Message #45 - Gaining an Edge

How to Get an Edge on the Competition

What are you willing to do to gain the things you want?

• Are you willing to be positive when things aren't going your way?
• Are you willing to do the things that are hard?
• Are you willing to work harder than anyone else?
• Are you willing to continually learn about your craft?
• Are you willing to accept constructive criticism?
• Are you willing to do the things no one else wants to do?

Today is December 23rd, 2007. I have one question for every one reading this post today and tomorrow....

What are you willing to do today and tomorrow that gives you an EDGE over your competition.

I coach a group of wrestlers that are working out on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day!

Message #44 - Visualization is a Really Powerful Tool

Don't Just Say it...Don't Just Believe it...VISUALIZE IT AS IF IT'S ACTUALLY HAPPENING!

Visualization goes beyond believing. Believing is GREAT, don't misunderstand me. Visualizing something, however, takes it to a higher level and unleashes unbelievable power.

Put the desired goal in your mind and experience every facet of it like your favorite movie, played in slow motion, picking up every detail, every subtlety, every frame.

The secret here is that you can visualize your successful attainment of the goal. It's your movie to direct, so direct it with you coming out on top...winning! Play this movie over, and over, and over, and over...you get the picture.

Scientific research supports that the mind can actually fool the body (including the emotions) into believing something that hasn't actually happened yet. How many times have we woke up from a dream and were amazed at how real it all seemed.

The trick is to guide your visualization into to place you want.

Message #43 - Your Ultimate Goal Must be Burned in Your Mind

Keep Your Goal Constantly in Focus to Keep You From Being Fustrated by Set Backs and Failures Along the Way... Remember Keep Your Eyes Fixed on the Prize!

No matter what happens you must not forget why your in the game. In case you forgot it is to WIN! Winning is what ever you have defined it to be. Remember the old saying, "it's not over till it's over". Remember that!

No matter how many times you fail at something...you only have to succeed at it only ONCE! That's it...ONLY ONCE. You only have to do it right only once...no matter how many times you've failed at it.

It took George Eastman (Eastman-Kodak) 18 years to perfect the film process to achieve his ultimate dream and goal of making photography available to the average person. He set out in 1877 with his dream and didn't achieve it until 1895.

He endured over 1,000 flawed and failed experiments perfecting the film process, worked a day job at a bank to pay the bills, read books on chemistry and photography to increase his knowledge, learned French and German so he could read the latest research about the film industry, and spent many nights sleeping in a hammock at his factory after long days designing equipment.

George Eastman never lost sight of his goal...How about YOU!

Message #42 - Stretch your Mind

Once Something is Stretched it never Goes Back to the Way it was Before. Anything you actually do is first contemplated (or incubated) as a thought in your mind. When you let your mind dwell on a thought long enough something very powerful happens. IF YOU CONTINUE TO HOLD A THOUGHT IN YOUR MIND YOU BEGIN TO GRAVITATE TOWARDS IT. What do I mean by this? Think about anything you've ever accomplished and you'll agree it first started with a thought that came into your mind that you formed into a goal. The greater the goal the more time you will spend thinking about it. The time spent thinking about the goal will be greater than anything else you think about...you will spend a disproportionate amount of time thinking about it compared to everything else. There are many ways thoughts come into our minds. We are bombarded with all kinds of images, messages and situations. The moment we fixate on one of them we form a thought about it. If the thought is something we desire, we immediately rationalize and access how realistic it is to attain it. This is where most people fail. If they think they can't attain the goal they let the thought go and start thinking about something else. This reason why successful people realize their goals is that they keep the desired goal in their mind as a thought, and continually keep it there. Sometimes these people are characterized as one-dimensional or one track minded. I CALL THESE PEOPLE CHAMPIONS! By doing this you are are effectually "stretching" your mind; once you do this you will never be the same.

Message #41 - It's All In Your Mind

You are what you think about.

Think about the last time you were having a so called "bad day". Identify the sequences of events, and more importantly, the resulting thoughts you had from the events, that led up to you concluding you were having a "bad day".

What you will find is, when something happens to us that we don't like, we attached a bad thought or feeling to it. And conversely, when something happens to us that we like, we attached a good (or positive) thought or feeling to it.

This process just described puts us at the mercy of events and things that happen to us. If more bad things are happening to us than good things on a particular day; we think, feel, and say "I'm having a bad day". And the opposite is also true.

The problem is, what if you have something very important that you want to do or accomplish and your having a so called "bad day". Does your important accomplishment, by default, get automatically get included in the "bad day" your already having?

I'll show you how you can avoid this from happening. First you must start separating feelings and thoughts from events, and let your thoughts and resulting feelings STAND ON THEIR OWN, independent of any event.

When thoughts and resulting feelings are attached to an event, the event can, and will dictate your feelings. So if you are feeling bad as a result of negative events it will be impossible to perform at you best level at anything you endeavor to accomplish. I have witnessed people going through incredibly difficult events, but they seemed to still have JOY and inner peace. They may not have been happy, but they had an uncompromising joy and exuberance for life that couldn't be quenched.

Happiness is very different than JOY. Happiness IS based on what's happening to you - but - JOY isn't. For example: You're not going to be happy if you find out you have cancer, but you can have the knowledge that you are still the same person before and after the bad news, and that you also still possess the same intelligence, talent, charm, personality, desire and will before and after the bad news.

Allowing an event to affect your JOY and the essence of who you are is a CHOICE. It's YOUR CHOICE. Don't let an event or another person make that choice for you.

I use the cancer example because I've met people that are battling cancer right now, and I'm amazed at how positive these people are about life and about themselves. You see, these people have not let their circumstance or negative events in their life; define who they are, or steal their JOY of living, or diminish their desire to accomplish things.

If you string together enough bad thoughts as a result of negative feelings derived from negative things that happen to you, I guarantee that you will end up concluding "you are having a bad day"

www.LeeKemp.com

Message #40 - Resist the Feelings of Fear and Doubt and Perform Anyway

Consistent Performance requires Resisting the Feelings of Fear, Uncertainty and Doubt in the midst of Challenge, Controversy and Disappointment.

I heard a story that exemplifies this principle:

"A well known circus performer was performing his act, with several large Bengal Tigers in a locked cage, before a live audience; when in the middle of his performance, the lights went out."

"For almost 30 seconds the circus performer was locked in with the tigers, in total darkness, with the audience starting to panic. The tigers, with their superb night vision, could see him, but he could not see them. The circus performer survived the ordeal, and when the lights came back on he finished his performance."

"After the performance the circus performer admitted he was afraid and felt immense and overwhelming fear, however, he said, he knew that even though he couldn't see the big tigers, they didn't know he couldn't see them. The circus performer acted in the cage as if nothing had happened and continued cracking his whip and talking to the tigers as he normally would until the lights came back on."

"The circus performer rested in the fact that the tigers never knew he couldn't see them. And so it is with each of us. Resist the urge to panic and feel despair in the midst of a "storm" in your life, and perform exactly as you were trained and exactly as you've prepared ahead of time."

Act in faith that your actions will be successful if you simply just carry them out exactly as planned.

Message #39 - Do Your Actions Mirror Your Words

Stop and Think About Several Important Things You SAID YOU Were Going to do. DID YOU DO THEM? What attempts did you make to do them? How PASSIONATE were you in trying to do them? You get my point.

Say Less and DO MORE. Keep track of what you say and reconcile it with what you actually DO.

