Education Heroes 9/11 Remembered Nominations Links Contact Us Home  Donate/Sponsors    Inspirational/ Special BooksHeroes Special Articles page 2 SPECIAL HEROES needs your nominations/suggestions for Special Heros to be included here. Please click on the 'Nominations' button, above.