What Gives You That Right?

What Gives You That Right? – – Robert Rohm ~ / ~

I hope you will give this Tip your undivided attention. It could be the one to change your direction for the rest of your life!

Before the bicycle, as we know it today, was invented, it had quite an evolution. An earlier version had a front tire that was considerably larger than the back tire. It was thought that this design would make the bicycle more stable and sturdier. It turned out that the first cyclists had to be very athletic to ride that bike because it took a lot of muscle to propel it forward. The large front tire made it very challenging for the rider.

After many experiments, someone got the bright idea to make the two tires the same size. Can you believe that was once a novel idea? I wish I could have been a fly on the wall, listening to the conversation that may have taken place that day! Finally, with both wheels being the same size, the bicycle was much easier to operate. And the rest is history!

However, in the early 1900’s, there were a couple of bicycle mechanics by the name of Orville and Wilbur Wright. As these two brothers worked on bicycles every day in their shop, they began to get ideas about speed and other modes of transportation. They dreamed of creating a flying machine and that dream became an obsession with them. They are credited with having made the first flight in Kittyhawk, North Carolina, just over one hundred years ago.

If someone had asked Orville and Wilbur Wright what gave them the right to create an airplane, I doubt very seriously that anyone would have been impressed if the brothers had answered, “We are bicycle mechanics!” That would have caused everyone to laugh at them to scorn.

I think what gives anyone the right to try anything basically boils down to two issues: 1) having a dream, and 2) having a desire.

When you have a dream, you can see things that other people do not see. You do not look at all the obstacles. You learn to look at the finish line and the success of the endeavor you are attempting. Life is really made up of dreams. I pity the person who does not have a big dream that causes them to get out of bed every morning and take another step towards achieving that dream. When a person lives with a dream, they truly have a life worth living!

The second thing I mentioned is desire. You will not do anything if you do not have desire. Once you have a dream, a burning desire is what propels it to become reality. It happened with the Wright brothers. They had a dream of a flying machine and the desire to try, and that is what gave them the right to be the ones to do it!

I know that in some cases we must earn certain credentials to have the legal right to do things. I certainly want my medical doctor to have earned the right through his or her studies to operate on my body whenever that is necessary! But, even in that case, before the right to become a physician was earned, there had to be a dream or a desire to pursue that profession.

In this Tip, I am trying to focus on the fact that you have the right to attempt anything that you dream. I know that what the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve. And your dreams are well worth pursuing! I also know you have the right if you have desire. When you want to do things that make a difference in life, that is what qualifies you to attempt whatever is on your heart or mind. Believe that truth!

The next time someone tries to steal your dream or kill your desire by making fun of you, or by asking what gives you the right to pursue whatever it is that you are pursuing, just smile and say, “There are two things that give me that right. I have a dream and I have a desire, and I am going to do my very best to see them fulfilled.”

Life is so short, and you should enjoy the trip by attempting to accomplish whatever goals that you have in your life. Dream big! Have strong desires! You have the right to do that. You have the right to succeed. All it takes is for you to have the determination to stay on the course until you see your dreams and desires fulfilled. It may move slowly at times, but always remember we are working on progress not perfection. Stay on the journey!

Tip: What gives you that right?

Have a great week! God bless you! Dr. Robert A. Rohm

Every Master Was Once A Disaster

Every Master Was Once A Disaster – – Robert Rohm ~ / ~

Do you know someone who is great at what they do? Regardless of whether they are a skilled surgeon, a typist, or musician, or speaker, or any other kind of professional, I can guarantee you there was a time when they knew absolutely nothing about what they are now so great at doing! I can also guarantee you that when they first began their career, they made mistakes. They stumbled along and probably made a fool out of themselves on more than one occasion. That is because they did not originally know how to do the very task that they have become so proficient in doing. Although they now look like a master, more than likely, they were once a disaster.

When people do not know how to do something, they have to have a starting point. No one starts at the end of the process. Rather, they start at the beginning. When a person first learns to ride a bicycle, they do not start by racing in the Tour de France. They usually start by riding a tricycle before they move to a bike. Even when they begin to ride the bicycle, they typically fall off several times until they get the hang of how to do it and learn how to keep their balance.

I am amazed at the tricks that some of these young kids do with bicycles in competitions. I have seen them jump off of ramps, do flips, completely dismount in mid-air and then get back on, before landing safely on both wheels. I never even thought about doing something like that when I was a kid! I was just happy when my bicycle would work so that I could deliver all my papers on my paper route. The only flip I ever experienced on my bicycle was when I flipped over because the front of it was too heavy with all of my newspapers!