I'm not talking about things like "I'm going to win this tournament" or I'm going to land this big business deal" or "I'm going to discover the cure for cancer". Truth is, we can't predict or see into the future, so we really don't know what's going to happen.

What I am talking about are things like "I'm going to bust my but today at practice and give it everything I've got", "I'm going to study everyday for eight hours so that I can be as prepared as possible to pass the Bar Exam", "I'm going to spend ONE (or 2 or 3...) entire day each week devoted to...", "I will help someone in need today", "I will not get angry today no matter what happens", "I will be positive today no matter what happens", "I will not give up today on anything even if it gets unbelievably hard", etc. These kind of affirmations are totally in our control and are predictable. The question becomes...do we actually do what's in our control. Or do we make excuses and turn our talk into just that...TALK. Do we walk the talk.

SAY LESS AND DO MORE...AND DO WHAT YOU SAY YOU ARE GOING TO DO.

Message #38 - See The Possibilities Before They Become Obvious

Don't Be Detoured By The Doubters & Naysayers; Your Future is Made Up Of The Things You Dream About Now...DREAM BIG!!!

Consider these statements by "so called" experts:

• "Babe Ruth made a big mistake when he gave up pitching" Tris Speaker, 1927.
  
  
• "I'm just glad it'll be Clark Gable who's falling on his face and not Gary Cooper." -Gary Cooper on his decision not to take the leading role in "Gone With The Wind."
  
  
• "Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?" -H.M. Warner, Warner Brothers, 1927.
  
  
• "We don't like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out." -Decca Recording Co. rejecting the Beatles, 1962.
  
  
• "A cookie store is a bad idea. Besides, the market research reports say America likes crispy cookies, not soft and chewy cookies like you make." -Response to Debbi Fields' idea of starting Mrs. Fields' Cookies.
  
  
• "There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home." - Ken Olson, president, chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corp., 1977.
  
  
• "The concept is interesting and well-formed, but in order to earn better than a 'C,' the idea must be feasible." -A Yale University management professor in response to Fred Smith's paper proposing reliable overnight delivery service. (Smith went on to found Federal Express Corp.) .
  
  
• This 'telephone' has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The device is inherently of no value to us." -Western Union internal memo, 1876.
  
  
• "You should change your major to Phys Ed, the Business School is too tough for you" - A professor's response to Lee Kemp when he was seeking help in one of his business classes (Lee Kemp not only earned a Bachelors Degree in Business but a Masters of Business Degree (MBA) 1977.
  
  
• "The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message sent to nobody in particular?" -David Sarnoff's associates in response to his urgings for investment in the radio in the 1920s.
  
  
• "Heavier-than-air flying machines are impossible." -Lord Kelvin, president, Royal Society, 1895.
  
  
• "The United States will never beat the Russians in Greco Roman Wrestling" - The general sentiment and consensus of "so called" wrestling experts of our day (The United States did the impossible, and won the team title in the 2008 World Greco Roman Wrestling Championships, in Baku Azerbaijan, by beating the Russian Team.)
  
  
• "If I had thought about it, I wouldn't have done the experiment. The literature was full of examples that said you can't do this." -Spencer Silver on the work that led to the unique adhesives for 3-M "Post-It" Notepads.
  
  
• "So we went to Atari and said, 'Hey, we've got this amazing thing, even built with some of your parts, and what do you think about funding us? Or we'll give it to you. We just want to do it. Pay our salary, we'll come work for you.' And they said, 'No.' So then we went to Hewlett-Packard, and they said, 'Hey, we don't need you. You haven't got through college yet.'" -Apple Computer Inc. founder Steve Jobs on attempts to get Atari and H-P interested in his and Steve Wozniak's personal computer.
  
  
• "You want to have consistent and uniform muscle development across all of your muscles? It can't be done. It's just a fact of life. You just have to accept inconsistent muscle development as an unalterable condition of weight training." -Response to Arthur Jones, who solved the "unsolvable" problem by inventing Nautilus.
  
  
• "Don't set your goal that high, you'll only be disappointed when you don't reach it" - A coaches response to Lee Kemp's goal of wanting to be the first 4-time NCAA Champion 1974 (a split referees decision in overtime prevented Lee Kemp from achieving that goal).
  
  
• "Drill for oil? You mean drill into the ground to try and find oil? You're crazy." -Drillers who Edwin L. Drake tried to enlist to his project to drill for oil in 1859.
  
  
• "Stocks have reached what looks like a permanently high plateau." -Irving Fisher, Professor of Economics, Yale University, 1929 (Before the great stock market of 1930).
  
  
• "Airplanes are interesting toys but of no military value." -Marechal Ferdinand Foch, Professor of Strategy, Ecole Superieure de Guerre.
  
  
• "640K ought to be enough for anybody." - Bill Gates, 1981.
  
  
• "I think there is a world market for maybe five computers." -Thomas Watson, chairman of IBM, 1943.
  
  
• "But what ... is it good for?" -Engineer at the Advanced Computing Systems Division of IBM, 1968, commenting on the microchip.
  
  
• "I have traveled the length and breadth of this country and talked with the best people, and I can assure you that data processing is a fad that won't last out the year." -The editor in charge of business books for Prentice Hall, 1957.
  

I think you get the picture...

www.LeeKemp.com

Message #37 - Having The Right Attitude

The Difference Between Having The Right Attitude and Almost Having The Right Attitude is the Difference Between Lightning and The Lightning Bug!

What do I mean by that? Well there is a heck of a big difference between what Lightning can do and what a Lightning Bug can do; but they sound similar. Lightning really sounds powerful until the word bug is added to it. Lightning and Lightning Bug sounds like they could be similar until you examine what they both can do; then you conclude they are not close at all.

The same is true when we have a Lightning Bug Attitude. A little flash that's only visible when it's dark outside. But when Lightning flashes across the sky it doesn't matter how much daylight is present; it lights up the entire sky and is clearly seen by all. Lightning never goes unnoticed.

When we come up short in a task or achieving a goal we find solace in thinking "well I was close". We all know being close doesn't count really. We need the lightning and not the lightning bug.

We see the "Light" in our "minds eye" that tells us we're giving our best effort. But is the light we see coming from our effort a Lighting Bolt, or just the glow from a Lightning Bug. Not all "Light" is as bright nor is the same.

Attitude is the key driver of success and achievement. Be a lightning bolt. Light up the place with your effort and attitude. Let your effort soar to heights you never thought possible because the power of your attitude was just like lightning...Limitless and Powerful!

Which do you have in your Attitude? Lightning or Just a Lighting Bug!

Message #36 - Start With A Blank Canvas...And Paint Your Future

"Speed of the Ship is the Speed of the Captain". Don't You Know That "You Are The Captain of Your Success Ship"...What's Your Speed?

Over the years I've noticed that this quote is true, not only with my life but also in the lives of others. If you want to find out where a team, business or any organization is going, just simply take the time to meet the people in charge.

The same is true for each of us as individuals. I can tell you where an individual is going by simply spending some time with them and observing their "speed". I don't want to sound judgemental but a person's actions speaks much louder than their words.

I get asked all the time by younger wrestlers "what do I have to do to become a good wrestler?" I always answer this question the same way by answering with this question, "what are you doing now to become a good wrestler?" The wrestler's answer is almost always the same, "Well I'm not doing anything yet".

