Mom was right. At the end of the day, no matter the situation or circumstance, no matter the stakes, no matter the risk, you should always "do the right thing." It's one of the golden rules that we have gotten away from. And we have talked about it a lot on this site. Being a personal and professional power player in your life equates to doing to the right thing at the right time. There is nothing but truth to the bumper sticker "liars never proper" and "cheaters never win."
Believe it or not, life is better when you do the right thing. Even if it means hurting someone's feelings. They will always be able to recover from truth, but lies and deceit and backstabbing and cheating her people permanently and there is no coming back from that. It's the wrong thing that will hurt them. It's the right thing they will be thankful for. And so will you. Here are some real basic steps you can take to "do the right thing."
Life is better when you are RESPONSIBLE. This means carry your own load. Be accountable for your actions and your behavior and take ownership of what you say and do. It will go a long way in your personal and professional life to stand by your word and do the best job you can. Do not be afraid to ask for help. No one can do all things by themselves. Everyone needs some one sometimes. Be that team player and work together.Once you receive instruction, you can pass on proper instruction to others.
Ask yourself. "Is the life you have, the life you DESERVE?" Now this is a tricky question, because the underlying message in this loaded question is "you reap what you sew." You also know it as "what goes around comes around." Or the quite popular word, "karma." This is a recipe for debate so I'm going to fast forward and just get to the point.
The life you think you deserve is loosely determined by the impressions you make on other people. This is rough, because you'll say, I can't control other people, I can only control myself. This is true.
But you can in a small way influence the reaction in others by being a positive, motivated person who surrounds one self with like minds. If you create enemies, you will have enemies. If you build strong, healthy, long-lasting relationships and friendships, you will have a much better chance of gaining great benefits from it in one way or another. So just look it as "you get out of it, what you put into it."
This is for anything you do in life. Put your best foot forward in a relationship, you will increase your chances of reaping a loving committed relationship. Do your best at work or school and you will increase your chances of excelling and promoting yourself in your academics and your career.
Growing CHARACTER begins here. In other words, "don't give up." When you feel yourself growing tired of doing good, it is at this time that your hard work is reaching it's peak of performance and the reward is just within reach. It is that sweet moment just before the touchdown or the winning game shot. You will find if you just keep going, you win! All because you did not give up.
So you see, in short, by doing the right thing in all you do, you restore your sense of responsibility.
Restoration of responsibility feeds your mind, grows your body and strengthens your spirit. In turn, you put in all your best efforts toward a positive goal with beneficial results that reward you for a job well done.
Like we have said before on this site, try to steer away from things that are a waste of your time and things that will steal your precious time away from you. This will help eliminate some of the obstacles in your way to where you want to be and help cut back on the negative statement of "I don't have time."
Doing the right thing means making a fair and realistic priority list that allows time for everything that needs to be done. If it is meant to be, there is a place and time for it. There is a time for everything and a season for every activity. You know the song.
Now with that being said, we can all agree that since we can't essentially "control" time because time is LIMITED and SHORT, we then have to control what we do WITH our time in order to get the best out of it. It's funny, but true that all that we do will come and go, but the message in what we do lasts forever. This means, make what you do have meaning. Let it serve a purpose. If you are doing the right thing with your time; it will do this all on its own.
All life is precious, no one knows truly the way of tomorrow and all life is like a mist in the wind that is here one moment and gone the next. Do you want to be that person who made the most with their time or do you want to be the person who looks back and says, I "should have...could have...would have..." well, know this: when you are doing the right thing; there is no regret. Sure there are always more than one way to do things, but there is only one way to do the right thing and that is to just do it and do it before it's too late. This way, you avoid the awkward heartache of being stuck living in the past like so many of us do, saying if only I...whatever.