The famous motivational speaker, Zig Ziglar, often said, “Anything in life worth doing at all is worth doing poorly – until you can learn how to do it well.” Zig used that as an example of how everyone has to start from a place of incompetence until they learn to be competent. That process takes place through trial and error. I can assure you that whether it is building houses, sewing clothes, painting a picture, styling someone’s hair, or playing golf, each professional has to go through the pain of seeing their work fail miserably until they get good at what they are now doing.

This week, look at your profession and your life through a different set of eyes. Cut yourself some slack. Realize that you may be in the process of learning how to do what you do better. It is through that process that you will get good (and maybe even great) at what you are doing. When you finally do become a master at your particular trade, you will be the first one to stand up and give testimony to the fact that you were once a disaster at what everyone thinks comes so naturally and easily to you. You will be able to encourage others by telling them the “horror” stories of the mistakes you made in your own life as you were developing the skill that you now possess.

I don’t know about you, but thoughts like this really encourage me. They help me to keep trying and give me hope that the future can be better than the past. Life truly is a journey and we should be learning all that we can as we travel along life’s road.

I know that whatever it is that you love to do, you will become a master at it in time. Just keep doing it. Don’t give up or quit! You deserve to be a master yourself. It simply takes time, and you are on your way!

Tip: Every master was once a disaster.

Have a great week! God bless you! Dr. Robert A. Rohm

Humor Isn’t Funny Business – It’s Fun Business

Humor Isn’t Funny Business – It’s Fun Business – Harvey Mackay ~ / ~

I like to find humor in most situations, no matter how dire. Take for example the devastating tornadoes that hit my home city of Minneapolis in the summer of 1987. There was massive damage and people were emotionally distraught. Our local newspaper pictured a man standing by his car, which had been crushed by a fallen tree. He was smiling, waving at people driving by and holding a sign that read, “new-style compact car.”

This guy knew there wasn’t much he could do with the cards he was dealt, so why not have a little fun and show some humor in the situation?

With April being National Humor Month, I’m taking advantage of the opportunity to share some humorous stories that have a business message. Really, can’t everyone use a good laugh these days?

Achievement
Gretchen Alexander refused to allow her blindness to limit her life experiences. She mastered archery, golf, softball, sailing and water skiing, as well as a number of other activities her sighted friends had yet to learn.

Speaking before a group of high-school students about her achievements, one student asked if there was anything she wouldn’t try.

“I have decided to never sky dive,” she answered. “It would scare the heck out of my dog.”

Quick thinking
A minister, a boy scout, and a computer executive were flying to a meeting in a small private plane. About halfway to their destination, the pilot came back and announced that the plane was going to crash and that there were only three parachutes and four people.

The pilot said, “I am going to use one of the parachutes because I have a wife and four small children,” and he jumped.

The computer executive said, “I should have one of the parachutes because I am the smartest man in the world and my company needs me,” and he jumped.

The minister turned to the boy scout and, smiling sadly, said, “You are young, and I have lived a good, long life, so you take the last parachute, and I’ll go down with the plane.”

The boy scout said, “Relax, Reverend, the smartest man in the world just strapped on my backpack and jumped out of the plane!”

Optimism
It’s like the two salesmen who fell on hard times and ended up broke in a small town in Montana. They needed money to move on and learned that the town paid $20 each for wolf pelts. They sensed the opportunity. That night they set out with a couple of clubs and some borrowed supplies and made camp in the distant hills. They were no sooner asleep than one was startled by an eerie howl. He crawled outside the tent to find himself surrounded by hundreds of snarling wolves. Back into the tent he crawled and shook his buddy.

“Wake up!” he cried. “Wake up! We’re rich!”

Customer service
A local meat market has three or four clerks waiting on customers. One of them always has a line of customers waiting for him – even if one of the other clerks is available. One day, a visitor asked the always-busy clerk the reason for his popularity.

He said: “The other clerks always put more meat on the scale and then take some away to arrive at what the customer ordered. I always put less on the scale and then add to it. It makes all the difference.”

Competition
There is an old saying in Africa that goes like this: Every morning a gazelle gets up and knows that it must out-run the fastest lion or it will get eaten. And every morning, a lion gets up and knows that it must out-run the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death. So, whether you are a gazelle or a lion, every morning when you get up, you’d better start running.

In other words, if you can’t win, make the person ahead of you break the record.

Laugh at yourself
I learned this lesson the hard way from my wife, Carol Ann. While I am accustomed to public speaking and make frequent speeches to large audiences, I was preparing to address a very distinguished audience and was a little nervous. I asked her what kind of remarks might be appropriate for the occasion.

“Whatever you do,” Carol Ann said, “don’t try to sound intellectual, sophisticated or charming. Just be yourself.”

And we are still married after 64 years.

Mackay’s Moral: He (or she) who laughs, lasts.