Then I ask the "killer" question, "have you ever been to a camp or clinic and been inspired by hearing an accomplished wrestler or athlete tell their success story?" The answer is usually "yes". Then I ask "why haven't you started doing the things that you heard this accomplished person say they did to have greater success?" The answer is usually "I don't know".

This to me is like standing in front of your "success canvas" and putting your paint brush down and leaving all the colors in their containers, and staring at your canvas and wondering why it doesn't change for you. The inspiration has to come from within and be sustained. There can be a catalyst, like a motivation talk, to ignite the inspiration, but is has to be sustained from within.

If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you always got. If your not happy with where your at then start with a "blank canvas" and dream and paint...then dream some more and paint...then dream some more and paint...you get the "picture"

Message #35 - Breaking Through Fear

In War it Has Been Said That There are Only Two Types of Soldiers - Those with Courage and Those without Courage. Those with Courage are sometimes called Heroes and Those Without are sometimes called Cowards.

No one likes to talk about FEAR in sports (and War) because it somehow makes us seem weak and wimpy when we admit and acknowledge it; when in fact everyone feels fear. And certainly no one wants to be called a coward. The connection here is Contact and Combat sports are much like war. The more violent the situation - the more like war. Wrestling and certainly more so, MMA fights, are like war.

The mind senses the stress of the situation and involuntarily signals the fear emotion. Since the fear emotion is involuntary and out of our control, the reality is, EVERYONE FEELS FEAR.

In war the HEROES respond, act and perform appropriately, according to their preparation and training, and they do all this at the right time...RIGHT ACTION; RIGHT TIME.

Quite simply, those who lack courage feel the same fear but either don't act or don't act appropriately, or if they do act - they act at the wrong time, and ultimately miss the opportunity. WRONG OR NO ACTION; WRONG TIME.

Frankly, we've all felt like cowards at one time or another based on what you've just read, haven't we? I know I have. We simply froze and didn't act (or perform like we've trained). We knew we were hesitating and shutting down, but felt we could do nothing about it.

Since FEAR is felt by all, then HOW does the Hero perform with courage when overcome by this paralyzing emotion, while others become paralyzed and fail?

HAVING COURAGE IS NOT THE ABSENCE OF FEAR, BUT THE ABILITY TO FEEL THE FEAR AND ACT AND PERFORM ANYWAY!

IT'S A CHOICE. HEROES DON'T PLAN TO BE HEROES. THEY JUST SIMPLY ACT AND PERFORM IN THE HEAT OF THE MOMENT, IN SPITE OF THE OBSTACLES AND CIRCUMSTANCES.

TELL YOURSELF YOU WILL ACT AND PERFORM NO MATTER WHAT!

Message #34 - Love The Process

Winning Does Not Lead to Passion; Passion Leads to Winning

You must absolutely Love The Process in order for this success principle to work. You're wondering "WHAT IS THE PROCESS". Well, the process is EVERYTHING that comes before the success. This includes the PRACTICE time; the REHEARSAL time; the DRILLING time; the LEARNING time; the GETTING THE DETAILS RIGHT time; the REBOUNDING AFTER A SET BACK time; the OVERCOMING A BAD CALL time; the REHABILITATION AFTER AN INJURY time; the THINKING ABOUT QUITTING time. All in all. you must love the PROCESS in order to reach the highest goal possible.

It is the LOVE of the PROCESS that separates the mere team members (what ever the team - sports, business, whatever) from the State, National and World Champions! Granted the champions are team members too, but before the champions became champions they first LOVED the process.

Think about this. I've read when Michael Jordan played, his love of the game of basketball was so great that he would have played for nothing (in fact he had a "love of the game clause" in his contract that allowed him to play basketball when ever and where ever he wanted). Larry Bird has said the same thing. Other great achievers in various disciplines have said the same thing..."they would have worked and toiled at their craft regardless of any reward". Quite simply THEY LOVED THE PROCESS, and by loving the process they were able to achieve great success.

It the case of Michael and Larry, it was their PASSION for the game of Basketball that paved the way for them to become great basketball players. This is going to sound crazy, but these two great basketball players in my opinion, Michael Jordan and Larry Bird, actually loved the game more than they loved WINNING. Think about Michael's career with the Chicago Bulls how he hung in there all those losing years with the Bulls but he himself playing really great basketball. It was his great love of the game that came before the great periods of winning.

A lot of good athletes in high school sometimes fail to excel when they get to college, or even quit their sport after they get to college. I believe these athletes realized they were going to have to "climb the mountain" again and do all the work necessary to get back on top (just like they did in High School), and when they relalized this they didn't want to do it again. IT IS A LOVE OF THE PROCESS THAT IS THE FOUNDATION FOR SUCCESS.

Message #33 - Go for Your Dreams!

Don't Ever Give Up




Inspire and be an Inspiration!

Message #32 - You Must Not Quit

Remember You're Not Alone. We All Face Struggles and Set Backs.

Message #31 - Dreaming Big Wilma Rudolph Style

This is an Amazing Story About one of American's Greatest Athletes and her Mother!

On June 23, 1940, Wilma Rudolph was born in Clarksville, Tennessee.
Having been born prematurely and weighing only 4.5 pounds, little Wilma was susceptible to illness and her mother spent several years nursing her through measles, mumps and scarlet fever.

One day her family noticed that Wilma's left foot was becoming weak. Her mother took her to the doctor who informed them that Wilma had polio and would never walk.

Wilma's mother refused to accept the diagnosis. She had something special in her heart - she had the power of belief and she told her young daughter that one day she would walk. Wilma's mother had the belief the led her to take action and twice a week for the next two years, she took her daughter for treatment to a hospital that was over 50 miles away.

The doctors at the hospital taught Mrs. Rudolph how to perform the physical therapy exercises Wilma needed and every night she would massage her daughter's legs late into the evening.
Wilma progressed slowly but steadily. By the time she was seven she could walk with the aid of metal leg braces.

At school, Wilma sat and watched the other children running and told herself that one day she too would enjoy the freedom of being able to run.

In 1952, 12 year old Wilma finally threw away her metal leg braces and was able to walk without assistance for the first time. It was then that she made the decision to be an athlete.

She started to play basketball and also did some running in the off season to keep fit. As time progressed, Wilma became a basketball star, setting state records and leading her team to a state championship.

During one basketball match, Wilma was spotted by the Tennessee State track and field coach Edward Temple who was amazed by Wilma's athletic ability. With coach Temple's help, Wilma turned her focus from basketball to running and she never looked back.

By the time she was 16, Wilma had earned a spot on the US Olympic track and field team and won a bronze medal in the 4×100m relay at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics.

Four years later, Wilma Rudolph won three Olympic Gold medals at the 1960 Rome Olympics in the 100m, 200m and 4×100m relay. The little girl who was once crippled was now "The fastest woman in history."

"I ran and ran and ran every day, and I acquired this sense of determination, this sense of spirit that I would never, never give up, no matter what else happened." - Wilma Rudolph

When you DREAM BIG...Anything is Possible!

Message #30 - Dream the Impossible

Every Time I Fly in an Airplane I'm Still Amazed.


What Are You Now Going To Set Out to Accomplish...That You First Thought Was Impossible...??? The Ball is in Your Court!

Message #29 - Doing The Impossible David Style

We're All Familiar with the "David and Goliath" Account in the Bible. Ever Wonder How David Got Up the Confidence to go Out and not only Challenge Goliath but Defeat Him? In Addition to Having God on His Side, David Actually Used A Success Principle. Read On.

