As I mentioned in my last post, getting better at a skill or task or relationship is often incremental rather than monumental. Breakthroughs happen one step at a time; maybe one inch at a time. It's the small decisions made correctly over sustained periods of time that build the momentum we need to move forward. Unfortunately, we are conditioned to look for the one key thing -- the one secret or step -- that will produce a major change. We expect to get better immediately. We expect to improve by quantum leaps. We expect our relationships to magically correct themselves and lead to endless bliss. While we wait for the monumental to appear, we miss the incremental changes that are well within our grasp. Perhaps a failing marriage cannot be transformed overnight. That's looking for a monumental change to save the day (and you're probably hoping to buy real estate…
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Are you looking for one question that will keep you on the path to continuous growth? While there are many questions you may choose to ask yourself, I've found one question that is helpful no matter what you do for a living ... or what relationship you are trying to improve. Ready? Here it is ... "How can I get better at what I do?" When we have a mindset of continual growth -- as opposed to a self-imposed belief that we cannot improve -- we will look for opportunities to improve in every situation we encounter, in every relationship we have. But the key is to be always on the lookout for ways to improve. What you may find is that getting better is incremental rather than monumental. But I'll write more on that later.
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People who have comeback capabilities are the ones who face their failures, learn from their mistakes, and begin moving forward. You see this in sports. No quarterback wins every game. Every quarterback misses a read and throws an interception -- and sometimes it may cost them the game. But the next week will find the good quarterbacks watching film, making notes, and rehearsing how they would do it differently when they face the same situation again. The same is true in healthy marriages (except there may not be as much film to watch). Having a healthy marriage doesn't mean the husband will never say anything stupid; sorry ladies, but it doesn't even reduce the odds. But in a good marriage both partners face up to their mistakes and move on. Winston Churchill once said, "The farther backward you can look, the farther forward you are likely to see." To turn…
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In 1981, Oakland A’s owner Charlie Finley had open-heart surgery. Here’s what one of his pitchers, Steve McCatty, said about it: "When Charlie Finley had his heart operation it took eight hours. Seven just to find his heart." How hard is it for folks to find your heart? More importantly, how hard is it for God to find your heart?
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My first experience with what would become the Internet was in the early 1990's. My first ISP (Internet service provider) was Net something -- I can't actually remember. I used FIDO net to communicate with other users and didn't have a "graphical" web experience until signing up with AOL in 1992 or 1993. My first modem was a 2400 baud and I can remember the excitement I felt each time I upgraded to "faster" speeds (4800, 9600, 15400!). So, it is with great interest and nostalgia that I pass along this article: "The 10 Founding Fathers of the Internet." The truly geeky and nerdy among us may recognize 7 or 8 of the 10; if you recognize all 10, you're the winner!
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