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Positive Talk
 There are times in life when we just don’t seem to be able to get anything done. We exhaust ourselves, yet nothing happens. It is just those times that we need to stop for a moment and open our minds to new possibilities. Power may not always be apparent, but if we look hard and long enough, power will almost always be there.
Let me give you an example. Several years ago, my friend Gary and I went up to a small lake in Ohio to go sailing. He had a 22-foot boat docked there but had not checked on it for several weeks. He did not know that the lake had fallen almost a foot and that the boat was resting on its keel. For those who do not sail, this means that the bottom of the boat is resting on the bottom of the lake. Actually, it was most likely sunk into the mud at the bottom of the lake. This condition, as you might imagine, makes a boat very difficult to move, but neither Gary nor I give up on things easily. We were determined to move the boat from the dock out into the main channel and from there into the lake. We tried numerous ways to move the boat from the dock. We paddled, we pushed, we shoved and we pulled. The boat moved about six feet away from the dock, then got stuck again. The only difference now was that we were six feet away from the dock and unless we wanted to get wet, we had to find the power to move the boat.
In our attempt to find the power, we restarted the engine. I say restarted, because we started it at the dock and it churned up so much mud that we were afraid it would clog its intake. In fact, it shut down. As much as we revved up the engine, the boat still refused to move. We got some poles from down below and tried poling the boat down the channel—again to no avail. There we were stuck, and out of power. But were we?
The answer to that was “no.” We perceived ourselves to be out of power because power wasn’t apparent. But there was a great deal of power at our beck and call. It seemed like the idea hit us both at the same time—put up the sails. Now you may wonder why we didn’t think of that earlier. The reason is habit. We never raised the sails in the channel but waited until we were out in the open water. This habit had blinded us to the power that was waiting for us to use. The wind was blowing directly down the channel toward open water. We raised both sails and slowly the boat began to move. Within minutes, it had picked up speed, and we were gliding toward the lake.
In all of our lives, there are times when we will be faced with difficulties, and we will respond to them in the ways we always have in the past. Habit will dictate our response. But habit may be the restraint that keeps us from seeing the power that is truly available to us. Sometimes it is as simple as looking to natural forces, as we did with the wind. In other instances, it may be simply to ask a friend for help. Hey, even strangers are willing to help most times if asked.
When you need power, that is the time to stop and think. It is time to assess your resources. It is time to be creative in your thinking process. Do not let yourself be blinded to possibilities because of past experiences. Utilize all your senses and bring them to bear upon the subject. Power is all around us. It may not be apparent, but it is there. It is up to you to look for the power to accomplish what you want done. It really is your choice. You can stay stuck in the mud six feet from the dock or you can raise your sails and cruise freely on the lake of life.
Hodges Hosts Television Program
Bill Hodges also hosts an interview-format television program, which has been renamed “Spotlight On…“, which airs Mondays at 8 p.m., Bright House cable channel 950 and Verizon cable channel 30.
It should be noted that Bright House subscribers who cannot get the higher channels can get—at no installation fee and a monthly one dollar fee—a box to allow access to the upper level government and educational channels. Call Bright House for details on the rental. If you are unhappy about having to pay extra to see your government in action, complain to your state representatives and the Hillsborough BOCC which have either caused this situation or been complicit in allowing it to continue.
Bill Hodges is a nationally recognized speaker, trainer, and
syndicated columnist. Hodges may be reached at Hodges Seminars
International, P.O. Box 89033, Tampa, FL 33689-0400. Phone 813/641-0816.
Web site: http://www.BillHodges.com
Copyright 2008 Hodges Seminars International
© Copyright 2008 by The
Observer
News Publications and M&M Printing Company, Inc.
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