Background 1Samuel 17:1-58
The Nation of Israel was preparing for war with the Philistines and as part of the preparation, each day both camps would face off and shout back and forth at each other trying to gain a psychological edge (just plain old trying to psych each other out). Well, the Philistines had this fellow named Goliath, who not only did his share of shouting but he completely psyched out the entire Israel army because of his shear size. "When the Israelites saw the man, they all ran from him in great fear." 1Samuel 17:24

Goliath was a champion that stood over 9 feet tall, he had a brass helmet and coat of armour that weighed over 125 pounds, and the spear head on his staff weighed over 15 pounds. Goliath would lead the Philistine camp each day and offer a challenge to the Israelite army.

Each day, for 40 days, Goliath shouted a challenge to the Israelite army to send someone from their ranks to fight him. Goliath was a "bad" man and he would taut the Israeli army: "Goliath stood and shouted to the ranks of Israel, "Why do you come out and line up for battle? Am I not a Philistine, and are you not the servants of Saul? Choose a man and have him come down to me." 1Samuel 17:8. "Then the Philistine said, “This day I defy the ranks of Israel! Give me a man and let us fight each other.”" 1Samuel 17:10

Goliath's challenge had these conditions; if he was defeated the entire Philistine nation would be the servants of the Israeli nation. But if he was victorious the entire Israeli nation would be the servants of the Philistines. No one from the Israel army wanted to fight Goliath, in fact the entire army was terrified of Goliath and saw him as unbeatable and viewed his challenge as an "Impossible task. No one from the Israelite army took the challenge...except "you know who"

The Opportunity

David, just a boy at the time, was assigned to attending his father's sheep, and one day his father sent him to the battle camp to deliver some food to his older brothers and to see how they were doing. While at the camp David heard Goliath offer his challenge to the Israeli army. "As he was talking with them [his brothers], Goliath, the Philistine champion from Gath, stepped out from his lines and shouted his usual defiance, and David heard it." 1Samuel 17:23.

David became curious and asked the men standing near him, “What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and removes this disgrace from Israel? Who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?” 1Samuel 17:26. There was a great reward for the man that defeated the Philistine giant. David wanted in on it and began to confidently ask more questions and his confident curiosity was overheard by others at the camp and was reported to the King of Israel, Saul, and Saul sent for him (this is how desperate King Saul was that he would talk to a boy about such a serious matter). When David met with King Saul this is what he said to him: “Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.” 1Samuel 17:32. WOW! Why not DREAM BIG!

The Doubters
When Eliab, David's oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, “Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the desert? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.” 1Samuel 17:28.

King Saul couldn't possibly have though that David, a young boy, could solve this "Goliath" problem. Saul replied, “You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth.” 1Samuel 17:33

The Success Principle - Past Successes of a Similar Nature Creates Confidence in Your Current Situation
"But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father's sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you.” 1Samuel 17:34-37.

Did you see what King, Saul said to David “Go, and the Lord be with you.” Boy, King Saul must have been desperate!

You know the rest of the Biblical Account...David was successful in defeating Goliath! Three points to remember:

1. David wasn't afraid of challenges and challenged himself on a regular basis.


2. David had prior successes in situations similar to the one he was currently facing.


3. David took a step of faith and accepted a new challenge.

Learn to Accept New Challenges

Message #28 - Everyone has Unlocked Potential Inside

After Seeing This Video Clip Below You Will Never Sell Yourself Short Again

Message #27 - "Life Is A Gift" - Live it, Embrace It, and Remember The One Who Gives Life

Live Life to the Fullest. Don't Settle for Less. Life is Too Precious to Settle for Less

There was a blind girl who hated herself just because she was blind. She hated everyone, except her loving boyfriend. He was always there for her. She said that if she could only see the world, she would marry her boyfriend.

One day, someone donated a pair of eyes to her. She was then able to see everything, including her boyfriend. Her boyfriend asked her, "Now that you can see the world, will you marry me?"

The girl was shocked when she saw that her boyfriend was blind. She then refused to marry him. Her boyfriend walked away in tears and later wrote a letter to her saying: "Just take care of my eyes dear, for I loved you so much that it was I who was the donor of your gift.

"This is how the human brain changes when our status changes. Only few remember what life was before, and who's always been there even in the most painful situations. "Life Is A Gift”

Today before you say an unkind word...Think of someone who can't speak.

Before you complain about the taste of your food...Think of someone who has nothing to eat.

Before you complain about your husband or wife...Think of someone who's crying out to GOD for a companion.

Today before you complain about life ...Think of someone who went too early to heaven.

Before you complain about your children...Think of someone who desires childrenbut they're barren.

Before you argue about your dirty house someone didn't clean or sweep...Think of the people who are living in the streets.

Before whining about the distance you drive...Think of someone who walks the same distance with their feet.

And when you are tired and complain about your job...Think of the unemployed, the disabled,and those who wish they had your job.

But before you think of pointing the finger or condemning another...Remember that not one of us are without sin and we all answer to one MAKER.

And when depressing thoughtsnseem to get you down -Put a smile on your face and thank GOD you're alive and still around.

Life is a gift, Live it, Enjoy it, Celebrate it, And Fulfill it. We Serve an AWESOME GOD !!!!!!

Message #26 - How To Do What You Think is Impossible

To Achieve Anything Great You Have to DO the IMPOSSIBLE!!!

The word impossible is really a relative term. When the average person hears the word impossible they think it means "it can't be done". Do a "Google" on the many things that originally were thought to be impossible and later proved wrong by someone actually doing it. That's right. People can actually do the Impossible!

If you're not yet at your desired goal you may be feeling that your goal is an impossible goal. Think about it. If you've never done it, how do you get your mind to actually believe you can do it? In a way a goal that you've never achieved fits into the category of "the impossible".

I use my own life experience to explain: I started wrestling in 9th grade in high school and wrestled on the freshman team. I made the varsity in 10th grade and had a record of 11 wins, 8 losses and 3 ties (for goodness sake). I would have had as many wins as losses if the ties didn't go my way.

What in the world would have given me the ideal that I could actually be an undefeated Ohio State Champion the very next year? This goal by any one's imagination is an IMPOSSIBLE goal. One that most coaches and parents would agree as being unrealistic or unreasonable. I'm here to tell you that a seemingly impossible goal should never be discouraged, because you never know what can be kindled in the human mind. "What the mind of can conceive and believe, It can achieve." - Napoleon Hill.

Napoleon Hill, an American author that lived from October 26, 1883 - November 8. 1970, was one of the earliest writers of personal-success literature. His most famous work, Think and Grow Rich, is one of the best-selling books of all time. In America, Hill stated in his writings, people are free to believe what they want to believe, and this is what sets the United States apart from all other countries in the world. Hill's works examined the power of personal beliefs, and the role they play in personal success.

All great achievements can be called "The Impossible". The question becomes, "how does one do the IMPOSSIBLE". It all starts by first recalling times when we accomplished something we have never done before. We all have accomplished things we've never done before or were afraid of doing, i.e., completing the 28-day J. Robinson Intensive Wrestling Camp. Any wrestler I've talked to that completed this camp tells me that at first they though "there's no way I can do this". In fact most of these wrestlers call home after the first few days wanting to go home. An amazing thing happens after you do the Impossible. You open up possibilities in your mind that become extremely powerful.