If you say, well, I don't know what the right thing is. How do I know I'm doing the right thing for myself and the people my decisions and choices effect? This is a very fair and somewhat simple question to answer. In short, you know you are doing the right thing you are speaking the truth; acting in good nature for the welfare and benefit of yourself and others and trust yourself. This is the hardest part. Because even when you do all these things, there are still people who will blame you, hate you and want to harm you for doing the right thing. Well, that just comes with the territory. Lean on truth and know that you stand in good faith in the eyes of all that is right, because you know in your heart that you acted in kindness, you spoke in truth and you did not intentionally do anything to hurt anyone; the truth hurts a person who lives in a lie; but heals a person in need of being set free.
So when do I start? Thought you would never ask. Start now. Someday is today. Making the most of your time leads to redeeming the time you lost. Once you have your priorities in check, you can make the most of every opportunity. Now is the time. Say goodbye to yesterday, start now by putting health and wellness in your daily routine and begin enjoying the benefits and rewards of a better you immediately.
For some of us, we are half way there, we just have to finish what we started. For others, this may mean finding your passion, discovering your talents, skills and abilities and then putting them to work for you. We all have a gift or talent. What's yours? What's your "right thing"? Go out there and get it; it's yours and you deserve to live a clean, happy and healthy life full of love and fulfillment. Like they say, they're your blessings and what God has in store for you, no one can take from you, so go get your blessings; go for it!
A Purer Heart
Is it even humanly possible to have a "purer" heart? I mean, come on. We're human. It's hard enough just being cordial and polite, let alone overly indulgent and down rush mushy all the time. But wait. I think the idea here of a purer heart is not just about emotions. It's about passion.
When you are fired up about something, you truly believe in it and support it to the fullest, then you have passion. Passion calls you to be more than a spectator. It calls you to get involved. It calls you to be more than an admirer. It called you to take action.
YOU HAVE THE POWER TO MAKE CHANGE. If anyone ever tells you that you cannot change, they are wrong. You can. You can change almost anything about yourself and the way you do things. Your positive influence, driven by a passionate, pure heart, can create a wave of change in others around you. Sometimes, change can reach as far as your community and even the nation. Let the world know that there's a new sheriff in town and you mean business.
Along the way you are going to encounter plenty of people who are fake, liars and backstabbers; only pretending to do good and be good at what they do and all the while they are just wolves in sheep's clothing. They do not have your best interest in mind and do not stand for your cause. Steer clear of these kinds of people as they are only there to bring you down. For them, it is all about overtaking; not overcoming.
Now remember, nobody's perfect. Forget what society and the world tells you. It's not true. It's not humanly possible to be "perfect." There will always be something about yourself that you will want to alter or improve. The key is not pushing yourself too hard. Know your limits. It's not about being perfect, it's about doing the best you can when you can. Doing the right thing often calls for rest stops and moments of serenity.
You have to love that! Whether you are a believer in Christ or not, just the thought of renewing your mind, cleaning your body and soul from the inside out, giving your life new purpose and meaning, going forward into the world with a loving heart, firm fist, ready to fight negativity and obstacles in your path...it's rejuvenating! It's exciting! It's fuel for the fire to keep going! So let's just recap.
HOW TO BREAK A HEART OF STONE
1. Stop. Recognize. Acknowledge. Accept.
2. Choose to make change and implement healthy new habits.
3. Check your negativity at the door. Be ready to leave what ails you in your past.
4. Embrace. Fear not. Hold on.
5. You have a new outlook on life, it can be scary sometimes depending on where you have been and where you are going. Do not panic. That icky weird feeling bubbling inside of you is a little thing called LOVE. It's warm and gooey at first, but you get used to it after you give and get enough of it.
6. New heart. New spirit. New you.
7. Through internal and external overhaul, you have been given a new heart of love that may have once been buried under a heart of stone. (For believers, you will have His Spirit in you, moving and guiding you to follow His decrees and keep His laws.)
It's BOTH an event and a process. Once you make the change, it consumes you. Doing the right thing changes you. Having a new heart of love changes you. It's BOTH who we become and who we are. Now, I admit, managing this daily does requires a little commitment and drive on your part. But just like working out, it's worth it and you'll be better for it. This is the new you: compassionate, kind, humble, gentle and patient.
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