That's exactly what happened to me the summer after that mediocre sophomore year in high school. I went to a wrestling camp that featured Dan Gable, and started to do things in those practice session I had never done before, i.e., intense running, lifting and live wrestling with State Champions and accomplished All-American College wrestlers. I challenged myself and because I was with so many other accomplished wrestlers (with Dan Gable setting the ultimate standard we were all trying to keep up with) I just tried to keep up with them. A strange thing happened by the 2nd day of the camp...I saw that I actually was keeping up with them, and in fact I even started to beat some of them in the running and live wrestling. I WAS DOING THE IMPOSSIBLE!

When I got back home after the camp I continued with the concept presented here of "DOING THE IMPOSSIBLE". I continued to challenged myself in the running, weight lifting and wresting I did in every practice since that wrestling camp back in 1972. In fact I still do it, but in different arenas now. It became a part of me, a part of my nature, my being.

START DOING THE IMPOSSIBLE BY ACHIEVING "IMPOSSIBLE" BREAKTHROUGHS IN SOMETHING THAT YOU ARE ALL READY DOING.

Message #25 - Words versus Deeds - Does Your Deeds Follow Your Words

Most People are similar in their sincerity to keep Promises, but it is their actual deeds that separates them.


Three years Before Teddy Roosevelt was president of the United States he was Assistant Secretary to the Navy, and on June 2nd, 1897, he gave a speech to the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island.

In his speech he gave a very patriotic message that was well received and one of the focuses of his message was this: "The only way to keep peace was to be ready for war, and the only way to be ready for war was to enlarge the Navy".

Eight months later, on February 15th, 1898, one of the Navy's battle ships, the USS Maine was attacked and blown up, killing 264 sailors, precipitating the The Spanish-American War, and in the process created a ground swell of American sentiment popularizing the phrase "Remember the Maine!" In April 1898, president William McKinley declared war on Spain.

A Little Background
The Spanish-American War was an armed military conflict between Spain and the United States that took place from April to August in 1898. The war began due to American demands that Spain peacefully resolve the Cuban fight for independence, though strong expansionist sentiment in the United States may have also motivated the government to target Spain's other remaining overseas territories: Puerto Rico, the Philippines, Guam and the Caroline Islands.

Riots and civil disturbances in Havana by local insurrgents gave the United States a reason to send the warship USS Maine to protect their national interests there. As a result of the explosion of the USS Maine, tensions among the American people grew with further pressure put on the American government from the "Sensationalism Journalism" that accused Spain of extensive atrocities.

The war ended in only 109 days after several quick, decisive naval and military victories for the United States in the Philippines and Cuba. The Treaty Paris, ended the conflict, gaving the United States ownership of the former Spanish colonies of Puerto Rico, the Philippines and Guam. The United States then occupied Cuba for a time, ending the insurrection and expelling the Spanish colonial authorities.

What Roosevelt Did
Teddy Roosevelt supported the decision to go to war, and 3 weeks after the war declaration, he resigned his position as Assistant Secretary to the Navy to join the war effort, so he'd be ready to fight. All who knew him; collegaues, friends and family were against his decision and felt he was throwing away his political future (how wrong they were), but they also knew of his resolve once he'd made up his mind.

Roosevelt later wrote that he wanted to be able to tell his children why he had fought in the war and opposed to why he had not fought in the war. Roosevelt was a person that couldn't preach one thing and do another.

Message #24 - What is Commitment?

Remember the Story about the Chicken and the Pig, and how they contribute to our Breakfast? What's a small sacrifice of the eggs for the Chicken, becomes a total commitment for the Pig when he provides the bacon.

Joking aside. There is Great Power in making a Commitment. People often think because they are making some sacrifices (large or small) towards a goal that they are committed to the goal; when in fact they are not really committed at all. Sacrifices and Commitments are different...very different!

Sacrifices may get you in the game but commitments get the job done! Making Sacrifices are a lot like making Promises in that when things get tough, promises are ofter broken and sacrifices are often stopped. What separates sacrifices and promises from commitments is that Commitments are Never Broken or Stopped. Sounds tough when you hear it like that.

“Unless a commitment is made, there are only promises and hopes and maybe a little sacrifice...., but no plan of definite action and uncompromising will to succeed"

The one common denominator for all personal achievement is a person's ability to make a Commitment (to themselves) to do what every it takes to achieve the Goal. It's the "Let's Get'er Done"..."Cowboy up"..."Burn Your Ship"..."Go Ahead Make My Day" or quite simply "I'm going to do this no matter what!!! attitude". Remember commitments are NEVER BROKEN.

"Chickens and Pigs look at life differently...Which are you?"

Message #23 - Over and Above Your Expectations

What Would You Accomplish If You Knew You Could Not Fail!

WHAT IF THE ABOVE STATEMENT WERE TRUE FOR YOU.

What if you had the revelation that anything you tried would be successful. WHAT THEN WOULD YOU SET OUT TO DO?

Would you set out to discover the cure for the deadliest cancers known to the world?

Would you strive to break a record that was said could never be broken?

Would you go to medical school?

Would you tryout for the varsity team?

Would you try out for the Olympic Team?

Would you make an attempt to repair a broken relationship?

Would you attempt to create something that has never existed before?

Would you set out to climb Mt. Everest?

WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? EVERY SUCCESSFUL GREAT ACCOMPLISHMENT STARTED OUT WITH SMALL FAILURES ALONG HE WAY. IT'S THE CONVICTION TO THE LONG-TERM GOAL THAT ALLOWS YOU TO OVER LOOK THE SMALL FAILURES.

ACT IS IF YOU COULD ACCOMPLISH ANYTHING YOU SET OUT TO DO!

Message #22 - Are You On The Move?

All of Us Are Either Moving Towards Are Goals and Dreams...or Moving Farther Away From Them. We Are Never in a Holding Pattern.

Think about this. Pick one goal that's important to you.

Are you closer to achieving this goal or are you farther away from achieving this goal, this year vs. last year (this month vs. last month; this week vs. last week; today vs. yesterday). Be honest with yourself. Talk to yourself. Look at yourself in the mirror as you talk to yourself. What do you see? Do you see a person that's fighting to stay in the "game" or a person that has excused themselves to the sidelines.

If you're Closer to achieving this goal, ask yourself why? List at least 5 things you did to get you closer to your goal:

1. ________________________
2. ________________________
3. ________________________
4. ________________________
5. ________________________

If you're farther away from achieving this goal, again ask yourself why? List at least 5 things you failed to do that slowed your progress towards your goal:

1. ________________________
2. ________________________
3. ________________________
4. ________________________
5. ________________________

LOOK AT YOU LISTS. WHAT DO YOU SEE?

PICK OTHER GOALS AND DO THE LISTS. WHAT DO YOU SEE?

SEE ANY PATTERNS DEVELOPING...

This is simple and hard at the same time. Seems simple to just do more of the things that lead to success and less of the things that lead to failure.

The question becomes...How do we get motivated to do the things that lead to success.

The answer is to live in the present and in the NOW! Everyone that's got to where they are, had to start from where they were. Most people at first see the goal and get discouraged because they don't see results quick enough.

Or they become preoccupied with the small set backs and failures that we all have when we set out to achieve something.

WHAT CAN YOU DO RIGHT NOW TO MOVE YOU CLOSER TO ONE OF YOUR GOALS.

WHAT CAN YOU ELIMINATE RIGHT NOW THAT HAS BEEN GETTING IN THE WAY OF YOU ACHIEVING ONE OF YOUR GOALS.

FIND OUT WHAT'S IMPORTANT NOW...AND DO IT!

Message #21 - Opposition and Hardships

Character Determines What You Will Choose, Where You Will Go, What You Will Do, When You Will Quit, What You Will Say, When You Will Compromise, How You Will Live and Ultimately What You Will Achieve.


"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy". - Martin Luther King, Jr.

This quote by Martin Luther King, Jr., symbolizes what the true measure of a person is. IT IS WHERE THEY STAND WHEN THINGS GET HARD; WHEN THINGS AREN'T SAFE; WHEN THINGS AREN'T CONVENIENT; WHEN THINGS ARE DIFFICULT.

And so it is with anything you want to do or accomplish in life. If you want it...be prepared to fight for it. They don't sell GOLD MEDALS or PURPLE HEARTS at the department store. You won't find them at garage sells either. You'll find them buried deep within the souls of men and women passionate with successfully accomplishing their mission.

Once you set out on your mission, there's no turning back. You can't look back...only forward. Even when you stumble, you must stumble forward. Great accomplishment is only attained by overcoming obstacles. THE GREATER THE OBSTACLE...THE GREATER THE ACCOMPLISHMENT.

The following quote below hung in our wrestling room and I looked at it every day. I made sure I challenged and tested myself every day by somehow making every practice harder than the day before (these were the obstacles), and by conquering them I felt my confidence growing stronger, until I believed there was no obstacle I couldn't overcome.

"You can measure a man by the opposition it takes to discourage him". - Robert C. Savage

Message #20 - Dreaming Big Jamill Kelly Style

Never Quit and Never Give Up! You Never Know When Your Breakthrough is Coming.

Deep down inside Jamill Kelly always believed that some day he would WIN BIG...and he DID!

Jamill made the 2003 World Team and Made the 2004 Olympic Team by beating opponents that won a combined total of 5 NCAA Titles.

Jamill Never Won A State Title and he Never Placed in the NCAA's



IMPRESSIVE ISN'T IT!

Message #19 - Attitude

A Powerful Message on Attitude from Pastor Chuck Swindoll. We are all in charge of are attitudes

ATTITUDE

THE LONGER I LIVE, THE MORE I REALIZE THE IMPACT OF ATTITUDE ON LIFE.

ATTITUDE, TO ME, IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN FACTS.

IT IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE PAST, THAN EDUCATION, THAN MONEY, THAN CIRCUMSTANCES, THAN FAILURES, THAN SUCCESSES, THAN WHAT OTHER PEOPLE THINK, OR SAY, OR DO.

IT IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN APPEARANCE, GIFTEDNESS, OR SKILL.

IT WILL MAKE OR BREAK A COMPANY...A CHURCH...A HOME.

THE REMARKABLE THING IS WE HAVE A CHOICE EVERY DAY REGARDING THE ATTITUDE WE WILL EMBRACE FOR THAT DAY.

WE CANNOT CHANGE OUR PAST...WE CANNOT CHANGE THE FACT THAT PEOPLE WILL ACT IN A CERTAIN WAY.

WE CANNOT CHANGE THE INEVITABLE.

THE ONLY THING WE CAN DO IS PLAY ON THE ONE THING WE HAVE, AND THAT IS OUR ATTITUDE

I AM CONVINCED THAT LIFE IS 10% WHAT HAPPENS TO ME AND 90% HOW I REACT TO IT.

AND SO IT IS WITH YOU...WE ARE IN CHARGE OF OUR ATTITUDES.

-Chuck Swindoll

Message #18 - Dreaming Big Shackleton Style

Sir Ernest Shackleton and the Endurance

In December 1914, Shackleton set sail, on "the Endurance" with his 27-man crew, to accomplish something that had never been done before...to be the first to completely cross the Antarctic continent on foot. This was an extremely dangerous mission.

To select many of the 27-man crew, it is said, they had responded to the following recruitment notice: "Men wanted for hazardous journey. Small wages. Bitter cold. Long months of complete darkness. Constant danger. Safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success. —Ernest Shackleton."

Ice conditions were unusually harsh, and the wooden ship, which Shackleton had renamed Endurance after his family motto, Fortitudine Vincimus—"by endurance we conquer," became trapped in the pack ice of the Weddell Sea. For 10 months, the Endurance drifted, locked within the ice, until the pressure crushed the ship. With meager food, clothing and shelter, Shackleton and his men were stranded on the ice floes, where they camped for five months.

When they had drifted to the northern edge of the pack, encountering open leads of water, the men sailed the three small lifeboats they'd salvaged to a bleak crag called Elephant Island. They were on land for the first time in 497 days; however, it was uninhabited and, due to its distance from shipping lanes, provided no hope for rescue.

Recognizing the severity of the physical and mental strains on his men, Shackleton and five others immediately set out to take the crew's rescue into their own hands. In a 22-foot lifeboat named the James Caird, they accomplished the impossible, surviving a 17-day, 800-mile journey through the world's worst seas to South Georgia Island, where a whaling station was located.

The six men landed on an uninhabited part of the island, however, so their last hope was to cross 26 miles of mountains and glaciers, considered impassable, to reach the whaling station on the other side. Starved, frostbitten and wearing rags, Shackleton and two others made the trek, and on the afternoon of May 20, 1916, Shackleton, Worsley and Crean walked into South Georgia's Stromness station. They had marched non-stop for 36 hours. Dressed in rags and black with blubber smoke, they were unrecognizable. The station manager asked "Who the hell are you?" "My name is Shackleton," was the modest reply.

After arriving at the Stromness station, Shackleton made immediate plans to rescue the Elephant Island group. The Norwegians volunteered a ship; but 60 miles from Elephant Island, the ice prevented the unprotected vessel from continuing. As the months passed, Shackleton made increasingly frantic rescue attempts, each time thwarted by ice or weather. At last, on August 30, they succeeded in bringing through the Yelcho, a tug loaned by the Chilean government. It was their fourth attempt. Four months had passed since the Caird's departure, and Shackleton feared the worst.

On Elephant Island, the Yelcho was spotted. As the castaways ran onto the beach, Shackleton, straining through binoculars, counted anxiously. "They are all there!" Worsley reported him crying. It was August 1916, 21 months after the initial departure of the Endurance, Shackleton returned to rescue the men on Elephant Island. Although they'd withstood the most incredible hardship and privation, not one member of the 28-man crew was lost.

Shackleton was quoted as saying "If anything should happen to those fellows while waiting for me, I shall feel like a murderer."

Message #17 - Burning Your Ships...Ali Style

This is How Muhammad Ali Burned His Ships

Don't play the Video in this post until after you've read my post of September 22, 2007, titled "Burning Your Ships", and until after you read my comments below:

You don't have to be a Muhammad Ali fan to appreciate his desire to win and the supreme confidence he displayed when preparing for his boxing matches and in the ring. His signature tag line of "I'm the Greatest" is legendary. Even the Ali detractors grew to respect his great courage and desire to be the best. Read my post of September 22, 2007, titled "Burning Your Ships", of how Cortez took away all escape options by instructing his men to "burn the ships", leaving he and his men, only one thing to think about...how to survive and complete their mission. Quite simply it all boiled down to winning.

Well, Muhammad Ali did much the same thing when he would make outrageous statements about his opponents and about what he would do if he lost. He left himself no way out, he had only one thing to think about, and that was how he was going to WIN! Losing was not an option for him. He took that option away by his antics. Think of the pressure you would feel if you backed yourself into a corner like he did, "saying all that crazy stuff he used to say", and think of how hard and intensely you would train; and think of the depth and scope of your mental preparation; all to avoid the humiliation of having to eat your words if you lost.

Anyway you look at it, this is "Burning Your Ships"...you win or else be humiliated. The clip you are about to hear is before Ali's biggest fight at the time - the year was 1964 - it was a shot at the heavyweight world title - against the most feared heavyweight at the time, and if he lost this fight his career would have suffered a great setback - to say the least, and it possibly could have ended his career. The media would never have taken him seriously after that, and more importantly, how could he have taken himself seriously after that.

If after reading my comments here and you've read my post of September 22, 2007, titled "Burning Your Ships", Click the play button at bottom left of picture and hear what Ali has to say.

This indeed is "Burning Your Ships"

Message #16 - The Battle Inside of All of Us

TWO WOLVES

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, "My son, the battle is between two "wolves" inside us all.


One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.


The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence,empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith."


The grand son thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: "Which wolf wins?"The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."

Message #15 - “Burn the Ships”

Commitment is the foundation of all Success

This phrase “Burn The Ships” comes from a historic conquest of history when, in 1519, Spanish Conquistador Hernando Cortez landed in Mexico on the shores of the Yucatan, with only one objective…seize the great treasures known to be there, hoarded by the Aztecs. Cortez was committed to his mission and his quest for riches is legendary. Cortez was an excellent motivator, he convinced more than 500 soldiers and 100 sailors to set sail from Spain to Mexico, commanding 11 ships, to take the world’s riches treasure. The historic question is “how a small band of Spanish soldiers arrived in a strange country and swiftly brought about the overthrow of a large and powerful empire that was in power for over six centuries?”

For Cortez, the answer was easy. It was all or nothing! A Complete and Total Commitment. Here’s how Cortez got the “buy in” from the rest of his men. He took away the option of failure. It was conquer and be hero’s and enjoy the spoils of victory…or DIE! When Cortez and his men arrived on the shores of the Yucatan he rallied the men for one final pep talk before leading his men into battle, and utters these three words that changed the course of history. “Burn the Ships”.

He met with resistance from his men. "Burn the ships," he repeated. He then uttered these words "if we are going home, we are going home in their ships". With that, Cortez and his men burned their own ships, and by burning their own ships, the commitment level of the men was raised to a whole new level. A level much higher than any of the men, including Cortez, could have ever imagined.

Amazingly, the men conquered the Aztecs and had succeeded in something where others had been unsuccessful for six centuries. With the victory Cortez and his men took the treasure. Why did they win? They had no escape. No fall back position. They had no choice! It was "succeed or die". Their ships were burned. They had no way to get back. Their backs were to the wall.

To “really succeed” you must have an attitude much like that of Cortez and his men. Cortez and his men did not have a “crutch” or “fall back position”. They frankly didn’t have any options. It was simply “succeed or DIE”. Pretty strong position, isn’t it? How would you like to be engaged in fighting someone with that level of motivation and commitment?

This is the level of motivation and commitment you must have. The “BURN YOUR SHIP” level of motivation and commitment. Take away your crutches and excuses and burn the ships that are keeping you from achieving your goals. Identity the ships in your life that are keeping you from accomplishing dreams. I have a saying and it’s “Dream Big”. I have a new saying and it’s “Burn your Ship”. You see, whatever prevents you from achieving your goals and dreams are ships that must be burned. Not dismantled, or run ashore…but burned and destroyed.

If we know that our ships are still out there, when things get tough we instinctively head for our ships so we can escape. It's just human nature. The path of least resistance. This level of thinking and commitment sees sacrifice as a positive thing, not something weird or impossible, but something to be cherished and fought for. Cortez didn’t allow himself or his men to have the option of going back to Spain. By removing this option, Cortez and his men were forced to focus on how they could make the mission successful. And so it is with you. How can you make the missions in your life successful?

This is really a story about commitment. Commitment is the foundation of success. Not a single accomplishment is ever achieved without it. By focusing on commitment, we seal our future.

Message #14 - Don't Sweat The Small Stuff...Focus On What's Important Today

This is really fascinating to see Our World Presented This Way. Our mortal minds can’t comprehend the vastness and complexity of the universe. The bible says God spoke all this into existence. The Bible also says we are all made in his image. Wow!!!

The Sun is Circled in Red

The Sun is circled in Green (it's barely visiable on the page) and Arcturus is circled in Red.
Notice the size of Arcturus in the photo above this one compared to Antares in this photo.

ANTARES IS THE 15TH BRIGHTEST STAR IN THE SKY. IT IS MORE THAN 1000 LIGHT YEARS AWAY.

NOW HOW BIG ARE YOU?

NOW TRY TO WRAP YOUR MIND AROUND THIS

THIS IS A HUBBLE TELESCOPE ULTRA DEEP FIELD INFRARED VIEW OF COUNTLESS"ENTIRE" GALAXIES BILLIONS OF LIGHT-YEARS AWAY.

BELOW IS A CLOSE UP OF ONE OF THE DARKEST REGIONS OF THE PHOTO ABOVE

HUMBLING, ISN'T IT?

NOW HOW BIG ARE YOU? AND HOW BIG ARE THE THINGS THAT UPSET YOU TODAY?

KEEP LIFE IN PERSPECTIVE.

AND DON'T SWEAT THE SMALL STUFF!

Message #13 - Best Chance at Winning is to Never Stop Trying

Listen to What Harvey McKay has to say about Over Coming Obstacles

Are you surprised at who had to overcome the disappointments and obstacles thrown at him to ultimately succeed?
I was!

Message #12 - Why People Win...

Winning is a function of inner confidence and dealing with the pressure.

Click on the picture to learn why people win and how you can learn to win and deal with the pressure of wanting to win.

Change your mental attitude and start WINNING NOW

Message #11 - DREAM THE IMPOSSIBLE AND BELIEVE

They Said it Couldn't be Done

Don't Believe What Others Say About You

Message #10 - DREAM BIG!!!

Kemp vs. Gable

I wrestled Dan Gable in only my sixth year of wrestling experience. The first time I went out for wrestling was my freshmen year in high school. That was the fall of 1970.

I wrestled Dan Gable in the fall of 1976 in my Sophomore year in college.


Dan Gable was an Olympic Champion in 1972.


There is simply no way I could have entered that match without Dreaming BIG!!!

Message #9 - Bubba Jenkins Wins Junior World Title

Congratulations Bubba!

CLICK ON IMAGE TO SEE BUBBA'S GOLD MEDAL MATCH

Bubba Jenkins (Virginia Beach, Va./Penn State University) won a gold medal at 66 kg/145.5 lbs at the Junior World Championships in freestyle wrestling on Sunday night, Aug. 26 in Beijing, China. Jenkins defeated European Junior champion Okay Koksal of Turkey 1-0, 3-0 in the championship finals. Jenkins pinned Armenia’s Samvel Adyan, beat Kazakhstan’s Nurlan Bekhanov 0-1, 4-0, 4-2 and downed Iran’s Saied Dadashpour 2-0, 6-0 en route to reaching the finals of the Junior Worlds. Jenkins went 23-12 and qualified for the 2007 NCAA Championships at 157 pounds during his freshman year at Penn State. He went 1-2 at his first NCAA tournament. Jenkins plans to drop down to 149 into a packed weight class for his sophomore season in college. THIS WILL BE INTERESTING!

Message #8 - Don't Apologize for Trying to Win

Winning is not as Important as a Winning Effort

I Love to sweat, work and practice...and win.

But to work, sweat and pactice...and lose.

I can't see that at all! - - Lee Kemp

Message #7 - Every Day You Must Get Up Running

Every day in the Serengeti, a Puma must run faster than the slowest Gazelle to eat, or else he will starve and die.

Every day in the Serengeti, a Gazelle must run faster than the fastest Puma to avoid being eaten, or else he will die.

It doesn’t matter who you are in the Serengeti, a Puma or a Gazelle, you better get up running.

Message #6 - Do It Now...What Ever Your Going to Do...Do It Now

Don't Wait to Get Started on you Goals...Do It Now...Get Started Now!

1. Planning is Great, but don't plan your success to the point that all your doing is planning. To put it another way "Don't Buy Green Bananas" (Hope you get the point).
   
   
2. Expect results right away. By doing this you will work a little harder. I remember when I first started to lift weights in 8th grade, I could hardly wait until I saw a hint of some muscles starting to develop. I was always pusing for results.
   
   
3. Ability, Talent, Opportunity will not produce results all by themselves. You must do something. There are a lot of people that possess all these attributes, and more, but they never accomplished much, because they never get started on something.
   
   
4. Get started NOW!

Message #5 - Don't Set Limits on Your Ability or Goals

If I Asked You the Questions: What are Your Goals?.... and How Big Are They? - - What Would You Say?

1. I have a wrestling school and I consistently ask my wrestlers what do they want to accomplish?
   
   
2. What I find is that some of them limit there goals to what they think, or are reasonable sure they can accomplish.
   
   
3. The problem with this is there could be so much more they could accomplish...If they only believed in themselves, and set higher goals.
   
   
4. Never set your Limits. When you set your limits, you also set the point where YOU WILL QUIT.
   
   
5. Don't watch the clip in #7 below unless you want to have a breakthrough. Promise yourself before you watch this clip that you will start giving your best effort without setting limits.If you’ve decided you want a breakthrough watch the clip. Get ready to get inspired!!!

Message #4 - Humility

It’s not about us; it is God working through us and others that are responsible for our achievements

My Faith in God has taught me to know that:

• There are Godly influences and inspirations in our lives, without which we could not, and would not, achieved anything of any significance. To put it another way “It’s not about us; it is God working through us and others that are responsible for our achievements".
  
  
• I’ve kept this little newspaper clipping since 1973 when I was 16 years old (my sophomore year in High School), when I first started having wrestling success. The previous year I had little success; I had almost as many wins as losses.
  
  
• I saw this clipping in the Geauga Times Leader newspaper from my hometown, Chardon Ohio, and it had a profound effect on me. This shaped my perspective on any success I had in wrestling, or anything else to this very day.
  
  
• I realized that it's to God and the Godly influences and inspirations upon our lives that we must give the credit to.
  
  
• All the ability and talent we possess are God’s gift to each of us.
  
  
• My faith in God continuously reminds me I’ve been blessed with gifts far beyond that which I deserve. So much so that I can only give the glory and honor to the one that bestows the gifts, OUR HEAVENLY FATHER, GOD

Message #3 - Passion Creates That Something Extra

Develop a Passion for What You Do

Message #2 - How Do I Get The Winning Attitude?

People that win all the time are not governed by circumstances, but are guided by their passions and love. Read on;

1. Which comes first; a successful event or outcome that changes your thinking and attitude –or– a change in your thinking and attitude that creates a successful event? The answer is Both. It really doesn’t matter which comes first, however for predicable and planned success ones attitude must be the driving force behind the success. The fact is attitude can be changed in a number of ways.
   
   
2. Attitude can be changed by both negative and positive circumstances, and will have a direct impact on your performance. For instance; if it’s a nice day (sun shining etc.) you have a tendency to automatically feel better which generally leads to a more productive and successful day. Conversely if it’s a bad day (overcast, raining etc) you have a tendency to not feel as good and as a result have diminished motivation and less productivity. The problem here is you can’t predict when you’re going to feel good and if your big event falls on one of your “bad days” you don’t perform.
   
   
3. Almost everyone’s performance (and success) will go up if enough force and punishment is applied. For instance; if every day you got beat if you didn’t meet a work quota, sooner or later you will get tired of getting beat and start meeting your work quota. It doesn’t matter how hard the quota is to hit, your attitude will change and your performance will go up and you will figure out how to hit the quota. Some country’s have a very low crime rate because any guilty perpetrators are killed. The wanted attitude and behavior is achieved by maximum force. This scenario will cause predictable performance and success, but is not feasible or humane in this country.
   
   
4. Think about if you were in the situation described in #3 above. What would your attitude be when you woke up in the morning? You’ve guess it. You would get up “strap it on” (that winning attitude) and make sure you didn’t get beat that day. Replace the negative consequence forcing you to conform your attitude and behavior with something that is even a greater motivator. PASSION and LOVE. Think about it. People that are passionate about something can’t stop talking or thinking about it. It is the passion and love of something that surpasses all fear, stress and strain, work, pain and doubt and is virtually unstoppable. Let Passion and Love control your attitude.
   
   
5. Develop a passion and love for what you do. If you don’t have a passion and love yet for something, don’t worry, you can develop it. Just immerse yourself in what ever you’re doing and be diligent and soon you will find the passion and love creeping in. You CAN learn to love something. If you do this you will consistently be successful. I guarantee it.

Message #1 - How Can I be Sure of Future Success?

The best way to be sure of future of performance is to;

1. First prepare yourself for your goal by repeatedly challenging and testing yourself in situations similar to the one you want your best performance in. This is your “Preparation/Training Time”. Your “Preparation/Training Time” must have repeated and relentless efforts towards carefully selected goals that continually move upward to “the next level” once lower levels are attained. This keeps you in a state of growth and improvement during your “Preparation/Training Time”.
   
   
2. Make sure you have enough “Preparation/Training Time” to experience noticeable growth and improvement of your performance during your repeated efforts. This is essential for building a solid foundation for your confidence. To put it another way, set goals for yourself that at first seem unattainable during your “Preparation Time”, and put pressure on yourself to, not only attain the goals, but to exceed them (even though they seem unattainable) and allow yourself to feel the emotions and pressure of how your effort stacks up to the goal. This is an important part of the process. You must allow yourself to feel the emotions and pressure connected with the satisfaction (or disappointment) of your efforts during this “Preparation/Training time”. You want to condition yourself to hunger for the feeling of satisfaction when you’ve attained one of your “Preparation/Training Time” goals.
   
   
3. Continually push and improve each effort toward your goals during the “Preparation/Training Time”, always inching closer towards the ultimate goal you’ve set for yourself. Remember you are trying to do a “dress rehearsal” of your “big event” trying to make it as real as possible. Ultimately you will evaluate how your repeated effort, during your “Preparation/Training Time”, stacks up to you actually believing your ultimate goal is attainable. The key here is to continually “move the bar higher” improving upon your past practice performances.
   
   
4. Draw upon your successes from your “Preparation/Training Time” to establish your history of past successes, and this knowledge will provide the base and the foundation for you to actually believe that you can achieve your ultimate goals.